On Wednesday 4 September, the European Commission will present a sixth communication on the preparation of the EU, citizens and businesses for a scenario of the United Kingdom leaving the EU without agreement, the institution said on Tuesday 3 September.
After a series of communications on this subject covering in particular practical aspects for air transport, customs, fisheries and also citizens' rights, this communication should focus on emergency funds, European ‘disaster’ funds such as the solidarity fund to which European companies could be entitled to in the event of an impact on their activity. It is these funds and this type of aid that will be involved, as the Financial Times has revealed. The Commission will also update preparatory measures already presented.
At the first meeting of the College of Commissioners since the end of summer recess, President Juncker himself will inform his team about the telephone contact he had with Boris Johnson last week and the EU Chief Negotiator, Michel Barnier, will return to the more technical status of the discussions. On Wednesday, the ambassadors of the Twenty-Seven will also meet to take stock of the situation and take note of these new emergency measures.
For the European Commission, as spokesperson Mina Andreeva said, there is certainly progress "on the process" of dialogue with London, as David Frost, emissary of the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, now comes to Brussels "twice a week" for technical talks with the ‘Article 50’ team. Progress on form can therefore potentially lead to progress "on substance", the spokesperson said. However, she reiterated that, so far, no concrete proposals "compatible" with the withdrawal agreement on the orderly exit of the United Kingdom from the EU had been presented by the British side, regardless of the form of these proposals. This observation is shared by the Finnish Minister for European Affairs, Tytti Tuppurainen.
"To be constructive and avoid criticising each other, we asked the United Kingdom to present concrete, detailed and realistic proposals as soon as possible", she told MEPs in the European Parliament’s Committee on ‘Constitutional Affairs’ on 3 September.
More specifically, the Commission was responding to Boris Johnson's statement the day before that talks with the EU are making real "progress". The Prime Minister was speaking after the announcement of the vote on 3 September on a legislative initiative tabled by opponents of an exit without agreement.
A decisive evening for Boris Johnson
Boris Johnson, who was almost inaudible under the slogans "Stop the coup" from opponents of last week's five-week suspension of the British Parliament, urged MPs not to support this initiative. Aiming not only to prevent a no deal on 31 October, the text also calls, if necessary, for a further extension of the Article 50 period for three months.
Boris Johnson, who claimed Monday evening not to want to call early elections in the event of defeat on Tuesday evening, had also failed on Tuesday morning to convince some of his party's ministers and members to oppose this legislative initiative, according to the BBC. Earlier that day, former Minister Philip Lee indicated that he would support this initiative... and announced that he was leaving the Tories for the Lib Dems - a defection that caused the Prime Minister to lose his 'working majority' in the House, according to the British media.
In front of MPs late Tuesday afternoon, Boris Johnson maintained that he did not want elections and that the country would leave the EU on 31 October, even without an agreement, although an agreement is being sought and the "chances" of getting it "have increased", he said. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)