Brexit news latest: Government says ministers will boycott most EU meetings from September 1

WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

British ministers and officials will boycott most European Union meetings from September 1, the Government announced today.

They will use the “incredible amount of time” saved to focus on future relationship with the EU and other countries – including trade deals.

Ministers will only attend big summits and those covering essential interests like security. The rest will be ignored, sending a clear message that Britain is serious about quitting at the end of October.

Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay said: “An incredible amount of time and effort goes into EU meetings with attendance just the tip of the iceberg.

Stephen Barclay pictured in Downing Street last week
Yui Mok/PA

“Our diligent, world-class officials also spend many hours preparing for them whether in reading the necessary papers or working on briefings.

“From now on we will only go to the meetings that really matter, reducing attendance by over half and saving hundreds of hours.

“This will free up time for Ministers and their officials to get on with preparing for our departure on October 31 and seizing the opportunities that lie ahead.”

With Brexit due in 72 days, many discussions in EU meetings will be about the future of the Union after the UK has left, making British participation irrelevant, say officials.

Work on preparations, new trade deals and promoting a Global Britain are cited as the new top priorities.

Government sources say the decision is not intended to frustrate the functioning of the EU but to reflect the reality of the UK’s imminent departure.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT