"This is an indication of how fearful the EU is that they have to make these silly threats," senior lawmaker Bernard Jenkin, from Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative Party, told BBC radio. "Of course we are going to do rather well outside the EU and we are going to show the EU up as a rather less successful organisation than it is. "Influential Conservative MP Jacob Rees-Mogg, billed as a possible leadership rival to May, said the British government would find it "very difficult" to agree with. "Thank heavens we are leaving an organisation that takes such an aggressive stance when you don't do what you are told," he was quoted as saying by The Times newspaper.Britain did not say whether it would accept Brussels' proposal, or if the government had come up with contingency plans if Britain is blocked from the single market during the transition period. "This is a draft document produced by the EU that simply reflects their stated directives," a Brexit ministry spokesman told AFP.The two sides hope to reach agreement on a transition by the end of March so they can move on to talks on the future EU-UK relationship, including the outline of a possible trade deal.The two sides reached an interim deal in December on three key separation issues -- the financial settlement, the Irish border and the rights of EU citizens after Brexit.

Source: Egypt Today February 07, 2018 10:41 UTC