„And you can also do a lot of things through coordinating policy, at intergovernmental level, but it certainly makes sense to also have European competencies for certain situations, especially pandemics.“
She continued: „Ideally, we should always have had a uniform European approach to lockdowns, shutdowns and other measures.
„I believe that Europe needs more competencies in the area of health. This will probably also require changes to the treaties,“ Merkel said at an event organized by her center-right pan-EU political family, the European People‘s Party, which discussed potential EU reforms that could also come up as part of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
He said that „much had changed“ since the 2007 Lisbon Treaty, pointing to the eurozone and migration crises and Brexit.
A treaty renegotiation would require unanimous consent from all EU member states. In the same interview, Kurz expressed scepticism over any cooperation between the centre-right European People‘s Party (EPP) — to which the OeVP belongs — and parties further to the right in the European Parliament.
– Tory councillors in Derbyshire will not canvass for their MEP candidates in May
– The defiance could pave the way for the Brexit Party to beat both main parties
– Other local Conservative groups are expected to rebel amid growing anger
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Theresa May has announced she will hold yet more votes with MPs to determine what kind of deal they want if Labour and the Tories can’t work out a new Brexit deal amongst themselves.
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Seasoned campaigners were shocked by the level of anger they encountered on the nation doorsteps – invariably from Brexiteers who felt betrayed.
One councillor in the East Midlands told me:
“I had somebody who was so furious he started getting a nosebleed. Even then he kept talking about the local Conservative MP letting him down.”
Someone from the North West, in a Conservative council, suggested that this week it was even harder pounding than last week:
“The decision to hold the Euro Elections is a disaster for us. For a start, it confuses matters. People think we might be canvassing for them and then really go mad. Before we have a chance of talking about local issues they start the conversation by saying they will definitely not be voting for us in the Euro Elections.”
„But it was not logical in my view, and above all, it was neither good for us, nor for the British people.“
He added: „I think we delivered the best possible compromise. First because it was the one to preserve the unity of the 27.
Following is the text of an EU summit agreement on Thursday giving Britain more time to complete its withdrawal from the European Union.
A small number of EU member states argued for an extension to June 30, but most argued for much longer: to December 2019, or even March 2020
Theresa May‘s own Brexit Secretary today admitted that the European Union was now “in control” of Britain’s departure from the bloc.
The French President will insist the UK can have no say in the bloc‘s future trade deals in contrast to what the Labour boss is asking for.
He will demand the Political Declaration is rewritten to stress „the EU’s autonomy of decision making and the integrity of the Single Market”.
President Macron is also calling for regular ‚behaviour reviews‘ of the UK, a bonfire of its EU powers and posts and a ‚Boris-proof‘ lock preventing a new Tory leader causing havoc within the EU if she stands down, despite warnings from Donald Tusk and Angela Merkel not to poison relations with Britain.
Angela Merkel has given her backing to a „longer“ Brexit delay than has been requested by Theresa May, ahead of a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Wednesday evening.
The German Chancellor said any extension to Article 50 should be flexible enough to allow the UK‘s departure from the European Union „very quickly“ once the UK had approved the withdrawal agreement.
Brexit leads most of Wednesday’s papers as EU leaders gather in Brussels for another crunch summit when they will be asked to sign off on a second extension.
Theresa May has headed for top-level talks in Berlin and Paris as she seeks European support to stop us crashing out of the EU on Friday.
The prime minister exchanged a warm greeting with Angela Merkel and they spent an hour together in Berlin.
– Theresa May will jet to Berlin and then on to Paris today to urge Merkel and Macron to agree Brexit delay
– Their price is expected to be to refuse to let the UK have any say in future EU budget talks and trade deals
Theresa May was today ordered by Germany and France to accept “very strict” conditions in return for a Brexit delay.
In a fresh humiliation, the Prime Minister was told she can only have a longer extension of Article 50 if Britain is bound by a good behaviour contract.
British Prime Minister Theresa May will meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday to argue for a Brexit delay while her ministers hold crisis talks with the opposition to try to break the deadlock in London.
Theresa May is to hold last-minute Brexit talks with the leaders of Germany and France later, four days before the UK is due to leave the EU.
Mrs May is meeting Angela Merkel in Berlin, followed by Emmanuel Macron in Paris, to urge them to back her request to delay Brexit again until 30 June.
Yvette Cooper‘s backbench Bill aimed at forcing Theresa May to request a Brexit extension rather than leave the EU with no deal has been signed into law.
The cross-party European Union (Withdrawal) (No 5) Bill received royal assent after it was backed by MPs and peers on Monday night.
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In a letter to the Prime Minister, more than 100 current and would-be Tory councillors state that they are unable to muster the volunteers needed to effectively fight next month’s local elections because “belief in the party they joined is gone”.
Council leaders have told The Sunday Telegraph they are preparing for heavy losses in the local elections, amid fears voters are turning on the party for failing to take the UK out of the European Union on time.
Theresa May has warned that Brexit could „slip through our fingers“ unless a compromise deal can be reached with Jeremy Corbyn.
Her comments come as she continues to try to reach an agreement with the Labour leader that she can get MPs to vote through parliament.
Theresa May has insisted a cross-party compromise is now the only way to deliver Brexit, despite talks between the Conservatives and Labour having so far failed to find a solution.
Mrs May would have ‚days‘ as Prime Minister if she doesn‘t hold her ground and refuse a Brexit date of June 30, MPs have claimed
Angela Merkel will now quietly decide our destiny
Talks between Theresa May‘s Government and Jeremy Corbyn‘s Labour party aimed at finding a Brexit breakthrough have stalled, with one of the key players describing a „disappointing“ lack of progress.
The cross-party talks are a key part of her efforts to find a majority in the Commons.
Monday evening‘s votes in the House of Commons confirm that a substantial number of MPs remain determined to bind Britain as closely as possible to the EU and its rules and institutions if they cannot stop Brexit altogether.
These MPs show utter contempt for the EU referendum result – the biggest democratic vote in our history – and make a mockery of their past pledges to ‚honour‘ the decision made by a clear majority of voters.
When Mohandas Gandhi won independence for India in 1947 he was called the Mahatma, which means „Great Soul“. In 1980 Lech Walesa, an electrician at the Lenin Shipyards in Gdansk, put down his tool box and led fellow workers in overthrowing their Soviet rulers.
Brexiteer Mark Francois and ERG member says on the BBC that Theresa May‘s letter to Brussels is a „mistake“ and says the UK should leave the European Union, without a deal.
„She [Ms May] has completely ignored her own cabinet which is unconstitutional and she‘s gone and done it anyway. Her deal will never pass the House of Commons, it‘s been voted down three times – the speaker may not even allow it to come back.
„I‘m afraid the PM is in a sort of bunker here and is not listening to her own MPs, her own party members, or indeed her own cabinet and that is dangerous for the future of the country.“
There will be no second chances if we fail to leave on April 12.
The dam has burst.
Ruth Jones (Labour):
Votes: 9,308
per cent (change on 2017): 39.6 (-12.7)
Matthew Evans (Conservative):
Votes: 7,357
per cent (change on 2017): 31.3 (-8.0)
Neil Hamilton (UKIP):
Votes: 2,023
per cent (change on 2017): 8.6 (+6.1)
„Am I happy about it? No I‘m not – actually I‘ve got many other things in my life I‘d like to do, I thought we‘d won the Brexit battle but I‘m not going to after 25 years of endeavour watch British politicians roll us over.
„This is the fightback and they‘re going to be very surprised by what they get.“
But furious Brexiteers warned that if the EU forces us to stay another year, Britain should sabotage it from the inside by blocking plans for expansion.
Mrs May is expected to write separately to Jeremy Corbyn today, offering a compromise agreement which both party leaders could push through the Commons.
Labour Lords said on Twitter that, following internal discussions, the bill would pass the initial stages on Thursday with the remaining stages taking place on Monday.
– Theresa May will write to EU Council President Donald Tusk to request extension to Article 50 beyond April 12
– Prime Minister wants ‚termination clause‘ to leave EU on May 22, day before European elections if deal passes
– AG Geoffrey Cox we need to use ‚any means to secure an ends‘ and cross-party talks are vital for securing deal