Britain, EU at odds over timing of divorce talks

Foreign ministers from the EU’s six founding states meeting in Berlin on Saturday urged Britain to begin the exit process “as soon as possible”.

“There is a certain urgency … so that we don’t have a period of uncertainty, with financial consequences, political consequences”, French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said at a meeting in Berlin of the EU’s six founding nations.

The leaders also accepted a degree of criticism that the European Union in recent times did not show the energy and braveness needed to work together on such important topics as migration, unemployment and terrorism.

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said he hoped there would be no “cat and mouse” game.

After meeting with her cabinet she said “we will seek to enter into immediate discussions” with the rest of the EU.

It came as the mayor of Calais called for migrant camps to be moved to Britain, stating the country must “take the consequences” of the decision to leave the EU.

Cameron will brief the other 27 national leaders over dinner at a European Council summit in Brussels on Tuesday on the outcome of Thursday’s referendum at which Britons voted to leave the EU, prompting him to announce he will resign.

Meanwhile, Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon said her semi-autonomous administration would start immediate talks with the European Union to ensure Scotland could remain in the bloc despite the UK-wide vote to leave.

Voting in the referendum produced huge regional differences, with most areas in central and northern England returning large majorities for Leave, while London and Scotland voted strongly for Remain.

After meeting with her cabinet in Edinburgh, Ms Sturgeon said “we will seek to enter into immediate discussion” with other European Union nations and institutions to “explore possible options to protect Scotland’s place in the EU”. “The people have spoken and we need to implement this decision”. Also, the authorities have an opportunity to organize a new referendum.

A Cambridge University lecturer claimed Article 50 was created to make things hard for countries wanting to exit the EU.

“There is no need to be particularly nasty in any way in the negotiations”.

“Quite honestly, it should not take ages, that is true, but I would not fight now for a short time frame”, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a news conference. Some of those who voted “leave” said they now felt betrayed and wish they could turn back time and opt to remain.

Dominic Cummings, director of the “Vote Leave” group, said it would be “unthinkable” to invoke Article 50 before a new prime minister was in place. David Cameron has indicated that he would stay at Number 10 until October purely to “steady the ship”, but wants his successor to handle the departure negotiations.

Juncker transferred Hill’s portfolio of overseeing financial services to Latvian commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis – costing Britain a key voice in a sector that is hugely important to London, whose status as Europe’s financial capital is threatened by Britain’s European Union exit.

The referendum has already triggered financial turmoil around the world.

Credit rating agency Moody’s downgraded the U.K.’s economic outlook from stable to negative, saying Britain faces “a prolonged period of uncertainty … with negative implications for the country’s medium-term growth outlook”.

“I don’t believe it is right that I should carry on as the British commissioner as though nothing had happened”, said Mr Hill, a professional lobbyist and former Conservative party leader in Britain’s upper house of parliament who is a close ally of Mr Cameron.

For European powers the priority is to divorce as soon as possible and stabilise a union that is already struggling with growing anti-EU populism, a migration crisis and economic woes.

British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn says Britain must react “calmly and rationally” in the wake of the referendum.