European Member of Parliament Guy Verhofstadt drives his rally car during the Legend Boucles 2016 rally event, in Bastogne, on February 20, 2016 | Anthony Dehez/AFP via Getty Images Guy Verhofstadt’s 7 best Brexit burns The European Parliament’s new negotiator for exit talks doesn’t usually hold back.

Belgian MEP Guy Verhofstadt was named Thursday as the European Parliament's point man for the Brexit negotiations. Given the former Belgian prime minister's reputation as a feisty debater who craves the media spotlight, the role promises to be a provocative one.

Throughout the debate before and after the U.K.'s referendum on EU membership, Verhofstadt has not held back when it comes to letting the British know what he thinks about their vote to leave.

Here are seven of his more pointed (even if, to Brits, unconvincing) comments on Brexit:

January 2013: “[David Cameron’s] speech [laying out his vision for a new U.K.-EU relationship] was full of inconsistencies, displaying a degree of ignorance about how the EU works… [He] will not succeed if he attempts to hold his European partners to ransom. He seems to be jeopardizing the interests of his country for internal party stability. Britain has suffered over the years from the chronic failure of politicians to make a positive case for Europe and counter the untruths in much of the populist press.”

January 2013: “[Brexit] is stupidity for a country with 53 percent of its exports going to the Continent and to the rest of Europe. It’s even so stupid that Britain’s best friends, the U.S., don’t understand it all.”

February 2016: "The only winners from a Brexit would be Nigel Farage and Vladimir Putin; who would relish a divided Europe."

February 2016: “[British citizens] are not so stupid to give up [EU membership]... which is economically important for them… and secondly … geopolitically, British citizens know very well that Britain without the EU is in fact a dwarf on the world level.”

July 2016: “Politically, the U.K. is already on its way to becoming an adversary, rather than a trusted partner, of the EU… [Theresa] May actually opposed Brexit. Yet her anti-European hostility differs only in degree, not in kind, from that of pro-Brexit politicians… who rejoice at the possibility of additional exit referenda across the EU.”

June 2016: “We cannot afford to be stuck in limbo. The British must not hold the EU to ransom. Triggering Article 50 is necessary, if we are to respect the democratic choice of the British people.”

July 2016: "The Brexit vote is a political earthquake. The reaction of the European Council, which merely focuses on better implementation, is shocking. When will EU governments recognize that you cannot defend this Europe anymore? Europe needs to reform and a new project should be presented to the people."

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