The EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, has appealed to Theresa May to work with the union during the negotiations and not against it, following the prime minister’s claim that Brussels had sought to attack both her leadership and British interests.



Addressing the European parliament in Strasbourg, Barnier cautioned against an aggressive approach to the talks due to start after the UK’s general election on 8 June, the result of which he said he hoped would bring stability.

“I certainly don’t intend to have no deal or a bad deal,” Barnier told MEPs. “We want to conclude a deal with the UK, not against the UK. In fact I would very much appreciate that on the UK side you could find the same spirit to reach a deal with the EU, not against the EU.”

Earlier this month the prime minister claimed the EU was “lining up” against Britain. She also accused Brussels of seeking to influence the result of the general election in order to weaken her negotiating hand.

Barnier dismissed suggestions that Brussels was seeking to punish the UK for leaving the union, or create problems for its government. He said the prime minister needed to build confidence among the member states that Britain would be a reliable partner through reaching an early agreement on Britain’s divorce bill, citizens rights and the Irish border.

“The clock is ticking,” he said. “There isn’t much time ahead of us to conclude a good deal ... The agreement is there to create a foundation of trust. We have to make sure that is there by solving the problems for the citizens, for the beneficiaries of the structural funds, and the borders. We have to create the foundations for ongoing trust that we need to build a future relationship with the UK – that is a sine qua non.”

In response to claims from the former Ukip leader Nigel Farage that the EU was seeking “a ransom” in a divorce bill estimated by some to be as much as €100bn, Barnier said: “I have never quoted these figures. The figures will depend on the methodology we adopt and the actual date of the UK’s exit. It is not [me] who will set a figure.”

Asked by other MEPs about a possible transition period after the UK leaves the single market and the customs union, along with all other other institutions of the union, on 29 March 2019, Barnier said that was possible, but he suggested that businesses should start preparing now for changes in their ability to import and export.

“We might be working on transitional measures post-Brexit, on a phasing-out period and a phasing-in towards the new relationship, but the real transition period is now, before exit,” he said. “I would like to recommend all economic players, all economic operators, to make use of this period, so that the day of this exit, probably March 2019, is as orderly as possible.”

He added that citizens and businesses in the UK and elsewhere should now be informed about the consequences of talks collapsing, claiming that people needed to hear the “truth”.

The European council president, Donald Tusk, who earlier this month had counselled both sides of the negotiating table to show “moderation, mutual respect and discretion”, told MEPs: “What was – and remains – most important for me is that our conduct in these talks will show the European Union at its best, in terms of unity, political solidarity, and fairness towards the United Kingdom.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest May greets Juncker outside No 10 last month. Photograph: Justin Tallis/AFP/Getty Images

Jean-Claude Juncker, the European commission president, whose EU executive will conduct the Brexit negotiation, said the bloc was prepared and would work on priorities for its future: “This negotiation is now in the hands of our capable divorce lawyers,” he said.

Juncker, who was criticised after details from a dinner meeting he held last month with May were leaked to a German newspaper, added that preparations had shown the EU’s unity and “commitment to transparency”.

Earlier Farage was accused by the leader of the largest party in the parliament, Manfred Weber of the European People’s party, of being a coward for failing to stand in the UK general election. Farage, in turn, warned Juncker that his “bloody rude” behaviour and attempt to “bully the Brits” could force Britain to walk away from Brexit talks within months.

Farage also claimed that the Eurovision Song Contest made Juncker look “a bit silly” for his recent light-hearted quip that the English language was losing importance in Europe. Farage pointed out that 90% of the songs on the show, in which the UK came 15th out of the 26 performers, were performed in English.