News story: David Davis’ opening remarks at the start of the third round of EU exit negotiations

Good afternoon,

I’m pleased to be back in Brussels, for the third round of negotiations.

We’ve had a busy few weeks. Since the last round of talks, the UK Government has published a large number of papers covering important issues related to our withdrawal, and our vision for the deep and special partnership we want with the European Union in the future.

They are products of the hard work and detailed thinking that has been going on behind the scenes, not just in last few weeks but in the last twelve months, and should form the basis of what I hope will be a constructive week of talks between the European Commission and the United Kingdom.

For the United Kingdom, the week ahead is about driving forward the technical discussions across all the issues.

We want to lock in the points where we agree, unpick the areas where we disagree, and make further progress on the whole range of issues.

But in order to do that, we’ll require flexibility and imagination from both sides – something I think the Council has asked for on some subjects.

Our goal remains the same. We want to agree a deal that works in the best interests of both the European Union and the United Kingdom, and people and businesses right across Europe.

And we’re ready to roll up our sleeves and get down to work again once more.

Thank you.