French President Says UK Chequers Proposal For Brexit Unacceptable

French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that the UK proposal on Brexit, the so-called Chequers plan, was unacceptable, especially, its economy aspects.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th September, 2018) French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that the UK proposal on Brexit, the so-called Chequers plan, was unacceptable, especially, its economy aspects.

"That [the Chequers plan] is a brave step on part of [UK] Prime Minister [Theresa May] ... But I want to say clearly ... that the proposals cited today are not acceptable, particularly, in the field of economy," Macron said at a press conference after an informal EU summit in Salzburg.

The French president expressed hope that in October it would be possible to have a discussion over new proposals.

Macron said that it became evident that leaving the European Union could not happen without consequences.

On July 6, the UK cabinet met at UK Prime Minister Theresa May's residence in Chequers and reached an agreement which marked, according to the UK government, a "substantial evolution" in the United Kingdom's position in the Brexit talks.

The Chequers statement proposed the creation of a free trade area for goods and maintaining a "common rulebook" for all goods, including agricultural ones.

European Council President Donald Tusk also said that the economic proposals in the Chequers plan could not work, although he praised the plan for some positive elements.

However, May said that her government's proposal was "the only serious and credible" variant.

The border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has been a sore point in Brexit negotiations. In an article in Die Welt, May wrote ahead of the informal summit that London could not agree to any customs border that would separate one part of the United Kingdom from another.