Former European Council president Herman Van Rompuy warned that substantive Brexit talks between the UK and the rest of the EU are unlikely to start much before the end of 2017.
He said negotiations were unlikely until a new German government was formed after next September’s election. The talks will be tough but hopefully of mutual benefit, he said, adding the UK had to make the “first move”. He described the UK’s decision to leave the EU as a “political amputation”. “It is a badge of shame for our society that thousands of disabled people are still not being treated as equal citizens,” he added.