BRUSSELS (AP) - The Latest on Britain’s exit from the European Union (all times local):
1:10 p.m.
Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen says his country should ramp up preparations for the possibility that Britain and the European Union will not agree a Brexit deal.
Opening the Danish Parliament, he said “we must expect that there might not be a Brexit deal” and that “we must now put a number of things into action.”
For example, he said more customs officers will need to be hired.
He also said that the rights of Britons living in Denmark will be guaranteed regardless of what happens with the Brexit discussions. It is “only fair and reasonable,” he said.
Britain is due to leave the EU next March, but there are growing concerns that a deal about the future relationship won’t be agreed.
Both sides have indicated they want to secure a deal by November so relevant parliaments can give their approvals in time for actual Brexit day.
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12:30 p.m.
Pressure is mounting on British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt to apologize for recent remarks comparing the European Union to the Soviet Union.
While British Prime Minister Theresa May effectively rebuked her foreign secretary for making the comparison, leaders from the European Parliament urged Hunt to take back his remarks, which caused particular offense in those East European countries that were under the control of Moscow for 40-plus years after the end of World War II.
Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of the ALDE liberals told European legislators at a plenary session in Strasbourg, France that “he is insulting not us, but millions of ordinary citizens who have lived under Soviet rule for such a long time.”
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