Merkel sees no need to rush Britain into quick EU divorce |

Reuters

LONDON/BERLIN German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought on Saturday to temper pressure from
Paris, Brussels and her own government to force Britain into negotiating a quick divorce from the
EU, despite warnings that hesitation will let populism take hold.

Eurosceptics in other member states applauded Britons' decision to leave the European Union in a
referendum that sent shockwaves around the world, with far-right demands for a similar vote in
Slovakia underlining the risk of a domino effect.

With the referendum decision finally made on Thursday and Prime Minister David Cameron having
announced his resignation, European politicians and institutions felt free to shower demands on
Britain over its future outside the world's largest trading bloc.

The European Central Bank said Britain's financial industry, which employs 2.2 million people,
would lose the right to serve clients in the EU unless the country signed up to its single market -
anathema to "Leave" campaigners, who are set to lead the next government in London.

Almost alone in continental Europe, Merkel tried to slow the rush to get Britain out of the EU door.
Europe's most powerful leader made clear she would not press Cameron after he indicated Britain
would not seek formal exit negotiations until October at least.

"Quite honestly, it should not take ages, that is true, but I would not fight now for a short time
frame," Merkel told a news conference.

"The negotiations must take place in a businesslike, good climate," she said. "Britain will remain a
close partner, with which we are linked economically."

OTHERS DEMAND URGENCY

Britain's decision to leave the EU is the biggest blow since World War Two to the European project
of forging greater unity. But Merkel appeared more conciliatory than others within her coalition
government and elsewhere in Europe.

The chief executive of Britain's "Vote Leave" campaign called for informal talks before London
notifies the EU it wants to leave under the Lisbon Treaty, which provides for two years of divorce
proceedings.

But German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, a member of Merkel's Social Democrat
coalition partners, showed a greater sense of urgency.

"This process should get under way as soon as possible so that we are not left in limbo but rather
can concentrate on the future of Europe," he said after hosting a meeting with his colleagues from
the other five founding members of the EU - France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and
Luxembourg.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault warned of the dangers of delay. "We have to give a new
sense to Europe, otherwise populism will fill the gap," he said.
They followed European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, who said on Friday it made no
sense to wait until October to negotiate the terms of a "Brexit".

European Council President Donald Tusk made a start by appointing Belgian diplomat Didier
Seeuws to coordinate negotiations with Britain.

Britain's representative on the EU executive, Financial Services Commissioner Jonathan Hill,

resigned on Saturday after campaigning against a British exit.

EUROPEAN 'TITANIC'

In Britain itself, divisions widened after the relatively close 52-48 percent vote.

More than 2.4 million Britons signed a petition on parliament's website, posted before the vote,
calling for a second EU referendum if the outcome was close on a turnout of less than 75 percent -
three points above Thursday's figure.

The petition will have to be considered for debate by lawmakers, but it has no legal force and its
backers compare with the 17.4 million who voted "leave".

Tens of thousands are also set to pack into Trafalgar Square

http://ronnie7mccullough9.hazblog.com/Primer-blog-b1/Citi-Strengthens-Custody-and-Fund-Services
-Organization-b1-p3.htm in the British capital on Tuesday to show "London stands with Europe", the
Evening Standard newspaper reported.

The divisions also took their toll on the opposition Labour Party, whose leader, Jeremy Corbyn,
sacked shadow foreign minister Hilary Benn on Sunday, media reported, after he said he would
resist any attempt to oust him.

Corbyn has been criticized by some of Labour's elected lawmakers who say he did not campaign
hard enough in support of EU membership.

Scotland's pro-EU first minister said she wanted to open negotiations directly with Brussels. The
option of a second referendum on independence from the United Kingdom - after Scots rejected the
idea two years ago - was "on the table", she said.

South of the border in England, eurosceptic newspapers rejoiced but others pondered an uncertain
future. "So what the hell happens now?" asked the Daily Mirror.

Cameron announced on Friday he would resign as the outcome of the vote sent global stock markets
plunging, and inflicted the biggest one-day drop on sterling in history.

He promised to stay on as a caretaker until October while the Conservative Party chooses a new
leader.

Even before the British https://app.box.com/s/efqb8djowp21oyghtedwb9y6040w07mt vote, anti-

establishment parties were on the rise across the EU, not least in France, where far-right National
Front leader Marine Le Pen is expected to perform strongly in a presidential election next year.

After talks with French President Francois Hollande, she said it was "clear that there are some who
want the divorce to be as painful as possible to discourage other peoples from taking the same path
as the British".

As if to reinforce those fears Slovakia's far-right People's Party launched a petition for a referendum
on the country's future in the EU.

"Citizens of Great Britain have decided to refuse the diktat from Brussels. It is high time for Slovakia
to leave the sinking European 'Titanic' as well," the party said.

NO PASSPORT?

The British pound fell as much as 10 percent against the dollar on Friday to levels last seen in 1985,
on fears that the decision could hit investment, threaten London's role as a global financial capital,
and cause months of political uncertainty.

The ratings agency https://app.box.com/s/hzcz1zgyoait04fhzvwfv0ybbjieqyh9 Moody's downgraded

its outlook for Britain, saying its creditworthiness was now at greater risk.

The uncertainty risks damaging economies far beyond Britain's shores, and European Central Bank
policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau joined the clamor for haste.

Villeroy delivered a warning over the City of London financial center, which handles trillions of euros
of business even though it lies outside the ECB's jurisdiction.

That status was at risk, he said, including the "passporting" arrangement under Europe's single
market rules that allows London banks to do business with clients in the euro zone, even though
Britain never joined the common currency.

"If, tomorrow, Britain is not part of the single market, the City cannot keep this European passport,
and clearing houses cannot be located in London either," he told France Inter radio. The only way
around this was for Britain to follow Norway, which lies outside the EU but has joined the single
market.

This means signing up to the rules, including the free movement of workers - likely to be opposed in
Britain, where the "Leave" camp promised to control immigration from the EU.

"BIRTH OF NEW BRITAIN"

Cameron's replacement could be his Conservative rival Boris Johnson, the former London mayor who
became the most recognizable face of the Leave camp.