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17 May 2017 - 11:40 AMT

No figures set for Brexit bill, EU negotiator says

There is no figure for a financial settlement between Britain and the European Union yet, because it can only be established once both sides agree on a common methodology of calculations and taking into account the date of exit, the EU's Brexit chief negotiator said on Wednesday, May 17, according to Reuters.

"The figures will depend on the methodology we adopt and the actual date of the UK's exit. It is not (me) who will set a figure," Michel Barnier told the European Parliament.

He also said that he had no intention of ending up without an agreement with London on the terms of Britain's departure in 2019, and hoped to reach a deal that was in collaboration with Britain, rather than negotiate against it.

Barnier earlier said that smooth negotiations on Britain's exit from the European Union are a prerequisite for a good future relationship between London and the bloc.