Row breaks out over Boris Johnson’s ’empty podium’ moment in Luxembourg
Boris Johnson has been forced to cancelled a press conference with his counterpart in Luxembourg, after local aides refused to move it away from a protest.
The Prime Minister was scheduled to give an update on Brexit talks following a bilateral with Xavier Bettel, as well as the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker earlier in the day.
Read more: Barnier to resume Brexit talks with Barclay after Johnson meets Juncker
Although the outcome of both sets of meetings appears to be widely positive, Johnson did not appear and Bettel spoke on his own, taking questions including ones directed towards the UK leader.
It is understood that Downing Street asked for the press conference to be conducted indoors, after it became clear the loud crowd could become disruptive, however this was rejected by Luxembourg’s team.
Speaking next to an empty podium Bettel said the bilateral meeting had lasted “longer than planned”, and initially appeared willing to thank Johnson.
But Bettel grew increasingly heated as he attacked the “lies” of the Vote Leave referendum campaign and the inadequacies of the Remain campaign, while the crowd cheered loudly throughout.
“These are homemade problems and we now have all to deal with them,” he said. “I won’t accept [responsibility] for the mess we are in for the moment.”
Speaking subsequently, in a quieter location, a rattled-looking Johnson explained that he would have been “drowned out by the noise” of the protesters.
He insisted: “We have just the right amount of time to do a deal… A lot of work is going on here.
“This is a difficult moment. We are very keen to do it, but I don’t want people to think it’s in the bag. It’s not necessarily in the bag.”
Earlier today, Johnson secured an agreement from Juncker to allow the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier to resume meetings with Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay on a “political” level.
Other talks will begin taking place on a daily basis, as part of a wider “intensification” ahead of the Halloween deadline, as both sides attempt to avoid a no-deal Brexit.
Read more: Brexit: Sterling slips with Boris and Jean-Claude at loggerheads
Main image: Reuters