Szymański: Little progress in talks with UK

There has been "relatively little" progress made in talks with the UK about renegotiating its EU membership, Vice-minister of Foreign Affairs Konrad Szymański said on Thursday. The Polish diplomat has been part of a delegation of EU representatives who have been engaged in discussions ahead of the EU summit on February 18/19, during which an agreement regarding the UK's new terms of membership is meant to be presented. The first tour of talks took place on February 5, and centered on British demands for changes regarding migration laws, relations between the eurozone and non-eurozone countries and increasing the autonomy of national parliaments. Szymański does not rule out an agreement being reached in the remaining time, however, he admitted that holding direct negotiations with the European Council could significantly speed up the rate at which progress can be made. Poland is specifically interested in the benefit 'safety mechanism' clause, which, if passed, would allow the UK to restrict the giving of benefits to various migrants working in the country. Szymański noted that the details of this stipulation are still be to be agreed upon.