British Prime Minister Theresa May said today that Britain is not leaving Europe, but only the European Union, but she noted that the country's opportunities and prospects should not be limited by focusing only on Europe.
May, in an address to the British parliament where she answered questions for the first time since becoming the leader of the ruling Conservatives at the beginning of the month, said that Britain has the opportunity to become "more open to the outside and more expansive" in the world, reports the BBC.
The new prime minister also said that in negotiations with the EU, after last month's vote on leaving the bloc, the government will ensure control over the free movement of people from the Union, according to Reuters.
"It is clear that the vote that took place in this country on June 23 sent a very clear message about immigration, which is that people want to control free movement from the EU and that is exactly what we will do and secure through negotiations," she told MPs. .
May also expressed her belief that the difference between the number of immigrants and emigrants must be reduced to sustainable levels, and the government, according to her, believes that this means tens of thousands of people.
"It will take some time to make it happen, but of course, now we have an additional aspect of those controls that we can connect with people coming from the European Union," the Prime Minister added.
She announced that she will outline Britain's negotiating position in the coming weeks and months.
May also said that later today in Berlin she will meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with whom she will discuss Britain's vote to leave the EU and other issues.
"This afternoon I will travel to Berlin and meet with Chancellor Merkel to discuss how to implement the decision that the British people made in the referendum, and I expect that we will also cover a number of other pressing international issues," May told British MPs.
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