British Prime Minister Theresa May said today that negotiations to leave the European Union (EU) are entering the "most difficult phase" and called on her divided Conservative Party to stop fighting over Brexit and support her plan for a future EU exit deal.
In a speech on the final day of the party's annual congress in Birmingham, a day after her rival Boris Johnson attacked her Brexit plan, Theresa May said Britain's proposals were "very challenging for the EU".
She warned critics of the plan who want a hard break with the European bloc "if we all go in different directions in search of our own visions of a perfect Brexit we risk ending up with no Brexit at all".
She said leaving the European Union without a deal would be "difficult at first" for Britain and a "bad result" for both sides, and called on her party to unite and help her reach a deal to leave the European bloc.
"Leaving without a deal, introducing tariffs and expensive border checks would be a bad solution for the UK and for the EU," May said, although she refused to rule out the possibility.
She said that such a separation without an agreement with the EU would be difficult at first, but that Britain would overcome it with its "resilience and resourcefulness".
She called on her party to unite behind "decent, moderate and patriotic politics", a day after her rival Boris Johnson criticized her plan and questioned her authority in a speech at the party congress.
The four-day Congress was dominated by divisions over Britain's impending exit from the EU, with both those for and against the EU criticizing the Prime Minister's negotiations with the Union.
Just six months before Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29, negotiations with the European bloc are at a standstill and Theresa May is torn between those in favor of a so-called hard Brexit and a no-deal exit such as Boris Johnson and those who they want to maintain close economic ties with the EU, Britain's biggest trading partner.
The joke was a reminder of her boogie dance during a visit to Africa earlier this year, footage of which went viral on social media.
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