Tory MP sparks backlash by claiming the UK is more ‘civilised’ than the EU in Brexit negotiations

David Davis sparked a backlash by suggesting that the UK remained “civilised” throughout Brexit negotiations, while the EU did not.

The former Brexit secretary wrote in The Sun:

“Throughout the entire Brexit negotiation Britain has tried to behave in a civilised manner so as to avoid an acrimonious break-up.

That is not true of the European Union — on the contrary it has behaved unreasonably from the beginning.”

He then went on to claim that the EU made unreasonable demands of the UK, including those on fishing and staying “effectively … under its control".

But people disagree that the UK remained particularly civilised. Remember when we broke international law just to backtrack on some of the promises we made to them? Or when our prime minister likened the EU to the Nazis? 

Brexit talks between the UK and the EU are down to the wire, with the end of the transition period now only three weeks away.

Ministers say they remain hopeful that a deal can be negotiated by then, but Boris Johnson has admitted that it will be “very tricky”.

Disagreements over business rules, fisheries and enforcement remain. And clearly, some people in government want to lay all the blame for this on the EU.

It’s too early to say what Brexit’s ultimate outcome will be.

But with less than a month left until the possibility of a no-deal, it’s unsurprising that not everyone’s feeling optimistic.