Still no viable Brexit proposals from UK: EU

BRUSSELS, Sept 16 (AFP): Britain has still not proposed any workable alternatives to the Northern Ireland "backstop" provisions of its Brexit withdrawal agreement, the EU said on Monday after talks between bloc chief Jean-Claude Juncker and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

The first face-to-face encounter between Johnson and European Commission president Juncker failed to yield any major breakthrough, although Downing Street insisted it had been a "constructive meeting".

Johnson says Britain will not agree to a divorce deal that includes the backstop, a provision which temporarily keeps the UK in the EU customs union to keep the Irish border open, and will not delay Brexit beyond October 31, even if it means leaving with no deal.

Juncker's office said he used the lunch meeting in Luxembourg to reiterate the EU view that it is Britain's responsiblity to come up with a workable alternative to the backstop, which was agreed by Johnson's predecessor Theresa May but rejected by MPs.