The double deadline the European Union gave the United Kingdom was a message that it was now the time to take decisions, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said.

Speaking following the Brussels summit, which decided to give the UK until May 22 to exit if British MPs accepted the Brexit deal, and until April 12 to decide on the way forward if not, the Prime Minister said there was now enough time for the EU to be realistically prepared for a no deal Brexit while leaving the door ajar for other developments which could let everyone breath.

This did not mean there would not be tension. But a clear message was being sent to the UK Parliament that it had to decide. The European Union, on the other hand, had to work more to prepare for the worst possibility.

The summit also discussed EU commercial ties with China. The Prime Minister said that if Europe wanted to practice what it preached on an open market, it had to be open to one of the world’s biggest economies.

There had to be a level playing field by being clear with Chinese investors that the way they operated in Europe had to be in line with European rules. But there should not be protectionism.

On the other hand it was important that European developed technologies were given incentives in Europe, so the EU’s industrial policy had to be revised.