UK has put forward detailed Brexit proposals, wants EU to engage seriously: UK official

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Britain believes it has put forward detailed proposals on Brexit in replacing the Irish backstop and is looking for the European Union to engage seriously with these ideas, a UK government official said on Monday.

EU sources earlier said no proper alternative for the border between Northern Ireland, a British province, and Ireland that ensures the integrity of the EU single market and customs union has been proposed yet by London.

“We believe we have put forward some detailed proposals and we have made a move to try to get this process moving along,” the official said. “What we are looking to see from the EU is that they are prepared to engage seriously with these ideas.”

The British official said Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who is in New York for the United Nations General Assembly this week, was clear in a meeting with European Council President Donald Tusk on Monday that a Northern Ireland only backstop was not a solution Britain could accept.