Italy hails Brexit as great opportunity for change in EU
Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has welcomed Britain’s exit from the European Union as an opportunity for the rest of the bloc to make changes to the bloc's structure.
Renzi, who was speaking before a trip to Berlin on Monday, said Brexit created a "great opportunity" for the EU states to focus "a bit more on social issues and a bit less on bureaucratic ones."
Italy has been one of the main advocates of change in the EU while some political parties in the country also seek a British-style exit from the continental bloc. Rome has intensified its criticism of EU’s policies over an unprecedented flow of refugees into Europe over the past year. Italian officials have also dismissed EU’s tightening fiscal policies as a burden for their economy.
“More growth and more investment, less austerity and less bureaucracy, this is the line we have proposed for two years, at the beginning in isolation," Renzi said as he was preparing for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin and French President Francois Hollande.
"Allow me to say that Brexit can be a great opportunity for Europe,” he said, adding that the results of Britain’s referendum strengthened Italy’s arguments about the need for change in the EU.
Renzi echoed concerns by other European leaders about a delayed process of exit for Britain from the EU, saying not much time should be spent on deciding the technicalities of the case.
"The referendum result must be respected, otherwise the credibility of Europe will be definitively swept away," the 41-year-old prime minister said, adding that it would be an “offensive” if there were further delays in procedures for its exit after months of drawn-out negotiations over the case.
People in Britain voted to leave the 28-nation bloc on Friday. The historic vote dealt a huge blow to EU’s ambition of greater unity amid a declining economic situation and the embarrassing burden of refugees. UK Prime Minister David Cameron announced his resignation after the vote and will leave office by October.
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