British PM May fires starting gun on Brexit

Britain's permanent representative to the European Union Tim Barrow delivers British Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit letter in notice of the UK's intention to leave the bloc under Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty to EU Council President Donald Tusk in Brussels, Belgium March 29, 2017.  [Photo/Agencies]

BREXIT LETTER

May's notice of the UK's intention to leave the bloc underArticle 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty was hand-delivered to Tuskin Brussels by Tim Barrow, Britain's permanent representative tothe EU.

Barrow handed the letter to Tusk, the EU summit chair andformer Polish prime minister, in the Council President's offices on the top 11th floor of the new Europa Building.

That moment formally set the clock ticking on Britain's two-year exit process.

May signed the Brexit letter on Tuesday, pictured alone at the cabinet table beneath a clock, a British flag and an oil-painting of Britain's first prime minister, Robert Walpole.

BREXIT DEAL?

The Sun, Britain's most popular newspaper, projected giant messages to Europe including "Dover and Out", "Goodbye" and "See EU Later" onto the white cliffs of Dover facing the continent.

In the French media, the response was less celebratory. The Libération newspaper led with the headline: "We miss you already! Or do we..." over a picture of a guardsman wearing a bear skin hat, a traditional symbol of Britain.

The Brexit letter was expected to seek to set a positive tone for the talks and recap 12 key points which May set out as her goals in a speech in January, EU officials said.

Within 48 hours, Tusk will send the 27 other states draft negotiating guidelines. He will outline his views in Malta, where from Wednesday he will be attending a congress of centre-right leaders. Ambassadors of the 27 will then meet in Brussels to discuss Tusk's draft.

European Union leaders will pledge to stand united in "constructive" talks with Britain to reduce uncertainty forcitizens and businesses, a draft document showed.

The course of the Brexit talks is uncertain.

May has promised to seek the greatest possible access to European markets but said Britain will aim to establish its own free trade deals with countries beyond Europe, and impose limits on immigration from the continent.

She has acknowledged that those measures would require withdrawing from the EU 'single market' of 500 million people, founded on the principles of free movement of goods, services, capital and people.