Juncker health: Why has Jean Claude Juncker got a plaster on his face?

Theresa May is speaking with Jean-Claude Juncker this week in Brussels for another bout of Brexit talks. This comes as the Prime Minister has been warned she could face a mass revolt of Conservative MPs if the country appears on course for a no-deal Brexit. After talks in Brussels on Thursday, Mr Barclay said both sides had agreed discussions should continue “urgently at a technical level”.

Why has Jean Claude Juncker got a plaster on his face?

The EU commission president has been seen sporting a plaster on his left cheek as he met with the Prime Minister this week.

Mr Juncker explained that he had cut himself shaving, resulting in the plaster on his face.

He told reporters on Wednesday ahead of meeting Mrs May: ”You may have noticed that on my cheek is the result of a non-intentional gesture I committed this morning.”

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“I shaved for the first time when I was 15, before puberty… and I bled.

“This morning, I told myself ‘I’ll try again’. And you can see the result, after puberty!”

The audience laughed, and Mr Juncker added: “I’m telling you so that you don’t think it was Mrs May who did this to me.”

This was in reference to the latest meetings Juncker has held with the Prime Minister to try and resolve the current Brexit impasse.

Mrs May arrived in Brussels on Wednesday night, to meet with Mr Juncker in order to try and convince the bloc to change the agreement.

A joint statement issued following the meeting said: “The two leaders agreed that talks had been constructive and they urged their respective teams to continue to explore the options in a positive spirit.

“They will review progress again in the coming days, seized of the tight timescale and the historic significance of setting the EU and the UK on a path to a deep and unique future partnership.”

The statement said discussions had looked at “which guarantees could be given with regard to the backstop that underlines once again its temporary nature and gives the appropriate legal assurance to both sides”.

Talks also covered “the role alternative arrangements could play in replacing the backstop in future”.

Ahead of the looming Commons votes, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay and Attorney General Geoffrey Cox announced they will hold talks again with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier in the coming days on the Northern Ireland backstop.

Mrs May will also travel to an EU-Arab summit in Egypt this Sunday, an event that could give her the chance of face-to-face talks with key national leaders – although Government sources were keen to dampen talk of a “deal in the desert”.

After talks in Brussels on Thursday, Mr Barclay said both sides had agreed discussions should continue “urgently at a technical level”.

The PM believes securing legally binding guarantees on the backstop is key to getting her Withdrawal Agreement through the Commons.

The backstop arrangements would mean the whole of the UK remains in a customs union with the EU and Northern Ireland following some single market rules until a wider trade deal is agreed, preventing the need for checkpoints on the Irish border.

source: express.co.uk