British PM sets out timetable to leave EU by 2019

British Prime Minister Theresa May said Sunday that the United Kingdom would begin the formal process of leaving the European Union by the end of March 2017.

This means Brexit could happen in 2019, reports the Guardian.

May said in a show, "The people have spoken, we will deliver on that."

She said that Britain would trigger Article 50 of the EU treaty in the first quarter of next year.

That act will start the clock on two years of exit negotiations with the other 27 members of the group.

It is the first time since the Brexit vote in June that the British Government has set out a clear timetable for the hugely complex task of unwinding its 40-year relationship with its biggest trading partner.

May also said she would ask lawmakers to pass a bill incorporating all EU laws into British laws that would take effect the moment Britain leaves the union. That legislation would mean the U.K. can decide which European laws to keep.

She, however, did not disclose much about the future relationship with the union, which is of critical importance to Europeans living in Britain, Brits living in Europe, banks, businesses and investors.

Another big issue that remains is that what all Britain would lose in terms of free trade with the rest of the Europe in return for the ability to restrict immigration into the country.