British minister blasts 'lazy thinking' on Brexit

Britain's Brexit minister on Thursday condemned "lazy thinking" about the country's divorce from the European Union, urging Brussels to be ambitious in future cooperation, particularly on security issues.

As EU leaders met in Romania to debate the bloc's future without Britain, Steve Barclay used a side event to urge them to move on from the "Nigel Farage little-Englander portrayal of Brexit".

Barclay pleaded with the EU to look beyond the bitter wrangling in Westminster over the divorce deal and focus on the potential for future cooperation.

"From my generation of politicians within the UK, Brexit was an opportunity of confidence, of optimism, a desire to be more global," Barclay said.

"It certainly wasn't the Nigel Farage little-Englander portrayal of Brexit and I think too often there is lazy thinking to be frank on Brexit and a failure to look at that longer term relationship between the UK and Europe."