New British PM waits for EU to move on Brexit

New British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is waiting for EU leaders to agree to renegotiate their Brexit deal before he meets them, his spokeswoman said Monday, as the government stepped up "no deal" planning.

"He obviously wants to meet EU leaders and negotiate but not to be sat down and told that the EU cannot possibly reopen the withdrawal agreement," the spokeswoman said.

Johnson, who took office last week, wants to change the exit terms struck by his predecessor Theresa May but insists he will leave the European Union without any agreement at all if necessary on October 31. Brussels says it will not reopen the text.

In phone calls last week, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron both invited Johnson to visit, but he has yet to announce any foreign travel ahead of the G7 summit in August.

"The withdrawal agreement has been rejected by parliament a number of times now and clearly it's not going to pass in its current form," the spokeswoman said.

"It needs to change if there's going to be a deal."
"The government's central focus is preparing for that."