May wants to guarantee rights for EU citizens living in UK
Updated : 15:57
Theresa May said she wanted to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in Britain, but wanted guarantees in return for UK nationals living abroad.
May, in a press conference with Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi in Rome on Wednesday, said: "I want to be able to guarantee their rights in the UK. I expect to, I intend to. But it's not possible if the rights of UK nationals living in other EU states are not guaranteed.
"I'm looking at this with an open mind. I think we should be developing the model that suits the United Kingdom and the European Union. Not adopting, necessarily, a model that is on the shelf already."
Renzi said Italy would do "its utmost to collaborate and support the process" and said it was "important to have a vision and precise timeline for the process".
May had been accused of using EU nationals living in the UK as "bargaining chips" in negotiations for the country’s exit from the 28 member bloc. She refused to guarantee the rights of 2.9m EU nationals living in the UK until other EU countries also guarantee the rights of Britons living abroad.
The prime minister met Renzi to talk about the challenges faced by Brexit, terrorism and the migration crisis, in her latest tour of Europe. Last week May met chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin and president Francois Hollande in Paris.
She also hosted Ireland's prime minister Enda Kenny on Tuesday and said the two nations should “maintain the closest possible relationship” post-Brexit.
May said she hoped there would be a new chapter in Anglo-Italian relations and that they would continue to meet within G7, G20 and Nato.
Renzi said that he hoped that “some good would come” from Brexit although he noted that the referendum result was “sad”.
May also confirmed she chaired the first ‘Brexit’ cabinet committee on Tuesday.
On Wednesday MPs on the home affairs select committee said the UK could face a "surge" in migrants from the EU before border restrictions are imposed. They said the prime minister should set a cut-off date for migrants entering the country.