Meanwhile, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has suggested that the Article 50 process should not begin until after the French and German elections, to allow the respective governments more “latitude” particularly on the issues of single market access and free movement. He told Sky News, “If we serve notice too quick to quit, there’s no guarantee jobs won’t leave…At the moment, businesses aren’t leaving. At the moment, they have hope – they are being reassured by myself and others that we have a plan in relation to getting the best deal possible.”

Separately, Finnish Finance Minister Petteri Orpo told Bloomberg in a phone interview, “The risk I see is that we can’t find solutions between Britain and the rest of the 27 EU countries and that the question [of UK-EU relations after Brexit] will remain open. That will create uncertainty for the euro area for a long time and pose a bigger risk to the growth of the area and Finland.”