British Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox attends signing ceremony for memorandums of understanding between British and Chinese firms and institutions at the British Ambassador's Residence in Beijing, China August 24, 2018.
British Trade Minister Liam Fox has urged his Asian counterparts to make their views on Brexit known to the European Union, he told CNBC on Tuesday.
"I have been urging my colleagues in a number of Asian countries to make their views (on Brexit) known to the European Union," he told CNBC in an interview.
"Because if the European Union decides to introduce impediments to trade or investment that don't exist today, that sends a global message about Europe's lack of competitiveness in the global context".
Ireland's Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said on Tuesday that more clarity was needed about Britain's stance regarding its planned departure from the European Union."I hope that Britain will further develop its positions regarding Brexit," Coveney told an economic conference organised by the German foreign ministry in Berlin.With little more than seven months to go until it leaves the EU on March 29, Britain has yet to reach an agreement with the bloc on the terms of its departure. Prime Minister Theresa May's plan for a "business-friendly" deal has failed to impress negotiators in Brussels and has been criticised at home.UK May says no-deal Brexit not 'the end of the world'Britain will use aid budget to boost trade in Africa
Irish foreign minister urges Britain to clarify its Brexit stance
The opening up of the Chinese services sector would be key for the United Kingdom, he told CNBC, the remarks coming days after Fox held talks with China's commerce ministry.
China and Britain will look at the possibility of reaching a "top notch" free trade agreement after Britain leaves the EU, the Chinese commerce ministry had said on Saturday.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has said that failing to secure a deal with the European Union before Britain leaves the bloc next year "wouldn't be the end of the world", Sky News reported on Tuesday.May's comment, made to reporters as she headed to Africa to boost Britain's trade ties ahead of Brexit in March 2019, came after her finance minister Philip Hammond said last week that a no-deal departure from the EU would damage public finances.Ahead of her arrival in South Africa, May said the forecasts cited by Hammond were out of date."I think when they came out I was very clear on a previous trip that those figures were a work in progress at that particular time," she said according to Sky.Britain will use aid budget to boost trade in AfricaShe repeated comments from the head of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that Britain leaving the EU without a deal "would not be a walk in the park" but that "it would not be the end of the world", Sky said.Hammond was criticised by some lawmakers in May's deeply divided Conservative Party for saying last week -- on the day the government published contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit -- that such a scenario could mean borrowing would be about 80 billion pounds ($102.02 billion) a year higher in 15 years' time as the economy grew more slowly.May is hoping to a agree "business-friendly" deal with the bloc on the key issue of trade which has split her party between those who want a definitive break from the EU, and those, like Hammond, who want to keep close ties.However, in her comments to reporters on her way to Africa, May repeated her warning that a no-deal Brexit was better than leaving with a bad deal."I think it's absolutely that the government is preparing for no deal because we don't know what the outcome is going to be," she said. 
UK May says no-deal Brexit not 'the end of the world'