Roundup: EU reaffirms stance on Brexit process, parliamentarians want their roles

Leaders of the European Union (EU) on Thursday sounded EU's stance on Britain's exit process, while European parliamentarians groaned that they were left out.

The 27 leaders of the European Union (EU), except British Prime Minister Theresa May, reaffirmed their "no negotiations without notification" rule on Brexit process, European Council President Donald Tusk told reporters late Thursday after a one-day summit.

"The EU27 had a short informal meeting where we finalized procedural arrangements and reconfirmed our principles, meaning the indivisibility of the four freedoms, the balance of rights and obligations and the rule 'no negotiations without notification'," Tusk said.

"We adopted the organizational structure with the European Council maintaining political control over the process, and the Commission as the Union's negotiator," he added, obviously referring to complaints from the European Parliament.

Echoing fellow parliamentarians, President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz earlier on Thursday warned against Brexit negotiations being undertaken without the full involvement of the European Parliament.

"If we are not adequately involved, we may not be able to give our consent. And in this situation the UK would face the hardest Brexit possible," he said.

Schulz urged EU countries to work in "a spirit of loyal cooperation."

"We cannot allow the Brexit process to become an emotional affair, nor should we turn it into a legal maze from which exit is extremely difficult. We must not feed populists' unfounded claims that the EU is the master of all evil," said Schulz.

Guy Verhofstadt, leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Group in European Parliament, on Wednesday lashed out at representatives from the Council of the EU at a plenary session, and warned that the parliament would start separate talks with the British authorities if its role was not respected.

Verhofstadt was displeased with the council's arrangements for the EU summit as the European Parliament has not been invited to a informal dinner over which the 27 EU leaders were scheduled to discuss Brexit.

Theresa May reiterated at the summit that she will stick with her timetable to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty by the end of March 2017, disregarding any verdict the British Supreme court will deliver in January.

The British Supreme Court will rule whether the British government can begin the process to pull Britain out of the EU without a parliament approval.

The Supreme Court held a four-day hearing in early December after it received a formal notification of the British government's intention to appeal a ruling of the High Court over the triggering exit process from the EU.

The High Court ruled on Nov. 3 that Theresa May's government cannot use a royal prerogative to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty that starts the Brexit process.

Article 50 sets out the procedure to be followed if an EU member state decides to leave the bloc. Once the article is triggered, a two-year clock running starts.

Britain voted to quit the EU in the June 23 referendum. Now, whether the British government or parliament can trigger the Brexit process by the end of March is in the hands of Britain's top law lords.

The 11 judges of the Supreme Court will now deliberate over Christmas and New Year and deliver their verdict in January. Endi