[ti:Britain Faces Difficult Choices on Move to Withdraw from EU] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.36]Lawmakers in Britain continue to argue over terms [00:05.36]of its planned withdrawal from the European Union (EU). [00:11.52]The main issue is how Britain will deal with the rest of Europe [00:17.04]after the move, known as Brexit. [00:22.32]The EU is the country's largest trading partner. [00:29.04]British officials want to secure the best possible terms for trade [00:35.20]and for the city of London, which is a major financial center. [00:41.24]However, the Conservative Party has yet to decide [00:46.32]on many issues related to Brexit, [00:50.20]especially those related to rules and trade. [00:54.92]Next week, Britain's House of Commons, the lower house of parliament, [01:02.24]will debate legislation for the withdrawal. [01:07.24]Lawmakers also will vote on amendments [01:11.08]passed by the House of Lords, parliament's upper house. [01:18.08]If approved, those measures would increase British ties to the EU. [01:26.76]Many Conservative lawmakers who support EU membership [01:32.04]and opposition parties are expected to influence the upcoming votes. [01:40.28]Britain and the European Union opened negotiations [01:44.96]soon after British voters decided to end their country's membership. [01:52.20]After the talks, the British side has been represented mainly by non-elected officials. [02:02.04]Critics say these officials are seeking to keep Britain's ties to the EU in place. [02:11.48]Some people support a complete break with the rest of Europe. [02:17.52]They are known as hard Brexiters. [02:22.44]They warn that Britain could be required to obey EU requirements [02:28.84]and follow rulings by the European Court of Justice. [02:34.80]That could happen if Britain remains a member of Europe's [02:39.48]customs union or keeps its Single Market. [02:44.88]They also say Britain could be blocked from negotiating individual trade deals [02:52.28]with non-EU countries as EU members are. [02:59.44]Supporters of hard Brexit are concerned Prime Minister Theresa May [03:05.44]might be positioning Britain for such a "backdoor" membership in the EU. [03:13.52]They note she has delayed publishing a report on the government's proposals for Brexit. [03:20.96]And, some lawmakers are angry that May has not been open about negotiations [03:29.32]on how the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland will be treated after Brexit. [03:38.16]Ireland is an EU member. [03:41.92]They say an "open" border policy could keep Britain closely tied to the EU. [03:51.92]May's Cabinet is sharply divided over Brexit. [03:57.72]Her finance minister, Philip Hammond, wants to keep close ties with the EU [04:05.12]in the same way that Norway does. [04:09.72]His position includes keeping Britain in the EU's customs union [04:15.80]and membership in the Single Market. [04:20.76]On the other side is foreign minister Boris Johnson [04:25.40]and environment secretary Michael Gove, who support a clean break. [04:33.56]They are seeking what they call a "global Britain," [04:38.00]one which can negotiate freely and is not closely tied to the EU. [04:46.72]The disagreements are so severe that negotiations have not made progress. [04:54.16]There are concerns that conflicts within the cabinet [04:58.80]could lead the Conservative government to break apart, forcing new elections. [05:06.36]That could bring the opposition Labour Party to power. [05:11.56]One Conservative official said of the difficult situation: [05:18.12]"It has become a shambles." [05:23.00]I'm Mario Ritter. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM