European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has more or less expressed his regret for the whole hassle with the Brexit. In a speech to the European Parliament, Juncker said in what may have been his last speech that the handling of the Brexit was "wasted time and wasted energy."
Juncker reported in Strasbourg on the recent summit of EU heads of government. At that summit no agreement was reached on a new multi-annual budget, it was not decided to admit new EU countries, nor could a new EU Commission be presented.
Juncker normally says goodbye to the Commission at the end of this month. But because the European Parliament was blocking the candidacy of three Commissioners-designate, the new Ursula von der Leyen Commission cannot start working for the time being. That is why Juncker has to stay in his post a little longer.
As the next plenary sitting is not on the agenda at the end of November, he made his last appearance in Parliament on Tuesday in Strasbourg possible. This is one of the reasons why most of the group chairmen considered the results of 'five years of Juncker'.
Regarding the Brexit, Juncker said that the EU will continue to do everything in its power to allow an orderly departure from the British. The European Parliament already decided on Monday to ratify the agreement only when the British Parliament has done so. "First London, then Brussels and Strasbourg," said Juncker with applause from the MEPs.
European President Donald Tusk, who, like Juncker, has reached the end of his mandate, confirmed that the situation in the lower house has become "fairly complex". Tusk repeated what he also said to Boris Johnson last weekend: "A 'no deal' brexit will never be our choice".