BERLIN (Reuters) - Britain may need more than 10 years to negotiate a trade agreement with the European Union if it decides to leave the bloc, David Lidington, the UK's Europe Minister, said during a visit to Berlin on Thursday.
"I think it would be fraught with difficulties to complete this within 10 years," he said.
"I certainly do not believe it would be possible to get access to all the free trade agreements that the EU has with third countries until we have sorted out the terms of our future relationship with the EU," he added.
Britain will vote on June 23 whether to leave the 28-member group, with polls suggesting it could still go either way.