UK PM plans to break Brexit deadlock

British Prime Minister Theresa May will seek to kick start the faltering Brexit negotiations on Friday with a proposal for a transitional deal that will cost the UK billions of euros.

May will outline her plans in a speech in Florence, Italy, in which she will call for European negotiators to be more "imaginative and creative" in their efforts to reach a deal.

She is likely to commit Britain to continue paying into the European Union budget in return for continued access to its tariff-free market for a limited period, according to multiple British media reports.

She will argue that Britain would be able to use the transitional period -- likely to be about two years -- to strike trade deals with other nations, avoiding the "cliff-edge" Brexit that UK businesses fear. The UK currently pays about 10 billion euros (about $12 billion) each year.

May hopes that her speech will satisfy demands from the European Union for clarity on Britain's position, as well as placating the "hard-Brexit" wing of her Conservative Party, who are adamantly opposed to any arrangement that looks like ongoing EU membership in all but name.

In a statement, Downing Street said May would use her Florence speech to "discuss a vision for a bold new economic and security partnership and set out the Prime Minister's plan for a time-limited implementation period, offering certainty and clarity to businesses and citizens."

May will urge negotiators to redouble their efforts to conclude a deal. "While the UK's departure from the EU is inevitably a difficult process, it is in all of our interests for the negotiations to succeed," she will say, according to extracts released in advance by Downing Street.

"I believe we share a profound sense of responsibility to make the change work smoothly and sensibly, not just for people today but for the next generation who will inherit the world we leave them."

"The eyes of the world are on us but if we can be imaginative and creative about the way we establish this new relationship ... I believe we can be optimistic about the future we can build for the United Kingdom and for the European Union."

The pace of Brexit negotiations has so far frustrated EU and business leaders.

The third round of talks ended last month in a very public dispute over how much Britain should pay in a divorce settlement, an issue the EU says must be resolved before the parties' future trading relationship -- Britain's key concern -- can be discussed.