Explaining Brexit’s Costs and Whether Britain Will Pay Up

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has promised it will be “hefty." British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said Europe can "go whistle" if it expects the U.K. to pay it. It’s the itemized bill the European Union wants to deliver to the U.K. when Prime Minister Theresa May’s government carries out its plan to leave the bloc. The total charge could reach 60 billion to 80 billion euros ($67 billion to $90 billion), according to European leaders, which would be more than the annual British defense budget. The topic figures to be one of the early flash points in the Brexit negotiations, ultimately shaping how amicable the breakup is and what replacement trade deal May is able to land.

European Commission negotiator Michel Barnier wants the British to cover their liabilities and commitments to the EU budget -- even, perhaps, ones that don’t come due until after Brexit. Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas likened it to leaving a bar but still needing “to pay for the round you ordered."