“At this stage, an agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union does not seem likely,” Barnier told reporters in Brussels. “I just do not understand why we are wasting valuable time. The clock is ticking.”
Chief UK negotiator David Frost said an agreement was “still possible”, but warned that it “will not be easy to reach”.
“Substantial work remains necessary across a range of different areas of potential UK-EU future cooperation if we are to deliver it,” Frost said in a statement. “We’ve had some useful talks this week, but there hasn’t been much progress.”
The UK’s economic output shrank in the second quarter of 2020 by a record 20.4%, pushing the country into the deepest recession of any major global economy. Some 730,000 jobs have been cut since the coronavirus pandemic scrapped British companies in March.
EU officials say a deal with the UK should be reached by mid-October to ensure ratification by the bloc’s 27 members. On Friday, the two sides decided to stay in touch over the next two weeks for the next round of negotiations in London in the week of 7 September.
Frost said fisheries policy and rules regarding government assistance to businesses were one of the main sticking points.
“There are other key areas that need to be resolved and, even if there is a broad consensus among negotiators, there is a lot of detail to work through. Time is short for both sides,” he said. hy.
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