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EU negotiator Michel Barnier has vowed to keep pushing for a post-Brexit trade deal for the past ten days before Britain leaves the single market.
Barnier told reporters: “We really are at the crucial moment and we are giving it the final push.”
He said: “In 10 days the UK will leave the single market and I will continue to work, in full transparency with the European Parliament and member states.”
Barnier is updating the ambassadors of the 27 nations of the European Union on the status of negotiations with the United Kingdom.
He will also report to MEPs later tonight.
The UK leaves the single market and customs union on December 31 and will face tariffs and trade quotas with the EU unless a deal is reached.
But talks in Brussels remain tough, with “significant differences in key areas”, including fishing rights and the rules for maintaining fair competition.
In a sign of intense diplomatic activity, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is in “close contact” with the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
Sources said the pair spoke “from time to time, given that there is not much time left” until the end of the Brexit transition period next week.
Johnson has continued to insist that the UK will “prosper mightily” without a deal, despite warning it could add further damage to an economy already ravaged by the coronavirus.
Yesterday he spoke to Ms Von der Leyen, according to Politico, although No. 10 did not publicly confirm the call or what they discussed.
The two leaders reportedly discussed new proposals on fishing rights.
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Downing Street insiders roundly rejected reports that there has been a breakthrough in the quota dispute.
Reports suggested that the UK had offered a reduction of around a third in the amount of fish caught by EU vessels in British waters over a five-year period.
That’s below the initial demand to cut it by 60% in three years, but Brussels reportedly rejected the compromise.
An insider for Number 10 described the reported compromise as “nonsense” and officials cautioned that significant differences persist between the two parties.
At a press conference yesterday, Johnson said the position “has not changed” and insisted that the UK will prosper without a deal, based on the terms of the World Trade Organization.
Additional reporting PA
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