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Foreign Minister Simon Coveney described the likelihood of reaching a Brexit deal before the end of the year as “feasible but difficult.”
Speaking in This afternoon, Mr. Coveney stated that the two biggest obstacles in the way of an agreement were fair competition and fishing rights.
On the issue of fair competition rights, Mr Coveney said that the EU’s position remains the same as it was at the beginning of the year and that the UK had previously agreed with the EU’s position.
“Because the proximity to each other is so close, we cannot have a situation where, at some point in the future, the British government decides to deregulate its economy or selectively subsidize certain industries through state aid.
“That goes far beyond what the EU is allowed to do and therefore derives a competitive advantage for British companies over EU companies, and to have a business relationship that does not involve barriers, delays or dues”.
That has been something the EU has insisted on for more than a year, and the UK at the beginning of the year accepted that approach and has since moved away from it.
Mr. Coveney described the fisheries issue as “very emotional” and described the expectations that both parties had on the issue as “very, very distant.”
He tried to assure Irish fishing communities that the Government and the EU “would not sell their fishing interests to reach an agreement in other areas”.
He said the fisheries issue, from the UK’s perspective, was “a cruder policy”, adding that promises made by the UK on the issue would be “very, very difficult to keep”.
Talks have taken place today to try to secure a deal, but Coveney acknowledged that time is rapidly running out for the parties to reach an agreement on any potential deal.
He said: “Once we hit the second week of November, we are really moving into a danger zone in terms of running out of time.
“That is why you have seen Michel Barnier using the kind of language he uses today, which we must use every day and not waste time trying to find a way to reach an agreement.”
Mr Coveney said “the stakes are high,” before urging Irish companies to prepare for “worst-case scenarios” and take the possibility of a no-deal scenario seriously.
“We need to find a way to get a deal. If we don’t, I think it will be a monumental policy failure, frankly. But we are working hard to make sure that doesn’t happen. “
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