Brexit negotiations still in play, Johnson’s rumor of separating from London

Do I try or not? Negotiations for a post-Brexit trade deal are in the last mile and the situation is still in the balance. In Brussels, negotiators are hard at work ahead of tonight’s talks between European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, but the core issues, the rules on fishing and unfair competition, remain unresolved. Rumors of rupture come from London from the British prime minister, who is already preparing the speech of the no-deal, to tell the nation that the country is heading towards a Brexit (as of January 1) without an agreement with the EU.

According to the British tabloid Sun, BoJo would be ready to exit post-Brexit negotiations within “hours” after the “outrageous” demands from the EU. After four years, five months and 14 days of negotiations, a source close to the prime minister said: “Now we are really in overtime. If there is no movement at the end of today’s talks, it will at least be questioned whether it is worth continuing. We will not give in to the demands of the European Union that prevent us from regaining control of the rules under which the British live ”.

Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin said Sunday the odds of a deal are 50 to 50. Investment bank JPMorgan said the odds of exiting a no-trade deal have risen to a third from 20%. EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier was “quite pessimistic about the prospects for a deal” when speaking with the national envoy in Brussels on Monday morning, according to a diplomat quoted by Reuters, adding that Johnson should have done. the final appeal. for an agreement. “The ball is in BoJo’s court,” said the diplomat, who was participating in the briefing. “Differences persist on all issues.”

Britain formally left the EU on January 31, but since then there has been a transitional period in which trade, travel and trade rules remain unchanged. For weeks, the two sides have been negotiating, still to no avail, on fishing rights in British waters, on how to ensure fair competition between companies and on ways to resolve future disputes.

In Brussels, an EU diplomat told Reuters the UK had not made the “necessary decisions” on fishing and fair competition to make possible a trade deal worth nearly a trillion dollars. year. In London, a British MP from Johnson’s ruling Conservative Party argued that France should make concessions on fishing and the EU should abandon its demands for a level playing field.

Failure to reach an agreement would lead to border obstructions, financial markets disrupted, and delicate supply chains disrupted throughout Europe and beyond as the world struggles to cope with the economic cost of the pandemic.