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Boris Johnson says it is time to “prepare” for the prospect of a free trade agreement with the EU on January 1.
The prime minister claimed that Brussels had “given up” ambition, but insisted that “we always knew there would be changes” next year once the transition period ends “whatever kind of relationship we have.”
Speaking from Downing Street after an EU summit that both sides said was the deadline for reaching a trade deal, Johnson said the country appeared to be heading toward what he called “the Australian solution.”
Johnson said the UK ‘will prosper tremendously’
He suggested that he is not completely walking away from the negotiations, adding: “What we are telling you is to come here, come to us, if there is any fundamental change in approach.
The UK left the EU on January 31 this year.
After that, the country entered a transitional period, following many of the same rules, meaning there were no changes in trade and tariffs or things like freedom of movement.
Since then, negotiators have been trying to finalize a trade deal that will come into effect when it is finalized in late December.
Carriers were told to prepare for the change starting January 1
But Johnson said in a dramatic speech that “there does not appear to be any progress coming from Brussels.”
He told companies and carriers to “prepare” so that there is no free trade agreement.
Instead, he said the UK’s relationship with the EU could be more similar to that Brussels has with Australia, meaning that tariffs will be introduced on products between the UK and the other 27 EU countries.
The UK left the EU on January 31 and is in a transition period.
And Johnson urged people to “embrace the alternative” with “a big heart”, promising that the UK “will prosper mightily”.
He is scheduled to hold a press conference on Friday afternoon.
Ms Von der Leyen said the EU negotiators would come to London next week as planned.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EU Commission, said she will continue to work for an agreement, “but not at any price.”
“As planned, our negotiating team will travel to London next week to intensify these negotiations,” he added.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel also echoed a similar sentiment, saying: “As far as the EU is concerned, and as far as I am concerned, we should continue to negotiate.”
And Charles Michel, head of the EU Council, said that fishing remains a “very important issue” in the talks, insisting that the UK should implement the divorce deal “in full” after Johnson threatened to annul it.
The pound fell a penny against the dollar immediately after the prime minister’s statement, but quickly rebounded to trade at just under $ 1.29.
Analysis: EU will not be encouraged or bothered by the Prime Minister’s intervention
By Adam Parsons, Europe Correspondent
The transition period ends at the end of December 2020
The EU won’t see these comments exactly as encouraging, but it won’t be particularly upset either.
Johnson has cleared the way for the talks to continue, inviting the EU to “come here, come to us.”
And by happy coincidence, Michel Barnier had already offered to continue the negotiations in London next week.
As for the commitment to prepare for an Aussie-style deal, as far as almost no deal is concerned, EU sources have told me that they believe everyone should have been making those preparations anyway, just in case.
Does this raise the temperature? Perhaps, although the pressure of the clock is doing it anyway.
The EU believes that little progress has been made, but no one claims that a deal is around the corner.
The economic damage of COVID-19 is a much bigger problem for many leaders.
Many countries see the Brexit deal as a distraction at a time when they want to spend their time focusing on how to respond to the resurgent pandemic.
And there is a school of thought among some in Brussels that a no-deal period could be a good thing, to focus attention on a later return to negotiations.
A diplomat told me: “If we end up with no agreement and huge lines of trucks on both sides of the Canal, then everyone could negotiate with a little more purpose.”
The mantra here has been “we want a deal, but not at any cost.” There aren’t many signs that someone is taking a fundamental rethinking right now.
