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Trade and security negotiations between the UK and the EU are progressing apace, said Ursula von der Leyen in the most optimistic remarks to date on the status of the Brexit talks.
When the negotiations moved to Brussels after seven days in London, the president of the European Commission said: “We are progressing well [there are] two fundamental issues: a level playing field and fishing, [where] we would like to see more progress.
“We are in very close contact every hour because the negotiations have now intensified … There are 11 other file fields that need to be negotiated.” his comments come after Downing Street said last week that the talks had ended.
The outstanding issues are the level of access to British waters that the UK will provide to EU fishing fleets, the rules of fair competition for companies, including rules on domestic subsidies, and the final treaty mechanism to resolve future disputes.
Von der Leyen, who spoke after a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, said negotiators would work hard on the issue of how to build a dispute mechanism that would allow either party to suspend parts of the deal in the event of a clear breach of obligations.
European council president Charles Michel said the status of the talks would likely be assessed next week and that Brussels expects to start the ratification process in mid-November. Comments will be warmly received by Boris Johnson after a stormy few weeks.
Trudeau also spoke positively about renewing the current terms of the trade agreement Canada has with the EU to ensure that the UK continues to benefit after the transition period. According to the Global Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada, 95% of covered imports are free of tariffs and quotas.
Trudeau said: “There has been a lot of discussion in recent years between myself and Prime Minister Johnson and his predecessor about that smooth transition, in a renewal of CETA between Canada and the EU, to be the basis of a free trade between Canada and the United Kingdom. agreement that would allow certainty for Canadian and British companies going forward.
“I think you have heard that there are significant complexities that the UK is dealing with in terms of negotiating the post-Brexit deal with the EU. I can stress that it’s pretty straightforward with Canada and we’re certainly very optimistic in the ability to see things go smoothly. “
