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France could exercise its veto to overturn a Brexit deal brought from London by the EU’s top negotiator, the country’s European Affairs minister warned.
With the negotiations hitting troubled waters at 11 o’clock, Clément Beaune, a close ally of French President Emmanuel Macron, said his country could act unilaterally if the terms were not correct.
UK government sources had claimed on Thursday night that Brexit negotiations had suddenly backtracked after furious French lobbying pushed the EU to submit late demands.
The apparent tightening of the EU’s position was said to destabilize the lengthy talks, delaying the progress made in the previous 24 hours. Both sides believe that Sunday night or Monday morning is the one-year trade deadline.
Beaune said his government was closely monitoring developments in London, where negotiators have been working around the clock to find common ground and would scrutinize any deal.
He said, “This [no deal] there is risk. We must not hide it because there are companies, our fishermen, citizens who need to know and that is why we must prepare for the risk of not reaching an agreement. That is to say, on December 31 there will be no more free movement and free access to the UK market and vice versa.
“But it is not what we want and negotiations continue with Michel Barnier, who is in London at the moment. I still hope that we can reach an agreement, but I also tell our fishermen, our producers, our citizens, that we will not accept bad treatment.
He added: “I think it is also the case of our partners that if there was a deal that is not good, that in our evaluation does not correspond to those interests, we will oppose it.
“Yes, each country has a veto, so it is possible. France, like all its partners, has the means of veto. We must do our own evaluation, of course, of this deal, that is normal. We owe it to the French people, we owe it to our fishermen and other economic sectors.
“I want to believe that we will have a good deal, but to get a good deal you know that it is better to be frank and say our interests. We have been very clear, sometimes the British a little less, about our interests.”
Chronology
From Brefusal to Brexit: A History of Britain in the EU
Brefusal
French President Charles de Gaulle vetoes Britain’s entry into the EEC, accusing Britain of “deep-seated hostility” towards the European project.
Brentry
With Sir Edward Heath having signed the accession treaty the previous year, the UK joins the EEC in an official ceremony complete with a torchlight rally, reverent officials and a procession of political leaders, including former Prime Ministers Harold Macmillan and Alec Douglas. -Home.
Referendum
The UK decides to stay in the common market after 67% voted “yes”. Margaret Thatcher, later to be the leader of the Conservative Party, campaigned to stay.
‘Give us back our money’
Margaret Thatcher negotiated what became known as the UK’s refund with other EU members after the “iron lady” marched to the former French royal palace at Fontainebleau to demand “our own money back” claiming that for every £ 2 contributed we received only £ 1 “despite being one of the” poorest three “members of the community.
It was a move that sowed the seeds of conservative euroscepticism that would later spark the Brexit schism in the party.
The Witches speech
Thatcher notified the EU community at a decisive moment in EU policy where she questioned the expansionist plans of Jacques Delors, who had pointed out that 80% of all decisions on economic and social policy would be made by the European Community. within 10 years. a European government in “embryo”. That was a bridge too far for Thatcher.
The cold war ends
Collapse of the Berlin Wall and fall of communism in Eastern Europe, which would later lead to the expansion of the EU.
‘No no no’
The divisions between the UK and the EU deepened when Thatcher told the Commons in an infamous speech that it was’ no, no, no ‘to what she saw as Delors’ continued takeover. Rupert Murdoch’s Sun newspaper reinforces its opposition to Europe with a two-fingered cover, “Up Yours Delors.”
Black wednesday
A collapse of the pound forced Prime Minister John Major and then-Chancellor Norman Lamont to remove the UK from the exchange rate mechanism.
The single market
On January 1, controls and customs duties were eliminated throughout the bloc. Thatcher praised the vision of “a single market without barriers, visible or invisible, giving you direct and unhindered access to the purchasing power of more than 300 million of the world’s richest and most prosperous people.”
Maastricht Treaty
Conservative rebels vote against the treaty that paved the way for the creation of the European Union. John Major won the vote the next day in a Pyrrhic victory.
Repairing the relationship
Tony Blair fixes the relationship. Adheres to the social charter and labor rights.
United Kingdom
Nigel Farage elected a MEP and immediately goes on the offensive in Brussels. “Our interests are better served if we are not members of this club,” he said in his inaugural address. “The playing field is almost as level as the decks of the Titanic after hitting an iceberg.”
The euro
Chancellor Gordon Brown decides that the UK will not join the euro.
The EU is expanding to include eight countries of the former eastern bloc, including Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
The EU is expanding again, allowing Romania and Bulgaria to join the club.
Migratory crisis
The anti-immigration hysteria seems to be entrenched with references to Katie Hopkins’ “cockroaches” in the Sun and tabloid headlines such as “How many more can we take?” and “Calais Crisis: Send the Dogs”.
David Cameron returns from Brussels with an EU reform package, but it is not enough to appease the eurosceptic wing of his own party.
Brexit referendum
The UK votes to leave the European Union, triggering the resignation of David Cameron and paving the way for Theresa May to become Prime Minister.
Britain leaves the EU
After years of parliamentary stalemate during Theresa May’s attempt to reach an agreement, the UK leaves the EU.
The talks remain focused on the level of access granted to the European fishing fleet to British waters by the end of the year and the so-called level playing field provisions.
The EU seeks guarantees in a deal that the UK will not be able to distort trade through subsidies or by undermining environmental, labor and social standards.
UK sources claimed the EU had started pushing for additional and stricter guarantees on the role of a national subsidy regulator, or state aid, after the transition period, a claim completely rejected by Brussels.
“We do not see any real collapse or problem beyond the already slow routine of this negotiation,” an EU source said on Friday. “It focuses on the national application of state aid rules, whether ex ante [prior] or ex post [after a subsidy is granted]. “
