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Boris Johnson and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will hold a phone call this afternoon as the trade talks on Brexit go to the end.
The prime minister will speak with the EU chief at 4 p.m. (5 p.m. in Brussels) to assess whether a post-Brexit trade deal can still be reached.
Meanwhile, the government offered a concession to the EU and said it would withdraw the most controversial parts of its Internal Market Law, which could violate international law, after “good progress” in talks on the Irish border agreements.
This afternoon’s phone call between Johnson and von der Leyen will be the second in 48 hours, after they agreed over the weekend to go “extra effort” to reach an agreement, despite months of stalemate on key issues. .
Saturday’s call preceded another day of negotiations, which continued late into the night.
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The internal market bill is an ‘insurance policy’
However, the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, was said to be “very pessimistic” about the prospects for a deal when he spoke to the bloc’s national ambassadors on Monday morning.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney told RTE news: “Having heard from Michel Barnier this morning, the news is really very pessimistic.
“I’d say he’s very sad and obviously very cautious about the ability to progress today.”
An EU diplomat said: “Negotiations between the EU and the UK have come to an end, time is fast running out.”
“Despite intense negotiations until last night, the gaps in level playing field, governance and fisheries have yet to be bridged.
“The outcome is still uncertain, it can still go both ways.”
Meanwhile, an EU source told Sky News that they “did not expect anything substantial yet”, although they predicted “some more drama” and said that trade talks “were moving in the right direction on fisheries.”
Less than a month to go to the end of the Brexit transition period
Downing Street said Monday that “significant differences remain on critical issues”, including fisheries, which was still being negotiated by the UK team in Brussels.
The prime minister’s official spokesman said: “Our negotiations are ongoing, but we remain committed to trying to reach a free trade agreement, and that is what our team is trying to achieve today, but clearly we are in the final stages now.” .
The spokesperson also said the UK government was “prepared to negotiate while we have time available if we believe a deal is still possible”, after Barnier allegedly told members of the European Parliament that the deadline for the talks to go through. It’s on Wednesday.
In an attempt to defuse tensions, the UK government also confirmed that it would be “willing to remove” two parts of the Internal Market Act.
The bill has been condemned by critics in both Westminster and all European capitals for allowing ministers to overturn the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK’s divorce deal with the EU that was agreed to last year.
The government has admitted that the legislation could cause the UK to violate international law, but argues that it is necessary to protect the integrity of the UK and the Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland.
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‘Significant differences remain’
Cabinet Prime Minister Michael Gove met with European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic in Brussels on Monday.
After their meeting, the UK government issued a statement saying it could dismiss the controversial parts related to state aid and export declarations.
The bill is debated Monday in the Commons after the Lords removed the same sections, but the government is expected to reinsert them successfully, setting up a “ping pong” battle between the two Houses.
Foreign Minister James Cleverly told Sky News’ Kay Burley that those clauses would be reintroduced into the bill when it returns to the House of Commons today, with MPs set to vote on whether to keep or scrap the amendments from the Lords tonight.
“It contains clauses that we may have to rely on, and if we need to rely on them, they better be there,” Cleverly said.
“It’s an insurance policy, like all insurance policies that you would rather not have to use. But you’d give yourself a kick if you need it and it’s gone.”
When asked if it was worth risking the ire of the EU by reintroducing the controversial legislation in its entirety, Mr. Cleverly replied: “Not having that in place would weaken our position and really give the EU negotiators an advantage. .
“And, in a negotiation like this, it is really key that both sides negotiate hard. I am sure the EU negotiators are negotiating hard, but so is David Frost (the UK’s chief negotiator) and our negotiating team.” .
“We do it in a spirit of positivity, but we want to get a deal that works for the UK, a deal that works for the UK.”
EU national leaders will meet for a summit in Brussels on Thursday, which will take place just three weeks before the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31.
The pound fell more than two cents against the US dollar Monday morning to just over $ 1.32 as investors became more concerned about the possibility of a no-deal result.
It was a sharp setback from market optimism during last week’s talks, in which the British pound rose above $ 1.35 for the first time this year.
Without a post-Brexit trade deal to be agreed at the end of this month, the EU and the UK will likely have to negotiate under World Trade Organization rules with tariffs imposed in both directions.
