Brexit: Prime Minister and EU chief to hold call on post-Brexit trade deal

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Reuters

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will speak on a video call later, after negotiations on a post-Brexit trade deal broke down without a deal.

Both sides are asking the other to engage on key issues, including fisheries and government subsidies.

Johnson told the Daily Telegraph that the chances of a deal are “very good” if everyone “exercises some common sense.”

He also said he remains “optimistic” about a Canadian-style relationship.

It comes after Ms Von der Leyen called for the talks to “intensify” as both sides set an October deadline to resolve their differences.

After six months of trade talks with the EU, the UK’s chief negotiator, Lord Frost, claims that the main lines of a deal are visible.

But without greater commitment from the EU, he warns, differences on the contentious issue of fisheries may be impossible to bridge.

Downing Street has always insisted that if there is no agreement on fish, there will be no agreement at all.

Ms Von der Leyen has said that she hopes the video call with the prime minister on Saturday afternoon will create a path to a deal, but is likely to tell her that the UK must show more willingness to abide by the rules of competence of the EU to obtain full access. to the single market.

It has long been assumed that intervention at the highest political level would be needed to make a breakthrough.

And according to BBC Brussels correspondent Nick Beake, another guaranteed talking point will be Downing Street’s insistence that it nullify parts of the Brexit divorce deal that was agreed to last year.

Although the government insists this is just a safety net to protect the peace process in Northern Ireland, the EU says it will refuse to sign any new trade deals as long as the most controversial parts of the internal market law remain in place.

‘Common sense’

Speaking to the Telegraph, the prime minister said the chances of a deal “are very good if everyone just exercises a little common sense and looks at the deal that is to be made.”

He added that the UK had always been “very clear about what we want: we want a Canadian-style relationship.”

“We have been members for 45 years and I don’t see why they can’t have the same deal with us, so I’m quite optimistic,” he said.

The news of the talks between Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen is significant and Saturday cannot be ruled out as more blah blah in the Brexit process.

Of course, speculation abounds as to why the Prime Minister and the President of the EU Commission have suddenly scheduled their digital tête-à-tête.

In general, it is interpreted as a positive sign.

The accepted wisdom has always been that negotiating teams can only progress up to a point.

And that the final push – the politically difficult decisions about how much to commit at friction endpoints – would have to come from above.

But we haven’t arrived yet.

The Prime Minister and Ms Von der Leyen may be speaking today to explore who is really willing to make what commitments on the latest outstanding issues.

For now, the why and what of Saturday’s talks are pure speculation.

The only thing we know for sure: the UK and the EU say they want a deal, though not at any price.

However, if an agreement does eventually emerge, both parties will have had to make concessions.

Read more from Katya here.

The UK formally left the EU in January, but entered a transition period, in which the UK has adhered to EU trade rules and remained within its customs union and single market, to allow the two parties negotiate a business agreement.

Formal talks began in March and continued through the pandemic, but there have been concerns about whether a plan would be agreed upon before that period expires on December 31.

Issues that have become particular sticking points between negotiators are state aid, where governments provide financial support to companies, and fishing rules.

The EU has said an agreement must be reached before the end of October to allow member states to sign it before the end of the year, while Johnson has said both sides should “move on” if no agreement is reached. by the middle of the month.

If no deal is reached, the UK will continue to trade with the bloc according to World Trade Organization rules.

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PA media

In a statement, Lord Frost said that the final round of negotiations had been “constructive” but that “family differences remain”.

On fisheries, he said the gap was “unfortunately very large”, and called on the EU to “advance further before an understanding can be reached” on state aid.

The negotiator added: “I am concerned that there is now very little time to resolve these issues before the 15 October European Council. [the deadline set by the PM to reach a deal].

“For our part, we remain committed to working hard to find solutions, if they can be found.”

His EU counterpart, Michel Barnier, agreed that the negotiations had been conducted in a “constructive and respectful environment”, with some “new positive developments on some issues” such as aviation security and cooperation. police.

But he said there is “a lack of progress on some important issues,” such as climate change commitments, “as well as persistent serious divergences on issues of great importance to the European Union,” including state aid and fisheries.

He added: “We will continue to maintain a calm and respectful attitude, and we will remain united and determined until the end of these negotiations.”

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