Brexit: It’s now or never for UK, EU trade deal
London, Thursday
Pressure is mounting on the United Kingdom (UK) and European Union (EU) negotiating teams to finalise a post-Brexit trade deal.
Talks went on late into Wednesday evening at the business department in central London.
The two sides are urgently seeking compromises in key areas before current trading rules expire at the end of this month.
Fishing rights, competition rules and how an agreement should be enforced remain outstanding issues.
The two sides have been locked in talks since March to determine their future relations, once the UK’s Brexit transition period ends on December 31.
Ireland’s Foreign Affairs minister Simon Coveney said there was a “good chance” a deal between the two sides could be agreed in the coming days.
Speaking to Ireland’s Newstalk Radio, Coveney said the EU needed to “hold our nerve” and trust its chief negotiator Michel Barnier.
“I believe if we do that, there’s a good chance that we can get a deal across the line in the next few days,” he added.
Absolutely committed
Coveney was expected in Paris yesterday for Brexit discussions with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian.
Boris Johnson has said the UK remains “absolutely committed” to “getting a deal if we can”.
Speaking on Wednesday, the prime minister said the EU side “know what the UK bottom line is,” as talks continued in what is seen as a crucial week.
Negotiators got back to work in London yesterday morning - face-to-face talks have been ongoing since the weekend after a week-long pause.
Discussions had to move entirely online after Barnier was forced into self-isolation after one of his colleagues tested positive for Covid-19.
Yesterday, Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer told reporters: “If the choice is a deal or no deal, then a deal is obviously in the national interest”.
He said he was “consulting across the Labour Party” on whether the party should back a deal if it comes to a vote in the Commons, and would decide after examining the contents of the deal.
He denied claims that Labour was split over the issue, after reports emerged that he was planning to ask his MPs to vote in favour but some shadow cabinet members want to abstain.
“We’ve pulled together incredibly over the last few months through difficult decisions, and we’ll do so on this decision again,” he added.
The government has not confirmed how it intends to ratify a deal in Parliament.
But the UK’s chief negotiator Lord David Frost has said he assumed MPs would have to approve a law to implement “at least some elements” of a deal.
Fishing rights have been a key stumbling block in the talks and have continued to be a major issue as negotiations enter their endgame.
