[News] Brexit trade talks: 'Big differences remain' - Ursula von der Leyen

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Brexit trade talks: 'Big differences remain' - Ursula von der Leyen

 

"Big differences remain to be bridged" in talks to reach a post-Brexit trade deal, the EU Commission head has said following a call with Boris Johnson.

Ursula von der Leyen warned it would be "very challenging" to overcome differences, particularly on fisheries.

According to a No 10 spokesman, the PM said "time was short" and the talks are in a "serious situation".

He also said a no deal scenario was "very likely" unless the EU position changed "substantially".

Despite speaking of difficulties, Mrs von der Leyen also welcomed "substantial progress on many issues".

Talks in Brussels will continue on Friday, with two weeks to go before the UK leaves EU trading rules.

In a statement issued after the phone call, No 10 said: "He [Mr Johnson] said that we were making every effort to accommodate reasonable EU requests on the level playing field, but even though the gap had narrowed some fundamental areas remained difficult.

"On fisheries he stressed that the UK could not accept a situation where it was the only sovereign country in the world not to be able to control access to its own waters for an extended period and to be faced with fisheries quotas which hugely disadvantaged its own industry.

"The EU's position in this area was simply not reasonable and if there was to be an agreement it needed to shift significantly."

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The basics
Brexit happened but rules didn't change at once: The UK left the European Union on 31 January 2020, but leaders needed time to negotiate a deal for life afterwards - they got 11 months.
Talks are happening: The UK and the EU have until 31 December 2020 to agree a trade deal as well as other things, such as fishing rights.
If there is no deal: Border checks and taxes will be introduced for goods travelling between the UK and the EU. But deal or no deal, we will still see changes.
What happens next with Brexit?

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The call comes as minister Michael Gove told peers that talks about a trade deal "may go on until after Christmas".

Mr Gove said he hoped a deal could be reached "as quickly as possible".

He said that while the European Parliament has said it would not have time to ratify a deal if it was not concluded by Sunday, they could "apply provisional application of the treaty".

Mr Gove, who has led much of the UK government's preparations for no deal, appeared in front of two separate select committees of the House of Commons and the Lords on Thursday.

At his first appearance, he told MPs that while "Christmas Day will be sacrosanct", it is "entirely possible" that Parliament "could be sitting on any other day up until 31 December".

 

European Parliament leaders have set Sunday as a deadline for them to see the text of any deal agreed by the negotiating teams.

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What you need to know about the UK leaving the EU
The senior MEPs said they would "not be rushed" into approving an agreement at their end, and would have to see the text by the end of the week if they were to sign it off by 31 December.

 

It's long been predicted that competition rules and fishing would be the last areas where compromise is found.

For Boris Johnson's government, being tied to EU regulations in perpetuity defeats the purpose of Brexit and makes a mockery of "taking back control".

For the European Union, it will not allow its internal market to be undermined by offering the UK unfair access.

Ursula von der Leyen has claimed the two sides have made a significant step by agreeing to a "strong mechanism" to ensure neither side lowers their environmental or social standards, but are yet to agree on how each could diverge from these levels in the future.

A good number of EU diplomats were quietly confident it was a matter of when, not if, EU access to UK fishing waters could be sorted. But it's proving trickier than they thought.

Sources tell me that Michel Barnier explained to EU ambassadors at the start of this week that if fishing is resolved, then a wider deal would quickly fall into place.

But there's no sign of a meeting of minds on fish, with the EU warning openly it may prove to be impossible.

But let's remember this is the most intense of negotiations and that every public proclamation from London or Brussels will be chosen to strengthening their respective hands in what are the final days and hours of talks.

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From the EU side, Mr Barnier said: "In this final stretch of talks, transparency and unity are important as ever.

"Good progress, but last stumbling blocks remain. We will only sign a deal protecting EU interests and principles."

On Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also said a "narrow path" had opened up for the two sides to conclude a deal.

MPs broke up for the Christmas break on Thursday evening, but Mr Gove confirmed they could be called back to the Commons if a deal is agreed between negotiators.

Although there is only 14 days until the deadline, Mr Gove also said he believed there was enough time for the necessary legislation to pass before 31 December "to give businesses legal certainty".

But a number of opposition MPs raised issues already facing businesses waiting to discover the outcome of talks.

One Welsh MP, Jonathan Edwards, said: "I was contacted late last night by a businessman in my constituency who is reliant on imports from the continent and he can't find a haulage firm willing to carriage on his behalf due to the current delays at the ports.

"He's very concerned unless this issue was resolved his business would not survive into the new year."

Mr Gove said he would get in touch with the business concerne