The UK’s chief Brexit negotiator has issued a statement saying that the EU needs “more realism” when it comes to the Brexit trade talks.
“More realism” required from EU says UK chief Brexit negotiator
David Frost has amped up the rhetoric before trade talks between the UK and the EU today by demanding “more realism” from his European counterpart, Michel Barnier.
Frost insists that talks must progress past the deadlock now if there is to be hope of a post-Brexit trade deal. The Prime Minister has said that the transition period will not be extended again and has given five weeks for a deal to be struck. Boris Johnson has also expressed his willingness to tear up parts of the deal or simply leave the union without a deal.
Today marks the eighth round of talks between the UK and the EU and Frost remarked that they can ill afford to go over “well trodden ground” and that the EU must respect the UK’s “status as an independent country”. He added that this stance stands true to the “fundamentals of being a sovereign state”. Frost said that if the EU did not cede any ground on this matter, the UK would leave with no deal and trade on the same terms as Australia does with the EU.
Amendments to various bills from the Withdrawal Agreement will be tabled over the coming days in order to resolve the issue of Northern Ireland. The likely outcome is that Northern Ireland will remain in the customs union meaning that trade tariffs will apply between Northern Ireland and the other nations that make up the United Kingdom.
President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is not going to make life easy during talks as she declared that the UK cannot change the details of the Withdrawal Agreement and still have a free trade deal.
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