LDN - Business

Moment may come to end post-Brexit EU trade talks, UK PM Johnson says

[December 08, 2020]

By Guy Faulconbridge and Elizabeth Piper

LONDON (Reuters) - Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday that Britain could call an end to post-Brexit trade talks without a deal being reached, a day after he agreed to meet the European Commission head in a last-ditch attempt to break the stalemate.

With just over three weeks before Britain finally completes its departure from the bloc, Johnson is due to meet European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen in the coming days after negotiators failed to close the gaps in talks.

Both sides have called on the other to compromise to get a deal over the line but neither has been forthcoming.

Since Britain left the EU in January, the two sides have been stuck over three issues, raising the prospect of what many businesses say is their nightmare scenario - no agreement to govern around $1 trillion in annual trade.

Asked if he would try to do a deal right up until the wire, Johnson told reporters: "Yeah of course."

"We're always hopeful but you know there may come a moment when we have to acknowledge that its time to draw stumps and that's just the way it is," said Johnson, using a cricketing term for the end of play.

"We will prosper mightily under any version and if we have to go for an Australian solution then that's fine too," he added. Australia has no free trade deal with the EU, which means the bulk of its trade is on World Trade Organization terms.

Britain on Tuesday repeated its red lines in the talks, as did France, which has taken a particularly tough line among EU members.

A senior British government source said there was "every chance we are not going to get there", while French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune said Paris would oppose any agreement that "sacrifices" its fishermen.

EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said what was needed was "a school of patience, even a university of patience".

DAYS TO GO?

Before Johnson and von der Leyen sit down, their negotiators have been charged with preparing an overview of the remaining differences. Barnier said he had met Britain's chief negotiator, David Frost, on Tuesday to prepare the next steps.

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EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier takes part in a meeting of ambassadors of European Union governments in Brussels, Belgium December 7, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS

Britain, which joined the EU's precursor in 1973, formally left on Jan. 31 but has since been in a transition period under which rules on trade, travel and business remain unchanged.

For weeks, the two sides have been haggling over fishing rights in British waters, ensuring fair competition for companies and ways to solve future disputes.

With little sign that the positions are narrowing, the European Commission said talks could continue after the end of this year. Britain has repeatedly ruled this out.

Johnson, a leader of the 2016 referendum campaign to leave the EU, has repeatedly said any deal must respect Britain's sovereignty. Von der Leyen does not want to offer too much to London for fear of encouraging other member states to leave, and must also deliver a deal that does not alienate any of the 27.

Beaune again repeated France's position that it would veto said any agreement it considered a "bad" deal.

"On fisheries there is no reason to yield to Britain's pressure. We can make some efforts but sacrificing fisheries and fishermen, no," he told RMC radio.

Germany's Europe Minister, Michael Roth, called on Britain to show "political will".

"Let me be very clear: Our future relationship is based on trust and confidence," he added. "It's precisely this confidence that is at stake in our negotiations right now."

(additional reporting by Dominique Vidalon in Paris and Sabine Siebold in Berlin, Writing by Elizabeth Piper; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

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