LDN - Business

Frustrated EU to keep pressing for British trade deal

[October 15, 2020] By Philip Blenkinsop and Francesco Guarascio

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union leaders will agree on Thursday to extend talks with Britain on a trade deal in coming weeks to seek concessions on fisheries, fair competition and dispute resolution in an effort to preserve a trillion euros worth of annual commerce.

Months of talks between the estranged allies have narrowed gaps on issues from energy to welfare for 2021 when Britain's transition period after leaving the bloc ends.

But the three most contentious areas have so far prevented a deal, with businesses and markets increasingly jittery as the year-end deadline nears for agreement between the world's sixth biggest economy and its largest trading bloc.

Last month, Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson set Oct. 15 as the deadline for a deal and on Wednesday said he would decide what to do after reflecting on the conclusions of this week's EU summit.

"The European Council invites the Unionʼs chief negotiator to continue negotiations in the coming weeks, and calls on the UK to make the necessary moves to make an agreement possible," the latest draft of the EU summit conclusions said.

Many on financial markets expect a thin deal by early November, though after several more weeks of drama.

The 27 EU heads of state will also want an acceleration of contingency plans for an abrupt split if no agreement emerges in time on trading with Britain without tariffs or quotas.

But, keen to avoid being blamed, the bloc will continue negotiations for as long as possible, a German government source said, adding: "The European Union will not be the ones getting up from the table."

The EU says a deal must come in early November at the latest to allow time for ratification by its parliament and some national chambers. Britain's junior business minister Nadhim Zahawi said London also could not wait much longer as it needed to tell businesses to prepare if talks fail.

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European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic in Brussels, Belgium September 28, 2020. John Thys/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

'EAT YOUR VEGGIES'

In a call on Wednesday, senior EU officials pushed Johnson for progress.

With fisheries crucial to France, President Emmanuel Macron is expected to take a hard line on Thursday.

The EU has warned it will not leave the matter to last and that it could only be part of a wider deal together with issues like energy ties or financial services where London has a weaker bargaining position than on fishing rights.

The sides are also far apart on the so-called level playing field guarantees of fair competition. They cover social, labour and environment standards, as well as state aid.

If both sides follow the same rules, they can trade without any barriers. But Britain wants to be able to regulate its own corporate subsidies freely in the future, while the EU seeks to lock in joint principles.

Otherwise, the EU says Britain cannot have open access to the bloc's cherished single market of 450 million people as it could offer its goods for sale at artificially low prices resulting from substandard production.

"It's a bit like one of your children not wanting to eat their veggies," an EU diplomat said of Britain's reluctance to accept the bloc's position.

"What do you do? Do you force it into their mouth or do you try to mix it up another way?"

(Additional reporting by Jan Strupczewski, Gabriela Baczynska,; Kate Abnett, Sabine Siebold; Writing by Jan Strupczewski and Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Toby Chopra and Andrew Cawthorne)

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