[Britse politiek] #117: Brinkmanship.

quote:

Brexit trade deal: Michel Barnier says UK 'blocked progress in key areas'

Sky News has seen minutes of a confidential meeting between Michel Barnier and representatives from all 27 EU member states.

European diplomats have been told that there are still "fundamental differences" in the hunt for a Brexit trade deal and that the UK has "blocked" progress in key areas while trying to run down the clock.

The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, briefed representatives from all 27 member states on Wednesday afternoon.

The meeting was highly confidential, but Sky News has seen comprehensive minutes that lay out his negotiating position.

Crucially, Mr Barnier told the meeting that the most important sticking point was the so-called level playing field - the mechanism that would ensure that, in future, the UK sticks to the same rules as the European Union in areas such as labour law and state aid.

The level playing field - commonly known as the LPF - is seen as crucial by the EU because of fears that the UK might otherwise undercut European laws in an effort to reduce costs and attract foreign investment.

It is a charge that the British government has denied, but which remains critical to EU thinking.

Mr Barnier told the meeting that LPF was "the most fundamental point where we still have major differences".

He added: "The prime minister has stressed that alignment [with European rules] would breach sovereignty.

"This question seriously throws the chances of an agreement into doubt."

He told the diplomats that "if no progress is registered on LPF, there is a risk that that leaves us unprotected against unfair competition".

He said that his UK counterpart, Lord Frost, had suggested an "independent authority that would oversee state aid", but then, according to the minutes of the meeting, alleged that "the UK seems to have blocked any progress over the last two weeks".

Mr Barnier told the meeting that there had been "good progress" on drawing up the legal text that would provide the backbone of any future treaty.

However, he said "there are still essential differences on fundamental subjects - on the level playing field, governance and fisheries".

Mr Barnier told the meeting that, despite optimistic claims from British politicians and stories in some UK newspapers, he did not consider that a deal about fisheries had moved any closer.

He said that he still thought that a deal "was possible", but that British negotiators "are trying to apply time pressure".

British sources have accused Mr Barnier of using exactly the same tactic, of running down the clock in order to force through a deal.

I understand that Mr Barnier's analysis received support from across the room, and there is very little sign that confidence in him is wavering.

One senior diplomat told me that he "continues to enjoy the full support and trust of all member states".

Sources close to the British negotiating team have spoken of a "constructive atmosphere", but have also confirmed that "significant differences remain on familiar difficult issues".

At a time of rancour, there is, at least, agreement on the state of disagreement.

quote:

Northern Ireland will not be ready for January 1 post-Brexit trade checks - watchdog

LONDON (Reuters) - Northern Ireland will not be ready to conduct checks on certain goods moving between Britain and the province from January as required by the Brexit divorce deal and is exploring contingency plans, an official report warned on Friday.

The National Audit Office (NAO), which reviews government spending, added that all UK borders would face widespread disruption when Britain finally leaves the European Union after COVID-19 hits its preparation, whether or not it strikes a free trade deal with the bloc.

From Jan. 1, exporters will need to file customs and safety declarations, even if Britain does secure an agreement.

However, the NAO said ports now have little time to integrate or test their systems with the government’s new IT services, and there are still not enough customs sites or customs brokers to help industry adapt.

“Disruption is likely and government will need to respond quickly to minimise the impact,” said NAO chief Gareth Davies.

One of the most challenging areas will be Northern Ireland which will require some goods from the rest of the UK to be checked in order to protect trade with EU member the Republic of Ireland.

The NAO said the department responsible for the systems and infrastructure to undertake the checks on animals and plants now believes the work will not be ready in time.

The report added that the customs office has made good progress on the issue but acknowledges that it remains “very high risk”. “It is in the process of identifying alternatives if it cannot put its plans in place by 1 January 2021,” it said.

Another area of concern involves a key government plan for moving goods in one transit movement across several EU countries which many trucking companies are expecting to use. The report said it would be challenging to deliver this.

It also says significant work needs to be done by the customs office to cope with the expected 270 million customs declarations a year.

In its defence, the government says it has given 84 million pounds to train customs intermediaries, phased in paperwork demands for imports and boosted logistics for critical goods.

It also warns, however, that 7,000 trucks could be held in queues in Kent, southeast England, if traders are not ready. The Bank of England said on Thursday GDP was likely to suffer a 1% hit from the trade changes, even if a deal were secured.

quote:

Britons do lose EU citizenship due to Brexit, the Cour de Cassation has ruled – the first time a top national appeal court has said this.

Julien Fouchet, of Cornille Pouyanne Fouchet barristers in Bordeaux, was representing a Briton from Nouvelle- Aquitaine who has lived in France for 13 years and says it is harmful to lose his EU citizenship, including voting rights, due to Brexit.

Ruling on whether it was fair for him to have been struck off the electoral list, the court said EU citizenship depends on being a national of an EU state, so the Briton had “lost his EU citizenship”.

Mr Fouchet is still pursuing the loss of citizenship issue in a case with the European Court of Justice and hopes for a judgment imminently.

quote:

Brexit talks remain deadlocked going into decisive week

The Brexit negotiations remained stuck after a call between Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen before a decisive week of talks.

The European commission president and the prime minister both highlighted in their post-call statements the contentious issues of EU access to British waters and agreement on future rules to ensure fair competition.

Von der Leyen tweeted that “some progress has been made, but large differences remain” with just over a week remaining before the UK and EU parliaments need to begin ratification of a trade and security deal.

A statement from Downing Street emphasised the need to “redouble efforts” when the two sides, led by the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, and his British counterpart, David Frost, re-engage on Monday.

A Downing Street spokesman said after Saturday’s call: “The prime minister set out that, while some progress had been made in recent discussions, significant differences remain in a number of areas, including the so-called level playing field and fish.

“The prime minister and president agreed that their negotiating teams would continue talks in London next week, beginning on Monday, in order to redouble efforts to reach a deal.”

The negotiations are entering a decisive phase. But Barnier privately warned last week that the talks are not on a “trajectory” for a deal, telling MEPs that the coming week offered the last opportunity for common ground to be found.

On fishing, Barnier has told diplomats there is a big gap between the sides on quotas and that “access to the 6-12 mile fishing zone” remains a sticking point for France and Ireland, which point to their fishing fleets operating in those seas for centuries.

One source said the EU was nevertheless seeking to help Johnson to overcome his political problems at home in order to get the deal over the line but that the gaps in terms of quotas remained too big for the EU to be able to start selling the deal to member states.

But in Brussels, the greatest concern is the lack of progress on the issues of standards and domestic subsidies, or state aid.