Chances of Brexit deal fading fast, says British govt

LONDON: The British government said on Tuesday that the chances of a Brexit deal with the EU were fading fast, as the two sides remained unwilling to shift from their entrenched positions.

UK PM Boris Johnson’s office gave a gloomy assessment after a call between Johnson and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday morning.

In a statement to British media, Downing Street said Merkel had told the UK PM that “a deal is overwhelmingly unlikely” unless Northern Ireland remains in a customs union with the EU - something the UK says it can’t allow.

Downing Street said that “if this represents a new established position, then it means a deal is essentially impossible not just now but ever”.

EU leaders have demanded more “realism” from Britain in response to a Brexit plan proposed by Johnson. The bloc says the proposals don’t fulfil the UK’S commitment to a frictionless border between Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland.

Johnson, meanwhile, has urged the bloc to compromise.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said the EU will assess by Friday whether a deal is possible. Johnson insists the UK will leave the EU on October 31 even without a deal.

JOHNSON WILL FIGHT BREXIT DELAY: REPORT Johnson thinks his talks with the EU will fail and that he will then have to “do all sorts of things” to prevent another Brexit delay, a government official told The Spectator magazine.

But should an extension still be granted at next week’s EU summit, Johnson will not resubmit his current proposal, the source in Johnson’s Downing Street office said.

“If this deal dies in the next f e w days, t hen i t won’t be revived. To marginalise the Brexit Party, we will have to fight the election on the basis of ‘no more delays, get Brexit done immediately’,” the source said.