France slams PM’s trade deal deadline
BORIS Johnson was accused by France of imposing “artificial deadlines” on the EU yesterday as tempers frayed ahead of the Brexit trade negotiations.
Senior minister Amelie de Montchalin insisted Brussels would not sign up to “any kind of deal” simply to meet the Prime Minister’s strict timetable.
Mr Johnson aims to have a broad outline for a UK-EU trade agreement in place by September.
Scrap
But French Europe minister Ms de Montchalin has concerns about the projected deadlines.
She spoke out a day after the Government confirmed Mr Johnson will scrap the talks in June unless serious progress has been made towards the Canada-style free trade deal he wants.
UK and EU negotiators are due to begin the first round of discussions on a future cross-Channel trade deal in Brussels on Monday.
A swathe of issues, including fisheries, goods, transport and energy, are on the agenda.
In one potential flashpoint, the issue of a “level playing field for open and fair competition” was included on the agenda released yesterday, despite the PM’s rejection of Brussels regulations continuing in the UK.
Ms de Montchalin, a senior figure in French President Emmanuel
Macron’s government, used a speech in London yesterday to signal EU concerns.
She claimed the EU would “not accept time pressure” and is “not ready to sign any kind of a deal on December 31 at 11pm”.
She said: “We cannot let our level of ambition be affected by what I would call artificial deadlines.
“If the UK decides to shorten the negotiating period, it will be the UK’s responsibility. It will not be our choice on the European side, and that choice will have consequences in terms of the breadth and depth of the relationship we can build.
“For us, substance is much more important than deadlines.”
Plans for the negotiations published yesterday show that the talks will alternate between Brussels and London, with sessions held every two to three weeks.
The two negotiating teams will be split into a series of groups to focus on different issues, such as fisheries, transport and energy, to accelerate the process.
Divisions
Mr Johnson’s chief Europe policy adviser David Frost will lead the UK’s 40-strong negotiating team.
They will be up against a Brussels line-up led by veteran EU diplomat and chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier.
The talks will begin amid a backdrop of deep divisions between the two sides over issues including fisheries and state subsidies.