THE FIRST ROUND TO EU , M’SIEUR
Davis suffers blow as Barnier dictates terms of negotiations
DAVID Davis came away the loser during his opening round of Brexit talks with EU negotiator Michel Barnier yesterday.
The UK accepted the European Union’s sequence for negotiations – putting citizens’ rights, the “divorce bill” and the Irish border question ahead of any trade talks.
It means discussions about future trade relations will not begin until October at the earliest.
British officials had been pushing hard to talk about trade relations at the same time as handling the terms of withdrawal.
But at a joint press conference with the Brexit Secretary, Barnier made it clear that the EU dictated the terms and timing of the talks.
The former French foreign minister did not put a figure on the highly contested settlement likely to be required from the UK as a divorce bill, estimated by some in Brussels at as much as £88billion.
But he insisted that talks could only move on to the future trade relationship once the remaining 27 member states were satisfied that “sufficient progress” was being made on the settlement, the Irish border and citizens’ rights.
Barnier said: “We have to commit ourselves now mutually to guarantee rights to citizens on either side of the Channel so they can continue their lives as in the past.
“We have to clear the accounts and we have to honour our mutual financial commitments.
“We also have to find solutions to
maintaining all the commitments of the Good Friday Agreement.
“The European Council can then decide on whether we can show sufficient progress or not and we can move to scoping the future relationship on trade and other matters.”
Terms agreed by both sides envisage four rounds of talks on the first phase of discussions – in the weeks starting July 17, August 28, September 18 and October 9 – implying trade negotiations are unlikely to open until after then.
Davis tried to put a brave face on it by insisting that the timetable was “completely consistent” with the Government’s aim of parallel trade and exit talks.
He said: “It’s not when it starts, it’s how it finishes that matters.
“The UK has been crystal clear in our approach to the negotiations – the withdrawal process cannot be concluded without the future relationship also being taken into account.
“They should be agreed alongside each other, this is completely consistent with the council’s guidelines, which state nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.”
Davis said the UK Government would publish a “generous offer” next Monday to end the row over the future rights of EU citizens in the UK and British expats in the EU.
He added: “Ever since the referendum, I have been clear that my first priority is to provide certainty to European Union citizens living in the United Kingdom, and to UK citizens resident in the European Union.
“So now that the negotiations have started, we are determined to deliver that certainty as soon as possible.
“The Prime Minister will later this week update European leaders on the UK’s approach to this issue.”
Barnier added: “We must lift the uncertainty caused by Brexit.
“It is by lifting uncertainties around these issues that we will lay the foundation and create the climate of trust which will enable us to build a new partnership.”
Barnier also promised to deal with negotiations on the UK’s withdrawal in a “constructive” way.
He said: “For both the European Union and the United Kingdom, a fair deal is possible and far better than no deal.
“That’s why we will work all the time with the UK and never against the UK. There will be no hostility on my side.”