Barnier boost for PM as he dangles the prospect of trade deal
Michel Barnier last night said a trade deal could be done with the UK before the need for a controversial irish backstop.
The eU’s chief negotiator insisted a trade deal could be struck before the end of 2020 due to the ‘distinct starting point’ of Britain having been a bloc member for 41 years.
it could provide a boost for Theresa May, who may struggle to get the deal through Parliament.
Just moments after Mrs May revealed on the steps of Downing Street agreement had been reached, Mr Barnier hailed the ‘decisive’ progress reached between the two sides.
Speaking in Brussels, he said a backstop, which has stalled negotiations, may never need to be used because a deal is ‘possible within this short transition period [which ends in December 2020] because we’ve got the basis’.
he added: ‘This backstop is not meant to be used. Our objective remains to reach a new agreement before the end of the transition.’ Perhaps referring to the recent trade deal the bloc struck with canada, which took seven years, he added: ‘These were exceptional, extraordinary negotiations with a country to which we are very close.
‘This is after all an ecosystem, a single market which we have built up with the UK over the last 41 years so we have a very distinct starting point.
‘i don’t think these agreements will need as much time as other trade agreements for countries that were much further away.’
Moments later, eU commission president Jean-claude Juncker tweeted to say that he would send a letter to eU council chief Donald Tusk recommending that enough ‘decisive progress’ has been made.
it paves the way for a special summit later this month, most likely on November 25, when the deal could be finalised.
it came on a day when it was revealed that Mr Barnier’s deputy told eU member states that the irish border issue could force Britain into accepting Brussels rules for years to come after Brexit.
Sabine Weyand, the bloc’s deputy chief negotiator, outlined the plan while briefing eU member states on the latest in negotiations last week.
On a dramatic day in Brussels she further briefed ambassadors on the latest in talks last night as tensions rose over whether the draft agreement would be published.
Brussels officials from Mr Barnier’s team were seen carrying several cardboard boxes into the meeting conand taining copies of the draft agreement.
But they left with the boxes unopened after it emerged Brussels was not going to get ‘the green light’ from Downing Street in time last night.
One diplomat said after leaving the meeting last night: ‘We are still waiting for a signal from london. We will not get to see the text until we get that.
‘The situation is very fragile every second, every minute, every hour can change.’
Ambassadors from the remaining member states waited in anticipation of being allowed to see the draft text on the fifth floor of the eU council’s europa building last night. But it broke off after three and a half hours.
however, within an hour, Mrs May had given a statement on the steps of Downing Street confirming her cabinet had signed off on the deal, paving the way for the document to be distributed to eU ambassadors, who will now meet tomorrow to discuss it. it is then that the November 25 summit will likely be annoucned.
it came after it emerged that Ms Weyand allegedly told member states last week that the temporary customs arrangement agreed as part of an irish backstop would ‘form the basis’ of the future relationship with the UK. This would mean Britain being in a longer-term alignment with the bloc’s rules and could prolong hindrances to being able to strike new trade deals.
Ms Weyand also assured member states their fishing fleets could have continued access to British waters long after Brexit.
last night the eU parliament’s chief Brexit coordinator, Guy Verhofstadt, said: ‘We welcome the positive progress made in the negotiations by Michel Barnier and his team. We look forward to being fully apprised of the details of the withdrawal agreement.
‘it is encouraging to see that we are moving towards a fair deal that should ensure an orderly withdrawal, including a backstop guaranteeing that there will be no hardening of the Northern irish/irish border and that the Good Friday Agreement will be safeguarded. This deal is a milestone towards a credible and sustainable future relationship. it is now up to elected Parliamentarians on to do their work and scrutinise the proposed deal.’
‘Backstop is not meant to be used’