PM hits Brussels for last throw of the dice

BORIS Johnson began yesterday at a fishmonger’s shop, waving around a large crab with theatrical menace.

This typically eccentric version of sabrerattling was no doubt intended to signal his defiance in the face of EU bullying over fishing rights in UK waters.

As the day wore on, however, he became distinctly more conciliatory.

First came an offer to remove controversial (possibly illegal) clauses from the Internal Markets Bill, concerning post-Brexit customs arrangements in Northern Ireland.

Then, a f ew hours l ater, he had an apparently agreeable and constructive 90-minute telephone conversation with European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen.

Both made clear that at the end of it there were still daunting hurdles to a trade deal.

But they are still talking and, significantly, Mr Johnson has agreed to travel in person to Brussels ahead of this week’s summit in a last-ditch bid to thrash out an agreement.

The consequences of failure need hardly be stressed. Border chaos, import tariffs and the Navy patrolling our fishing grounds would be a disaster for all concerned.

Yes, the UK would suffer. But tariffs on agricultural goods would effectively beggar Ireland overnight, German car sales would plummet and French, Danish, Dutch and Spanish fishermen could get nothing at all from our waters.

With a genuine will to succeed and an injection of realism on both sides, a trade deal is within reach.

There could be some movement on fishing rights but Brussels must understand that the UK is now a sovereign state.

Committing to follow all future EU trade and state aid regulations and remaining partly subject to the European Court – as they insist we should – would negate the whole point of Brexit.

Even if he wanted to cave in to these demands, he could never sell them to most of his MPs, who would rightly see them as a sell-out.

From the start, this whole negotiating process has bounced up and down like a dog at a fair. Optimism one day, dashed the next. Moving closer to a deal, then seemingly further away than ever.

This time, it really is the last chance saloon. The good news is that Mr Johnson has a proven track record of striking deals against the odds – notably the EU withdrawal agreement which everyone said was impossible.

The next few days will be his supreme test. We must all pray that he can get a similar result.