Tunnel vision of Brexit deal
Intensive talks raise hopes for an agreement
BREXIT talks have entered the secretive “tunnel” stage in a boost for the PM’s hopes of securing a deal before the October 31 deadline.
But Boris Johnson was tight-lipped last night on what concessions he made to get EU leaders to warm to his plans.
He refused to give a “running commentary” on the negotiations, but said his three-hour meeting with Irish leader Leo Varadkar on Thursday had been crucial to finding a way forward.
He said: “We can see a pathway to a deal. That doesn’t mean it’s a done deal.”
But he said leaving Northern Ireland in the customs union remained off the table as a solution to the border issue.
Mr Johnson would struggle to pass such a measure through the House of Commons without the DUP’s support.
Despite increased hopes of a deal, Government preparations for no-deal Brexit continued in earnest.
Ministers yesterday handed more than £86.6million to four ferry companies to ensure the flow of vital medicines if Britain crashes out of the EU without a deal.
Talks in Brussels sped up yesterday after a “constructive meeting” between Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay and the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier.
Yesterday morning Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, said there were “promising signals,” but warned Johnson had “not come forward with a workable proposal.”
The PM has just six days left to hammer out the structure of a deal which can be agreed at a crunch Brussels summit on October 17 and 18.
The “tunnel” is Brussels jargon for in-depth talks among a select group of negotiators designed to minimise leaks.
EU citizens, their supporters and MPs will surround the Home Office in London today to demand migrants’ rights are defended after Brexit.