Sunak to secure new Brexit deal at weekend

The Government has achieved a series of concessions from Brussels, No10 claims

RISHI SUNAK is hoping to secure a Brexit deal this weekend, after Downing Street claimed he had gained lastminute concessions from Brussels.

No10 said that the Government had achieved a string of “positive breakthroughs” during discussions over the past week to address problems faced by businesses as a result of the post-brexit rules governing Northern Ireland.

The Prime Minister spoke to Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, last night, with further talks planned to seal the deal.

The Daily Telegraph understands that arrangements are in place for the UK and EU to agree the deal as early as tomorrow, with a legal text presented to Parliament on Monday.

Mrs von der Leyen is expected to travel to Britain for a “handshake moment” with Mr Sunak, once the agreement is struck.

Last night, Sky News reported that the King had been scheduled to meet Mrs von der Leyen today, but that the meeting had been cancelled.

Amid claims of concern that the monarch was being dragged into political matters, sources stressed that the King would take no role in negotiations, and was always mindful of constitutional matters.

It was reported that the pair were to have met at Windsor Castle and that the deal could even have been called the Windsor Agreement.

Conservative MPS have been told that they must turn up at the House of Commons on Monday in a further sign that Mr Sunak expects the deal to be ready.

However, it is not yet known whether the new agreement will be accepted by the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), who have demanded that European courts have no say whatsoever in Northern Ireland. The deal will also have to secure the backing of Brexiteer

Tory backbenchers in the European Research Group (ERG).

Government sources said yesterday: “Talks with the European Union to address these problems have intensified over the last week and progress has been good with some positive breakthroughs made.”

However, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the DUP leader, said: “The objective in London and Brussels should be to get this right rather than rushed. The wrong deal will not restore power-sharing but will deepen division for future generations. Over 18 months ago we outlined our seven tests and used those to mark out the parameters for the way forward. Those tests will be how we will judge any deal between the EU and UK.”

Britain and the EU have been in a standoff for two years over renegotiating the Northern Ireland Protocol, which prevents a hard border on the island of Ireland by moving checks to the Irish Sea.

One source said the outline of a deal had “been there for quite some time” and recent negotiations between the sides were just “fine tuning”. Discussions have focused on the “packaging and presentation” of the agreement before presenting it to the DUP and Tory European Research Group, they added.

Although Downing Street did not give details last night, possible concessions include a provision for Westminster to set VAT rates and state aid policy in Northern Ireland.

At present, under the Protocol, these are set by Brussels, even though the province is part of the United Kingdom.

Other potential concessions include far fewer checks on British goods transported to Northern Ireland, and perhaps a greater role for the UK in checking whether goods from Britain destined for the Republic of Ireland meet EU rules.

Under the new agreement, it is understood that the DUP is to be

guaranteed a seat at the negotiating table when EU laws that could apply in Northern Ireland are being drawn up.

Mr Sunak is thought to have been first presented with the draft of the pact in mid-january, but then he told his negotiators to keep pushing for more.

An EU diplomat said that it was looking “very likely” that the deal would be publicly announced by the end of Monday at the latest.

Cabinet ministers have also been put on notice for a potential video call with No10 in anticipation that agreement will be finalised over the weekend.

Downing Street said Mr Sunak had been pursuing “fundamental changes” to the Protocol, and that his priorities were to safeguard Northern Ireland’s position in the UK, to protect the Good Friday Agreement, and to address practical problems faced by people and businesses on the ground in the province.

Yesterday he met retailers who gave their thoughts about the issues the Protocol causes.

It comes as it emerged that Boris Johnson had been advising the ERG and the DUP over Mr Sunak’s Brexit deal.