A new telephone meeting between the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, was to draw up “Inventory” talks between London and Brussels. At the end of this meeting, Saturday, November 7, the two parties engaged in negotiating a post-Brexit agreement reported important “Discrepancies”, after two weeks of intensive discussions.
A situation which reinforces the threat of a “no deal”, although Ursula von der Leyen clarified on Twitter that “Some progress [avaient] been made “. But dissensions remain, in particular on fishing and the guarantees demanded by the European Union (EU) in terms of competition.
We took stock of the negotiations with UK Prime Minister @BorisJohnson today. Some progress has been made, but large… https://t.co/jfOPbNmo3h
Same observation on the side of Downing Street, which notes, in a press release, the same points of tension. The two leaders “Have [cependant] agreed to keep in personal contact ” and “Have agreed that the negotiating teams will continue their talks next week in London, starting on Monday”, he adds.
Mid-November was seen as the limit beyond which a possible trade agreement could not enter into force in time for the 1er January 2021, when the UK – which officially left the EU on January 31, 2020 – stops applying European standards.
The conditions for fair competition block
European negotiator Michel Barnier also confirmed on Twitter that he would return to London on Sunday evening to resume talks with his counterpart David Frost and “Find an agreement that respects the interests and values of the EU and its twenty-seven member states”.
On a level playing field, one of the differences between London and the EU, the UK opposes Europe’s desire to introduce measures to protect its market if London deviates from its commitments, for example in terms of labor law or the environment.
“It is absolutely essential that the British are prepared for any eventuality, in order to satisfy [quelles que soient les circonstances] the legal obligations of the protocol “ concluded to frame their exit from the EU, reminded Thomas Byrne, Irish Minister for European Affairs at the BBC.
