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Britain and EU face trade differences in Brexit talks
BRUSSELS, Sept 7, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Britain’s Brexit negotiator met his EU
counterpart on Thursday as Brussels and London scramble to reconcile divorce
demands ahead of next month’s summit deadline.
Brexit minister Dominic Raab is a regular in the EU capital, but tensions
were stirred this week by reports that Europe considers his government’s exit
plan to be dead in the water.
Both British and European officials played down the suggestion that EU
Brexit pointman Michel Barnier had dismissed Prime Minister Theresa May’s so-
called “Chequers” plan out of hand.
But, as Raab and Barnier held their latest round of talks, it was clear
British hopes of continuing trade in goods under a “common rulebook” will be
a sticking point.
May hopes that agreeing common quality controls for goods would allow
British manufacturers to continue to trade within the EU market after her
country leaves the union next year.
But officials in Brussels argue that unless London also retains EU rules
on manufacturing and working practices after Brexit it may be able to compete
unfairly in the single market.
Last weekend, Barnier told a German newspaper he “strongly opposes” the
Chequers plan, and one opposition British lawmaker has said the French
negotiator has declared it “dead”.
But EU spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters to wait for the
transcript of Barnier’s remarks to British MPs, and insisted the Chequers
plan is still part of the discussion.
“We identified where there were positive elements and we discussed also
the possibility for further discussions to address issues that still create
problems,” he said.
Barnier’s advisor Stefaan De Rynck went further, saying in a tweet that
Barnier had said “in no uncertain terms that Chequers has positive elements”.
But De Rynck also approvingly retweeted another British account of the
meeting that noted that Barnier had described the idea of the “common
rulebook” for goods as “impossible”.
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British officials do not appear ready to concede this point.
The EU opposes British proposals for an integrated market on goods with
fewer regulations on services, which is a mainstay of the British economy.
Britain argues goods and services are completely integrated in a modern
economy but that protections can be introduced to make sure British
manufactured goods do not gain an edge with accompanying services.
– Summit stalemate? –
The two sides are also discussing the terms of an agreement to trade on a
fair basis after the Brexit deadline expires in March.
The two sides have set an October 18 summit as the target date for
agreeing on terms for Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union, giving
enough time for British and EU lawmakers to ratify its terms before Brexit
day on March 29, 2019.
Few in Brussels expect the October summit to be the end of the matter,
predicting instead the theatrical late-night stalemate typical of EU-British
negotiations.
The matter may be pushed to an extraordinary summit in November, when the
two sides hope to strike an exit agreement and a second document to outline
the future relationship.
This will likely take the form of a promised free trade deal which will
replace Britain’s membership of the EU single market over the course of a
transition agreement.
If the promised free trade deal is sufficiently attractive to both sides,
while being sufficiently flexible to avoid either’s red lines, it may provide
political cover to agree divorce terms.
But on Wednesday, Raab warned British lawmakers might not approve the $39
billion payment to secure a Brexit deal if the trade offer appears too vague.
“We ought to be very clear on the choices that we’re making,” he told a
parliamentary committee.
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Brussels wants to get the essential elements of Brexit settled during the
remaining months of Austria’s EU Council presidency, thus before the end of
the year.
But expert observers, such as Elvire Fabry of the Delors Institute, warn
that any blueprint could be threatened by the “spasms of British politics”
until the final hour in March next year.
“At this stage, while there is a heightened awareness of the risk of ‘no
deal’, we can be confident that a certain pragmatism will prevail,” she said,
predicting that some kind of free trade deal would be the final, hard-won
outcome.
Another major stumbling block are lingering EU concerns over the fate of
Ireland, which shares a border with the British province of Northern Ireland.
The EU proposes that Northern Ireland stay aligned with the remaining 27
bloc members after Brexit as part of a “backstop”, or insurance policy to
avoid the reimposition of border checks and a risk to Irish peace gains.
British voters narrowly decided to leave the European Union at a 2016
referendum, but calls are growing there for a second plebiscite to be held on
the final agreement.
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