|
|
[...] Senior national officials have changed draft guidelines on the next phase of talks so they no longer suggest that “preliminary and preparatory” discussions on trade can begin early next year.
Theresa May’s government has promised an ambitious and far-reaching trade deal as the final goal of the Brexit talks, although the EU says a formal accord will have to wait until the UK leaves the bloc and that only a more general “political declaration” will be possible beforehand.
The new version of the guidelines, which alters a text issued by European Council president Donald Tusk after Mrs May held successful divorce talks in Brussels last week, makes clear that EU countries oppose a quick start to such trade negotiations.
Diplomats said member states had been irritated by comments over the weekend by David Davis, the UK’s Brexit minister, that last week’s agreement was “much more a statement of intent than it was a legally enforceable thing”.
Michael Roth, Germany’s Europe minister, described himself as “surprised” by the difference between the messages that British officials gave in Brussels and London.
“We will not accept any backtracking from the UK on their commitments,” said Michel Barnier, Brussels’ chief negotiator, adding that the EU would only conclude a final deal on trade and transition if last week’s divorce deal with Mrs May was honoured. “We will be vigilant,” he said.
In a letter to EU leaders ahead of a summit this week, Mr Tusk underlined the importance of a common front among the remaining 27 members as the negotiations head to their decisive phase. He added that last week’s deal only signified “moderate progress, since we only have ten months left to determine the transition period and our future relations with the UK.” He said: “This will be a furious race against time, where again our unity will be key.”
The draft text seen by the Financial Times now says the discussions on trade will begin only after the bloc’s governments agree additional guidance for the talks between themselves to elaborate on the EU’s position, and specifies that such guidance will only be adopted in March.
It foresees that talks with the UK between January and March next year will instead be focused on the conditions the EU will set for the transition period that Mrs May seeks of about two years after 2019.
It reiterates that during the transition period the UK will have to comply fully with EU trade policy — and not strike its own deals — even though the country is due in 2019 to fall out of trade agreements with more than 50 nations that have struck accords with the EU.
The draft also says that, once the UK leaves the bloc, it will lose not just its voting rights in EU institutions but also any right to “participate in the decision-making of the Union bodies, offices and agencies”. It adds that the UK will have to comply with any new EU rules produced during the transition, including technical standards set by the bloc’s roughly 40 specialised agencies, which cover sectors ranging from food standards to maritime safety. [...]
Full article on Financial Times (subscription required)