UK trade deal unlikely for now: Britain, EU clash over post-Brexit ties
Skip to main content
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Features
  • Epaper
  • More
    • Subscribe
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Splash
    • Videos
    • Games
    • Long Read
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
The Business Standard

Thursday
August 11, 2022

Sign In
Subscribe
  • Home
  • Economy
  • Stocks
  • Analysis
  • World+Biz
  • Sports
  • Features
  • Epaper
  • More
    • Subscribe
    • COVID-19
    • Bangladesh
    • Splash
    • Videos
    • Games
    • Long Read
    • Infograph
    • Interviews
    • Offbeat
    • Thoughts
    • Podcast
    • Quiz
    • Tech
    • Archive
    • Trial By Trivia
    • Magazine
    • Supplement
  • বাংলা
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2022
UK trade deal unlikely for now: Britain, EU clash over post-Brexit ties

World+Biz

Reuters
23 July, 2020, 07:15 pm
Last modified: 23 July, 2020, 07:18 pm

Related News

  • Greece to exit EU's 'enhanced surveillance' framework after 12 years
  • Polish PM calls for reform against EU 'imperialism': Welt op-ed
  • Gas crisis takes toll on a 200-year-old aluminum foundry in Germany
  • Ukraine halted oil flows to Europe over payment issue, Russia's Transneft says
  • UK issues new 'extreme heat' warning for England and Wales

UK trade deal unlikely for now: Britain, EU clash over post-Brexit ties

Since Britain left the bloc in January, talks on the trade agreement and other future ties have all but stalled, with each side accusing the other of failing to compromise before a transition period runs out at the end of this year

Reuters
23 July, 2020, 07:15 pm
Last modified: 23 July, 2020, 07:18 pm
Small toy figure is seen in front of UK and European Union displayed flags in this illustration picture, October 17, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration
Small toy figure is seen in front of UK and European Union displayed flags in this illustration picture, October 17, 2019. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

Britain and the European Union clashed on Thursday over the chances of securing a free trade agreement, with Brussels deeming it "unlikely" but London holding out hope one could be reached in September.

Since Britain left the bloc in January, talks on the trade agreement and other future ties have all but stalled, with each side accusing the other of failing to compromise before a transition period runs out at the end of this year.

Those accusations grew louder after the latest round, with the EU's negotiator Michel Barnier saying London had shown no willingness to break the deadlock and his British counterpart David Frost describing the bloc's proposals as failing to meet the government's demand to be treated as an independent country.

But both sides agreed on one thing: there had been no movement on the main stumbling blocks to a deal on fair competition guarantees - the so-called level playing field - or on fisheries.

Without a deal to govern future trade flows, some companies fear costly disruption and confusion at the border from next year, which would hit at a time when many are already struggling with the impact of the coronavirus crisis.

"By its current refusal to commit to conditions of open and fair competition and to a balanced agreement on fisheries, the UK makes a trade agreement - at this point - unlikely," Barnier told a news conference after the face to face talks in London.

"The time for answers is quickly running out," he said. "If we do not reach an agreement on our future partnership, there will be more friction."

"AREAS OF CONVERGENCE"

Frost was equally blunt, saying "considerable gaps" remained but he added: "Despite all the difficulties, on the basis of the work we have done in July, my assessment is that agreement can still be reached in September, and that we should continue to negotiate with this aim in mind."

Senior EU officials say they only expect possible breakthroughs by the end of August or in September, but some have also expressed concerns that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson might go for a no-deal split.

Both sides say they want to secure a trade deal before the end of the status-quo transition, and while being unable to breach the gap in positions on fisheries and competition, both Barnier and Frost noted some progress in other areas.

"Looking forward, there are large areas of convergence in many of the areas on which we are negotiating and ample precedents and texts on which we can base our work," said Frost.

Barnier also noted some progress this week on how to settle any future disputes over a new EU-UK agreement, an element he has regularly mentioned as another key stumbling block.

But he added that the EU would not seal an agreement that would damage its fishing industry and that the sides were still "far away" from each other with only a few weeks left to go.

Both negotiators seemed to agree a deal could be reached but only if the other side budged. One senior UK official described the negotiations as being equally close to a breakthrough or a breakdown.

"Obviously we must prepare for every outcome and it is possible that we won't reach an agreement, but we're going to work very energetically to try to do so," Frost said.

Global Economy

Brexit / UK / Europe / Tarde Deal

Comments

While most comments will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive, moderation decisions are subjective. Published comments are readers’ own views and The Business Standard does not endorse any of the readers’ comments.

Top Stories

  • Fuel price hike could have been avoided with BPC savings: CPD
    Fuel price hike could have been avoided with BPC savings: CPD
  • Can’t afford any more losses: BPC chairman
    Can’t afford any more losses: BPC chairman
  • A worker holds a nozzle to pump petrol into a vehicle at a fuel station in Mumbai, India, May 21, 2018. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas/File Photo
    Short measure at petrol pumps due to low commissions: Owners' association

MOST VIEWED

  • US President Donald Trump pauses as he announces his decision that the United States will withdraw from the landmark Paris Climate Agreement, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, US, June 1, 2017.  Photo :Reuters
    Trump refuses to answer questions in N.Y. attorney general probe
  • The logo of Austrian supermarket chain Spar is seen behind a traffic sign at a shop in Vienna, Austria, July 11, 2016. REUTERS/Heinz-Peter Bader/
    European retailers turn off lights, cut opening hours to save energy
  • A shopper wearing a face mask is pictured at a Dollar Tree store in Pasadena, California, U.S., June 11, 2020. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
    US consumer prices unchanged in July as cost of gasoline plunges
  • Scientists warn rainwater everywhere is unsafe to drink
    Scientists warn rainwater everywhere is unsafe to drink
  • Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, China February 4, 2022. Sputnik/Aleksey Druzhinin/Kremlin via REUTERS
    China calls US 'main instigator' of Ukraine crisis
  • Zhou Xiaoxuan, also known by her online name Xianzi, weeps as she arrives at a court for a sexual harassment case involving a Chinese state TV host, in Beijing, China December 2, 2020. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo
    Chinese court rejects TV intern's #MeToo case appeal

Related News

  • Greece to exit EU's 'enhanced surveillance' framework after 12 years
  • Polish PM calls for reform against EU 'imperialism': Welt op-ed
  • Gas crisis takes toll on a 200-year-old aluminum foundry in Germany
  • Ukraine halted oil flows to Europe over payment issue, Russia's Transneft says
  • UK issues new 'extreme heat' warning for England and Wales

Features

The elevated ground is made out of soil on which grass and trees have grown. This grass-covered elevated ground extends to the perimeter of the establishment. Photo: Maruf Raihan

Aman Mosque: Where form and function complement each other

1d | Habitat
Photo: BSS

Begum Fazilatunnessa Mujib . . . woman of moral power

2d | Thoughts
Will Glass Cosmetics be your next skincare holy grail?

Will Glass Cosmetics be your next skincare holy grail?

2d | Brands
Akij Tableware: More than just dishes on a table

Akij Tableware: More than just dishes on a table

2d | Brands

More Videos from TBS

Salimullah Khan on Ahmad Safa's thinking on nature

Salimullah Khan on Ahmad Safa's thinking on nature

3h | Videos
Will Tata turn around the Indian car market?

Will Tata turn around the Indian car market?

3h | Videos
Those who remain in morgue for years after death

Those who remain in morgue for years after death

5h | Videos
Is Donald Trump getting caught in tax evasion case?

Is Donald Trump getting caught in tax evasion case?

5h | Videos

Most Read

1
Dollar crisis: BB orders removal of 6 banks’ treasury chiefs 
Banking

Dollar crisis: BB orders removal of 6 banks’ treasury chiefs 

2
Diesel price hiked by Tk34 per litre, Octane by Tk46
Energy

Diesel price hiked by Tk34 per litre, Octane by Tk46

3
Photo: Collected
Transport

Will Tokyo’s traffic model solve Dhaka’s gridlocks?

4
Infographic: TBS
Banking

Dollar rate will be left to market after two months: Governor

5
Arrest warrant against Habib Group chairman, 4 others 
Crime

Arrest warrant against Habib Group chairman, 4 others 

6
File Photo: State Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral Resources Nasrul Hamid
Energy

All factories to remain closed once a week under rationing system

EMAIL US
[email protected]
FOLLOW US
WHATSAPP
+880 1847416158
The Business Standard
  • About Us
  • Contact us
  • Sitemap
  • Privacy Policy
  • Comment Policy
Copyright © 2022
The Business Standard All rights reserved
Technical Partner: RSI Lab

Contact Us

The Business Standard

Main Office -4/A, Eskaton Garden, Dhaka- 1000

Phone: +8801847 416158 - 59

Send Opinion articles to - [email protected]

For advertisement- [email protected]