Brexit trade talks to continue in Brussels as EU and UK vow to ‘go extra mile’ December 13, 2020 Post-Brexit trade talks will continue in Brussels next week after both sides vowed to “go the extra mile” to close a last minute deal, however Boris Johnson has also said the two sides are “very far apart” and that no-deal is now the most likely option. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she [...]
Brexit: Boris Johnson and EU chief von der Leyen to speak at lunchtime in last ditch bid to save a trade deal December 13, 2020 Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will speak at lunchtime today in a bid to save faltering post-Brexit trade negotiations. The pair are expected to decide whether there is a pathway to a trade deal or whether to end talks today, with less than three weeks left until the UK leaves [...]
Navy patrol ships on standby to protect UK from EU’s fishy business December 11, 2020 Four Royal Navy patrol ships are on standby for 1 January in case of a no-deal Brexit, ready to help to protect the UK’s fishing waters. The 80-metre long armed vessels would have the power to halt, inspect and impound all EU fishing boats operating within the UK’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), which can extend [...]
Macron promises not to ‘have cake and eat it’ in Brexit negotiations December 11, 2020 French President Emmanuel Macron has insisted that the EU is not “asking to have its cake and eat it” in Brexit negotiations on fishing rights. Responding to a question on the European Commission contingency plans for a no-deal Brexit this morning, Macron said “I don’t want to have my cake and eat it too. No, [...]
UK tourists banned from EU travel from 1 January December 11, 2020 British holidaymakers will be temporarily banned from travelling to the EU on 1 January, with Brussels saying its travel exemption will be taken away after the Brexit transition period ends. Very few non-EU or EEA countries, with low Covid rates, are allowed to travel to member states under current restrictions. Borders are still open to [...]
No-deal Brexit likeliest outcome, Ursula von der Leyen tells EU leaders December 11, 2020 A no-deal Brexit is now likelier than the UK leaving the transition period with a trade deal, Ursula von der Leyen has told EU leaders. Speaking on the second day of a two-day summit in Brussels, the European Commission president refused to put a percentage on the chances of agreement but told EU leaders there [...]
UK signs free-trade deals with Vietnam and Singapore December 11, 2020 The UK has signed a continuity free-trade agreement with Vietnam the day after it penned a deal with Singapore. The Singapore deal protects trade that was worth £17.6bn last year while the Vietnam agreement protects £5.7bn of trade, the government said. Trade secretary Liz Truss, who is in south east Asia, said: “Both these agreements are [...]
A year on from the election, Boris is ensnared in the classic Conservative leadership trap December 11, 2020 It seemed like all of Boris Johnson’s plans had come together. The Red Wall had tumbled, turning Labour heartlands blue for the first time in history. The Prime Minister would return to the Commons with 364 MPs backing him and his oven-ready Brexit deal. He had vanquished his own party rivals, outplayed a divided Commons, [...]
It’s not about fish, it’s about control December 11, 2020 Throughout the highs and lows of the Brexit rollercoaster over the past five years, there has been precious little that can be regarded as consensus. One thing we can probably agree on, however, is that of the 17,410,742 people who voted to leave the EU, most of them probably didn’t do so on the basis [...]
Spending watchdog urges government to ‘stop throwing money’ at NHS Test and Trace December 11, 2020 The UK’s spending watchdog has urged ministers to “stop throwing money” at NHS Test and Trace, after the beleaguered system last month received an extra £7bn in funding despite repeatedly failing to achieve targets. In a scathing report on the programme’s performance so far, the National Audit Office (NAO) slammed Test and Trace for failing [...]