BRUSSELS/LONDON (BELGIUM/UK) – After failing to iron out differences on Monday, British and EU leaders will once again meet face-to-face on Tuesday to try and strike a post-Brexit trade pact.
There are just a few weeks left before the country leaves the European bloc once and for all and a senior government official said, there was “every chance we are not going to get there”.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will travel to Brussels to hold talks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
According to Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, negotiators have a Wednesday deadline ahead of the summit to stave off a “no-deal” situation when Britain leaves the bloc on Dec. 31, adding that it would affect the economies of both countries, compounding the pain caused by the pandemic.
Leaders of the bloc have consented to give a fillip to contingency planning for the effects of a “no deal” situation on their economies when they attend the summit.
“The conditions for an agreement are not there due to remaining differences on critical issues,” von der Leyen and Johnson said in a joint statement after their call.
“We asked our chief negotiators to prepare an overview of the remaining differences to be discussed in person in the coming days,” they said. According to the EU Commission spokesman, the PM would travel to the Belgian capital for the meeting.
A senior government source said the discussions were in the “same position now as they were on Friday. We have made no tangible progress”.
“It’s clear this must now continue politically. Whilst we do not consider this process to be closed, things are looking very tricky and there’s every chance we are not going to get there,” the source said.