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Barnier told the closed-door gathering that the UK’s latest offer on sharing out the fish catch from British waters from 2021 was “totally unacceptable”, according to EU diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Brexit talks are in the “final push,” on Wednesday, as the rift over fisheries seems to daunt negotiators.
“We are really in a crucial moment. We are giving it a final push,” said the negotiator, Michel Barnier, as he arrived to update the bloc’s 27 national envoys on Brexit.
Barnier told the closed-door gathering that the UK’s latest offer on sharing out the fish catch from British waters from 2021 was “totally unacceptable”, according to EU diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity.
A senior diplomat who took part in the meeting with Barnier said the EU’s latest offer on fish was its final one, and added that there was still concern around regulating production standards and state aid to ensure corporate fair play.
EU officials and diplomats said the bloc could be willing to cut the value of its fish catch in British waters by around 25 per cent, while Britain was demanding a 30-35 per cent cut.
But the sources said the length of the fisheries transition regime was also an obstacle, as was the question of EU retaliation if London excludes its vessels from British waters afterwards – something that Britain says is excessive.
The UK wants to gradually curb EU access to its fishing waters over three years, while the bloc is proposing six years, to give its fishing industry longer to adjust.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who campaigned for Brexit in a 2016 referendum, arguing that it would restore Britain’s sovereignty, has repeatedly said it must control its waters and who fishes there.
While EU sources said an agreement was getting closer, they warned it might not come in time.
“The EU will not close its door to the UK, and remains ready to negotiate even beyond the 1st of January,” said a third EU diplomat.
With London refusing to request an extension of Britain’s transition out of the EU beyond the end of this year, that would mean a dramatic rupture in trading ties in just nine days’ time.
Around $900 million in annual trade is at risk if Britain, the world’s sixth biggest economy, and the EU – a trading bloc of 450 million consumers – fail to craft a new accord.
Calls between Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen, head of the executive European Commission, which is negotiating with Britain on behalf of the member states, will take place as needed, EU officials said.
REUTERS
