Trade negotiation between the UK and the EU

[8] The Guardian anticipated that the 'flash-points' would be "the level playing field' (on workers' rights, environmental protection, product safety standards and state aid), fisheries, dispute resolution, financial services, security and law enforcement, foreign policy and defence, cross-border transport, science and research".

[19] Barnier reported 'grave differences' between the sides, citing in particular the UK's reluctance to commit formally to continued participation in the (non-EU) European Convention on Human Rights as a serious obstacle to security and criminal intelligence cooperation.

[23] At the end of March, the UK side declared that it had shared its text, while concerns grew about the realism of a timetable set before the pandemic.

Amanda Sloat, a senior fellow at Brookings Institution remarked "In all circumstances it's very difficult to imagine how some sort of large scale trade deal between the U.K. and the EU gets done by the end of the year.

[34] On 13 May, the UK announced that it was moving to establish Border Control Posts at Belfast Harbour, Larne and Warrenpoint to manage livestock and agrifood products, in accordance with the Northern Ireland Protocol in the withdrawal agreement.

[35] The withdrawal agreement specifies that Northern Ireland will continue to follow European single market rules on agricultural and manufactured goods.

[38] In late May, The Guardian reported that the Fisheries Committee of the European Parliament had "threatened that it would veto any deal that did not include a 'balanced agreement' on fishinq quotas".

[39] The early June round of negotiations again ended with 'no significant progress' but, the Financial Times reported, "afterwards both sides showed fresh signs of a willingness to compromise to get a deal".

[40] In late June, German Chancellor Angela Merkel suggested that prospects for mutual compromise were receding and those for a no-deal Brexit were increasing.

[45] Barnier questioned Britain's sudden surprise at the impending loss of inter-state (rather than intrastate) cabotage rights for British hauliers, since this is a benefit of the single market that the UK had chosen to leave,[45] and has never been available to third countries.

[51] The negotiation climate changed when The Financial Times reported on 6 September that the UK government planned to draw up new legislation that would bypass the withdrawal agreement, in particular the Northern Ireland Protocol.

[54] Ursula von der Leyen warned Johnson not to break international law, saying that the UK's implementation of the withdrawal agreement was a "prerequisite for any future partnership".

[55] The Guardian reported, based on cables sent to member states, that the commission has a growing mistrust in the UK government and its motives and strategies.

The next day, Thursday 10 September 2020, the vice-president of the EU–UK Joint Committee, European Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič, in an extraordinary meeting in London delivered the EU's concern to Michael Gove, stating that an adoption of the bill "would constitute an extremely serious violation of the Withdrawal Agreement and of international law".

[59] Informal talks resumed during the week ending 18 September but there were no formal announcements or open briefings; nevertheless the UK side let it be known that "some limited progress" had been made between the teams.

[63] Ireland's foreign minister, Simon Coveney, had observed earlier that week that many of the EU's concerns would "fade away" if a trade deal was secured.

In a public statement, M. Barnier reported that there was continuing "convergence on trade in goods, services and investment, civil nuclear cooperation, and participation in Union programmes"; "positive new developments on some topics such as aviation safety, social security coordination, and the respect of fundamental rights and individual freedoms"; "lack of progress on some important topics like the protection of personal data, climate change commitments or carbon pricing".

[67] The same day, UK negotiator Frost withdrew his invitation to Barnier for the tenth round of talks due to begin in London on 19 October,[68] but they will keep channels of communication open.

"[61] On 18 October, seventeen business associations including the Confederation of British Industry had intervened to urge the sides to reach agreement as a matter of greatest urgency, saying "Sectors from automotive to aviation, chemicals to creative industries, and farming and food to pharmaceuticals – are united: securing a quick agreement matters greatly for jobs and livelihoods".

According to ITV News, "Progress is understood to have been made across many areas, yet significant gaps are said to remain on the EU's access to UK fishing waters when the transition period ends on December 31.

[77] Following a phone call between Johnson and von der Leyen on 13 December, both sides released a joint statement mandating their negotiators to continue talks with no stated deadline.

[81] On 28 December, the European Union ambassadors unanimously approved the draft agreement, clearing the way for it to be operated provisionally with effect from 1 January.

[18] The Withdrawal Agreement recognises that standards in Great Britain will diverge in many respects from those in the EU (with consequent loss of trade privileges in these areas), with a special status being accorded to Northern Ireland to keep open the Irish border.

We know that and have factored this in and we look further forward – to the gains of the future,"On its side, the European Union expects the UK to commit to a "level playing field" on various topics in order to offer "robust" guarantees to ensure fair competition and protection of the standards.

[84] President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, observed that zero tariffs and quotas requires the UK to commit to 'zero dumping'.

[85] Following the end of the transition period, the UK will become a third party coastal state with, in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, an 'exclusive economic zone' of 200 nautical miles from the coast.

[6] Also, the 'Most favoured nation' clause in CETA requires that every privilege given to the UK must also have to be given to any other country with which the EU has a free trade agreement, e.g. Canada and Japan.

[90] The EU considers that it is alone allowed to establish its equivalence decisions (that the regulatory and supervisory environment of the prospective partner to be in line with its own) in its own interest, and may withdraw them at any time at short notice.

The UK expects to maintain access to European financial services clients, avoiding future equivalence withdrawal decisions by the mean of appropriate consultation and structured processes.

[8] In April 2020, the UK's request to retain access to Europol and Schengen Information System databases (without ECJ oversight) met a frosty reception, especially in Germany.