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Major boost for Boris Johnson as EU agrees to intensified ‘tunnel’ Brexit talks

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Major boost for Boris Johnson as EU agrees to intensified ‘tunnel’ Brexit talks

British and EU negotiators agreed to intensify Brexit talks on Friday, in a major boost for Boris Johnson‘s hopes of getting a deal.

EU officials confirmed at lunchtime that negotiations would be entering a “tunnel” – Brussels jargon for intense private negotiations where leaks are kept to a minimum.

The move follows a breakfast meeting between Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay and EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier in the EU capital, which both sides described as “constructive”.

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Despite the news, Donald Tusk, the European Council president, warned on Friday that current UK proposals were neither “workable” nor “realistic”.

The decision to enter a tunnel came after Mr Barnier briefed EU27 ambassadors on the results of morning’s talks. The diplomats, representing EU member states, agreed that signs of movement were promising enough to warrant the “tunnel”.

A UK government spokesperson and an EU Commission spokesperson both separately described the morning’s meeting as “constructive”, as did Mr Barnier.

The EU’s chief negotiator added: “Brexit is like climbing a mountain. We need vigilance, determination and patience.”

A European Commission spokesperson said: “The EU and UK have agreed to intensify discussions over the coming days. The EU’s position remains the same: there must be a legally operative solution in the withdrawal agreement that avoids a hard border on the island of Ireland, protects the all-island economy and the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement in all its dimensions, and safeguards the integrity of the single market.”

The spokesperson added that Mr Barnier would check back in with member states and MEPs to update them on progress on Monday.

The mood of talks swung towards last-minute optimism on Thursday after a meeting between Boris Johnson and Irish PM Leo Varadkar on Merseyside, where both sides spoke of a “pathway to a deal”.

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Officials are being tight-lipped about the content of discussions and is not clear what it was that Mr Johnson and Mr Varadkar discussed that has raised hopes of a solution.

Only the day before the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier had savaged UK plans in a public point-by-point deconstruction.

Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar’s meeting on Thursday sparked optimism (PA)

Mr Barnier said the EU had three concerns with UK proposals: that they did not prevent a customs border on the island of Ireland, that they included a veto for the Northern Ireland Assembly, and that they were not actually legally operable or ready to go.

Speaking in Cyprus on Friday, European Council president Donald Tusk said: “Unfortunately, we are still in a situation in which the UK has not come forward with a workable, realistic proposal.

“A week ago I told PM Johnson that if there was no such proposal by today, I would announce publicly that there are no more chances – because of objective reasons – for a deal during the incoming European Council.

leftCreated with Sketch.
rightCreated with Sketch.

“However, yesterday when the Irish Taoiseach and the UK Prime Minister met they both saw – for the first time – a pathway to a deal. I have received promising signals from the Taoiseach that a deal is still possible.”

He added that “technical talks” were still taking place in Brussels but that there was “no guarantee of success and the time is practically up”. 

The 28 EU leaders will meet in Brussels next Thursday and Friday for their regular European Council summit, where Brexit is expected to be discussed – including the possibility of any extension. Both sides are aiming to have a deal done by the meeting.

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