Brussels will reject a free trade agreement with Britain and trigger a no-deal end to the transition period unless Boris Johnson gives “credible guarantees” on subsidies and standards, Michel Barnier warned today. In a combative speech before a critical round of negotiations in London next week, the European Union’s negotiator pinned the blame for deadlock on the British. He dismissed Downing Street threats to walk away without a Brexit deal and mocked suggestions that Britain would shrug off a no-deal outcome at the end of the transition period this year. “Sometimes I hear some in the UK speaking of a no-deal,” he told the Irish Institute of International and European Affairs. “Good luck.

Source: The Times September 02, 2020 16:07 UTC