Summary of Brexit negotiations round three

Newington's Rob Hamilton summarises the third round of Brexit negotiations between the UK and EU.

The third round of Brexit negotiations between the UK and EU came to an end today (31 August) with seemingly little progress made. While Brexit Secretary David Davis MP (Con, Haltemprice and Howden) hailed “concrete progress” in a number of different areas at the concluding press conference, EU Chief Negotiator Michel Barnier declared there had not been “any decisive progress on the main subjects.” Both men only mutually acknowledged the issue of the future Northern Irish/Irish border as an area in which advances had been made. Stark differences still remain on the sequencing of talks and the extent of the UK’s financial liabilities to the EU.

Positions

UK positions

David Davis MP came into talks this week on the back of the publication of a flurry of UK position papers – on issues ranging from data protection to the Northern Irish border - calling for “flexibility and imagination from both sides.”
His final remarks at the press conference struck a markedly more upbeat tone than those of Michel Barnier, especially on areas of agreement on citizens’ rights.
However, Davis continued to agitate for the EU to adopt a more malleable negotiating stance in welcoming the UK’s approach as “substantially more flexible and pragmatic than that of the EU.”
Over the course of this round of talks, the UK made apparent efforts to begin discussions on its financial liabilities, but negotiators have still not committed to any figure.

EU positions

Michel Barnier welcomed the UK’s position papers, which he had read “very carefully”, in his introductory remarks on Monday. However, he also called for the UK to start “negotiating seriously”, once again repeating the EU’s demand for the UK to set out positions on all areas of separation before a transitional deal or future partnership could begin to be discussed.
Barnier’s statement in the final press conference today struck a very different tone to Davis’, with the Single Market a noted issue of contention. He stated that the UK could not expect to be “outside the Single Market and shape its legal order” in the form of the automatic recognition of standards.
At this stage, Barnier remarked, he did not think that he could recommend to the European Council that sufficient progress had been made to engage in discussion on the future relationship between the UK and EU.
Beyond the official negotiations under the auspices of Barnier, other EU figures have sought to interject their views. European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker declared none of the UK’s position papers were “truly satisfactory”, while European Parliament Brexit Coordinator Guy Verhofstadt criticised the slow pace of negotiations.

Analysis

There is speculation in the UK press that the Government is waiting until the upcoming European Council summit (18-20 October) to make substantial progress on Brexit talks. It has been widely reported that Prime Minister Theresa May MP (Con, Maidenhead) will talk with individual member states to put pressure on the European Commission to allow more flexible negotiations. She could potentially appeal to the text of Article 50 itself, which states that any withdrawal agreement must “[take] account of the framework for its future relationship with the Union.” Furthermore, there may be less domestic pressure on German Chancellor Angela Merkel to take a firm line in Brexit negotiations following federal elections in the country on 24 September.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s remarks could prove unhelpful in terms of dialling up negative rhetoric. However, his views on Brexit and support for EU federalism are well known, with his mandate ultimately determined by the European Council. Guy Verhofstadt’s position could be more troubling, as the European Parliament must agree to any withdrawal agreement.

Next steps

Week commencing 18 September: fourth round of Brexit negotiations.
Week commencing 9 October: fifth round of Brexit negotiations.
18-20 October: European Council Summit.

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