A no-deal Brexit would be a disaster for Britain and the latest reports from London do not give much hope of an agreement.
That is what German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz told Reuters news agency. The negotiators of the European Union and the United Kingdom continue to look for a trade agreement on Tuesday.
The time is running out for the EU and the UK to conclude a trade agreement before next year when the British also leaves the internal market de facto.
While EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier has been urging London to hurry for some time, Prime Minister Boris Johnson suddenly turned the tables on the eve of the new round. If there is no agreement in mid-October, it will have to be done without, was his message.
British chief negotiator David Frost further sharpened the matter. He said Britain should not become a satellite state of Brussels and that the EU should become more realistic in the negotiations.
“If they can’t do that in the little time that remains, then we’ll have to trade with the EU on the same terms that Australia does,” said Frost.
The British say they are already preparing for a no-deal Brexit. “The signals from London do not give much hope for an agreement, but that could, of course, be a strategy,” said German Minister Scholz.
The European Union is meanwhile not satisfied with the rumours that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government would like to get rid of the hard-won compromise on the Irish border, among other things.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pointed out that these agreements are “essential for peace and stability” in Ireland and Northern Ireland and for the European common market.
The withdrawal treaty that the EU and the UK concluded a year ago is “a precondition for any future trade relationship”. That is why von der Leyen says he is counting on London to implement the agreement.