Bloomberg: EU toughens negotiating demands before Brexit trade talks start

10 February 2020

European Union governments ratcheted up their negotiating demands ahead of contentious talks about the bloc’s post-Brexit relationship with the UK in a move that risks inflaming tensions with Downing Street.

The bloc’s 27 remaining members are seeking stricter conditions on unfair competition, fishing and human rights than those set out last week by the European Commission, according to a draft of the EU’s negotiating mandate seen by Bloomberg News.

Most controversially, the governments want to force the U.K. to continue to abide by EU rules in areas such as state aid -- even if the bloc changes them in the future. They will also seek to make the whole deal contingent on Britain committing to respect the European Convention on Human Rights. [...]

“We are not prepared to conclude a deal at any price,” Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, told reporters in Luxembourg on Monday. “We will defend the interests of the EU.”

[...]Following is a summary of the amendments the governments are seeking to make:

Full article on Bloomberg


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