Brexit trade talks paused as ‘significant divergences’ remain
British and EU negotiators have agreed to "pause" talks on a post-Brexit trade deal amid continuing "significant divergences" on key issues.
In a joint statement, Michel Barnier and Lord Frost said they had suspended discussions while they brief Boris Johnson and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on the state of play.
Here is a statement from myself and @MichelBarnier about the state of play in our negotiations. pic.twitter.com/P5Uhg7RQUz
— David Frost (@DavidGHFrost) December 4, 2020
The two leaders will then discuss the situation in a call on Saturday afternoon.
"After one week of intense negotiation in London, the two chief negotiators agreed today that the conditions for an agreement are not met, due to significant divergences on level playing field, governance and fisheries," the statement said.
"On this basis, they agreed to pause the talks in order to brief their principals on the state of play of the negotiations."
