London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 02, 2025

'Serious differences remain' over UK-EU trade deal

The UK and EU have said serious differences remain over a post-Brexit trade deal, following the latest negotiations in Brussels.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier said the bloc's position needed to be "better understood and respected" by the UK if an agreement is to be found.

His UK counterpart David Frost said "significant" disagreement remained on "a number of important issues".

The UK has ruled out extending the December deadline to reach a deal.

The latest round of talks, the first to be held in person since the Covid-19 crisis struck, came after both sides agreed to "intensify" negotiations last month.

Negotiations have continued throughout the pandemic via video link. An additional five weeks of in-person talks are planned for July and early August.

BBC Europe reporter Gavin Lee said the latest round of talks had broken up a day early, with a discussion between the two chief negotiators tomorrow cancelled.

Mr Frost said the face-to-face talks had given "extra depth and flexibility" to discussions on a "full range of issues" over trade and a future partnership.

"But they have also underlined the significant differences that still remain between us on a number of important issues," he added.

"We remain committed to working hard to find an early understanding on the principles underlying an agreement."

Equally, Mr Barnier said "serious divergences remain" after the four days of talks, although the EU believed an agreement was still possible.


'Equivalent engagement'

"The EU engaged constructively, as we had already done during the fourth round of negotiations in June," he added.

"The EU expects, in turn, its positions to be better understood and respected in order to reach an agreement.

"We need an equivalent engagement by the United Kingdom."

Mr Barnier underlined that the EU expects "parallel progress" in all areas of the negotiations.

This is a point of difference with the UK - which wants to negotiate separate agreements in areas such as fisheries, alongside a basic free trade deal.

Mr Barnier also reiterated the EU would not agree to a deal without "robust" guarantees on the so-called "level playing field" for competition between business.

He added this would include the area of state support for companies.

Just like when it was an EU member, the UK remains tied to the bloc's "state aid" rules during the 11-month transition period due to end in December 2020.

The UK has not yet unveiled plans for its post-Brexit state aid regime, but PM Boris Johnson has previously said he wants to make it easier for the UK government to provide assistance to struggling firms.

The two sides also remain deadlocked over the issue of fishing rights - an area where they had previously pledged to find agreement by last month.

The EU wants to uphold its existing access to British waters for vessels from member states, to avoid economic disruption for their fishermen.

But the UK wants to hold annual talks with the bloc over access to its waters, as it currently does with nations such as Norway.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×