Negotiators from the European Union and the UK are preparing to enter an intense phase of talks starting next week, aimed at overcoming the dispute over the post-Brexit trading relationship well ahead of the anniversary of Northern Ireland’s peace agreement in April. The aim is to move into a negotiating “tunnel” after UK foreign minister James Cleverly and European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic take stock of talks on January 16.
Cleverly and Sefcovic announced earlier this week that the EU had agreed to use the UK’s live database tracking goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. This was the first sign of progress in a long-running dispute on post-Brexit trading rules and a step that paves the way for negotiations on other more complex issues, such as checks on agri-food goods, state aid, and VAT.
Source: bnnbloomberg.ca
