An outline of a Brexit trade deal has reportedly been reached.
The news comes as after there had been an ongoing stalemate between the UK and the EU on agreeing to Brexit terms.
It’s said that while the deal still needs to be agreed to by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the wording of the deal is currently being finalised.
The UK formally left the EU almost a year ago, but have been in a state of transition ever since. January 1 2021 will mark the day the UK will no longer be a member of the EU Single Market and Customs Union, however, putting pressure on both sides to reach an agreement in time.
Officials with knowledge on the matter told the news to Bloomberg and stated that an announcement could be made within the next few hours. However, the deal may still fall apart.
So far there have been a handful of Brexit deadlines that have failed to be met. The most recent deadline to be set is for the end of this month, December 31.
Earlier today, Cabinet minister Robert Jenrick stated that he was ‘reasonably optimistic’ that a deal would be met prior to the 31st. His comments came after the EU’s lead negotiator, Michel Barnier, said yesterday, December 22, that they were making a ‘final push’ to reach a deal.
When recently asked about a potential no-deal Brexit, Johnson laughed in response, but added that he’d had a ‘great conversation’ with French president Emmanuel Macron.
His reassuring comments came not long after he’d expressed concerns that a no deal Brexit could be ‘very, very likely’ earlier this month.
If a deal is not reached by the 31st, both the UK and the EU could impose import taxes on each other’s goods, potentially affecting prices of the items.
According to BBC News, the UK is insisting on having control over fishing in its waters from the start of next year and retaining a larger share of the catch from them than under the current quota system. However, the EU wants to phase in a new fishing system over a longer period.
After months upon months of negotiations, the finish line may just be in sight.
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