Brexit talks scrapped as coronavirus escalates
The second round of trade talks between the UK and the EU have been cancelled in light of the escalating coronavirus outbreak.
Negotiating teams led by David Frost on the UK’s side and Michel Barnier on the EU’s were due to meet in London tomorrow to continue to thrash out a deal to set the future relationship between the two sides after Brexit.
However a Downing Street spokesperson has confirmed that this meeting will not go ahead “in the way we did in the previous round”.
“We expect to share a draft FTA alongside the draft legal texts of a number of the standalone agreements in the near future still, as planned,” the spokesperson added.
The move comes just hours after the UK government said it was now advising against all but essential international travel for at least 30 days.
But despite the delay in talks, the government has insisted there is no change to the timeframe in which talks must be concluded.
“Both sides remain fully committed to the negotiations and we remain in regular contact with the European Commission to consider alternative ways to continue discussions, including looking at the possibility of video conferencing or conference calls, and exploring flexibility in the structure for the coming weeks,” the spokesperson said.
“The transition period ends on 31 December 2020. This is enshrined in UK law.”