Michel Barnier has ruled out a British plan to enter intensive “tunnel” negotiations over an EU trade deal in July. Brussels’ chief Brexit negotiator told EU ambassadors of the move for secret talks and accused the UK of reneging on Withdrawal Agreement commitments to allow EU officials to regularly scrutinise the new customs arrangements in Northern Ireland after the end of the transition period. He warned senior diplomats on Wednesday that David Frost, the UK’s chief negotiator, was attempting to use leverage over access to UK fishing waters to exact major concessions that would transform Britain into a manufacturing rival to the EU. Boris Johnson is meant to meet the presidents of the three EU institutions for “high-level” talks to discuss progress in the deadlocked free trade negotiations this month. Diplomatic sources claimed the reason an exact date was still not nailed down was because the UK wanted to announce the “tunnel” talks after the meeting and paint it as a success for the Prime Minister. British sources blame scheduling difficulties caused by the need to match the diaries of the presidents of the European Commission, Council and Parliament. UK officials said Britain wanted intensified talks in July, but not “tunnel” negotiations. “It remains to be seen if the EU is serious about making real progress next month,” a British source said. “The Tunnel” is Brussels jargon for secret talks carried out under media blackout and without regular briefings of EU ambassadors. The secrecy is used to encourage negotiators to break taboos and find a breakthrough. The UK and EU entered the “tunnel” before compromises were found over the Irish border during negotiations over the Withdrawal Agreement. Mr Barnier told ambassadors of the 27 member states in Brussels that the two sides were too far apart on fishing rights, the “level playing field” and the European Court of Justice to go into the “tunnel”. He said the UK had to show willingness to compromise on its red lines first. “The UK wants the negotiating tunnel with constant bargaining over the summer, but it is totally unclear on what as the positions are so far apart at this stage,” an EU diplomat said, before suggesting any “tunnel” talks would only happen in September or October. “The wish to have a ‘tunnel’ when there are no grounds to build it is blocking progress on the high-level meeting,” a diplomat told The Telegraph. “The UK request is only meant to justify not asking for a extension to transition.”
