European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier is set to be sidelined by EU leaders in a bid to get a breakthrough in the negotiations about a trade treaty with the UK. Representatives of the bloc’s 27 member states expect Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, to pave the way for heads of state and government to intervene in the deadlocked talks in a September 16 flagship speech. EU leaders are hoping that by stepping in to get the talks moving, it will help bridge the deep divides between the two sides, allowing Mr Barnier and his UK opposite number Lord Frost to agree the details. Two more rounds of trade negotiations are scheduled this month, with the first taking place in London next week, but the two sides remain divided. Relations between the UK and EU have descended into mutual recriminations, with both sides blaming each other for the deadlock after no progress on the major issues of fishing and state aid. Time is now running out, with Mr Barnier previously warning that a deal must be agreed by the end of October, to give the EU time to ratify the agreement before the end of the year.
