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James Rothwell
@JamesERothwell
, 6 tweets, 2 min read Read on Twitter
EXCL: Post-Brexit US trade deal in doubt as documents leaked to Telegraph reveal chronic Whitehall staff shortages, lack of progress in key areas and signs that US administration may be losing interest - by me, @Annaisaac and @asabenn

telegraph.co.uk/business/2019/…
Documents show that the US has been sending "less senior" officials to meetings with UK counterparts, and that Whitehall is struggling to "get the right people in the room." Meanwhile am told US officials are growing frustrated with lack of progress
The talks are "falling behind schedule," and there is frustration that the UK is delaying the crucial choice of whether it wants to follow US standards and secure a deal, or stick to EU standards to maintain trade with Europe
One document says British officials fear Liam Fox's visit to Washington DC this week might look like "a bit of a desperate bid" to put on a brave face considering how little has been done since talks began
The key areas of contention, deadlock in some cases, cover health, farming and the finance industry. And the heart of the row is plying the UK away from European standards in those areas
But for details beyond that, you'll need to read the full story....
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James Rothwell
@JamesERothwell
Speaking to EU sources, they are not particularly worried about Boris Johnson as PM. But that is based on their expectation that he hits a massive wall in October which leaves him stuck with May's deal or no deal.
This is b/c several big member states have decided to say "Sorry, no" if Johnson asks for an Article 50 extension just for the purpose of rewriting the deal wholesale - and it just takes one "No" to pull the plug.
That leaves PM Johnson in tricky territory end of October. He could ask for an extension that he knows will be rejected, and then blame the EU for 'no deal' and the ensuing turmoil.
Read 9 tweets
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James Rothwell
@JamesERothwell
Dominic Raab, setting out leadership stall: "There is still time to negotiate a legally-binding Exchange of Letters to give the UK a clear exit from the so-called Backstop of EU laws, over which currently we would have no say."
Raab says he will withhold the £39bn Brexit bill and spend it on mitigating the negative effects of leaving on WTO terms if he becomes PM and has to take UK out with no deal
Raab says he's a credible negotiator, citing his experience working on the Brexit deal (which he initially disowned and then supported in parliament) and says he's the man "that Michel Barnier and Guy Verhofstadt complained pushed Brussels too hard".
Read 18 tweets
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James Rothwell
@JamesERothwell
Over past year I've spoken to MPs, experts and ministers in Norway and Iceland about what they really think of EEA/Efta membership. So here's a monster thread on the pros and cons of what could end up as the UK's Brexit Plan B
For those new to this (hi!), these countries are in the European Economic Area (EEA) which gives them full access to EU's single market. Their judiciary works under the Efta court, instead of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Hence "EEA/Efta".
In October I went to Oslo, where overall EEA/Efta was felt to be best compromise for a country that voted 52 per cent to stay out of EU and 48 per cent to join it.
telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/…
Read 17 tweets

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Bojan Pancevski
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Katy Hayward
@hayward_katy
104 pages of the #Brexit #WhitePaper reduced to 10 slides.
Especially for those concerned for @BorderIrish, @BelfastAgmt,
& with more sense than time.

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Pete North
@PeteNorth303
1. As much as the government has no clue what it is doing with Article 50, the media shares their basic incomprehension.
2. It has been spelled out countless times that the post-Brexit EU trade deal is not negotiated until we have formally left.
3. Article 50 only takes into account the future relationship. We can negotiate a temporary framework but that is not the final deal.
Read 21 tweets

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