Choreography for Barclay-Barnier meeting in Brussels:
Breakfast mtg at 9am CET, probably running till 10.30. Michel Barnier then briefs member states via coreper EU Ambassadors' meeting
Breakfast mtg at 9am CET, probably running till 10.30. Michel Barnier then briefs member states via coreper EU Ambassadors' meeting
2/ Barnier is expected to receive new proposals from the Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay, based on the understanding reached by Johnson and Varadkar in Wirral, and will decide, based on the feedback from member states, if they form the basis of a deepening of the negotations
3/ All sides are coy about what the new proposals contain, except that Varadkar and Johnson discussed customs, consent and post-Brexit bilateral relations, but if this can be done relatively quickly it must raise suspicions that it is in the realm of an off-the-shelf deal
4/ In other words, something that brings us closer to the Joint Report and NI-only backstop; or perhaps something of the Customs Partnership idea, ie NI remains in the UK customs territory but it applies the EU's tariffs and customs rules
5/ We don't know just yet. The Commission is insisting its red lines haven't changed, Varadkar says there can be no customs border on the island of Ireland. Boris Johnson has made NI leaving the Customs Union a fundamental principle.
6/ So somewhere within that crowded niche there must be the germ of something. It may well be that by linking customs and consent, in the classic negotiating ploy, both sides can find some room for manoeuvre. The Commission was fully briefed by Ireland ahead of the Wirral meeting
7/ One source tonight suggested everyone keep calm and not get trigger happy. Let's see tomorrow.
