Negotiations go ‘down to the wire’ as Keir Starmer seeks EU reset deal

Sir Keir Starmer’s bid to secure a new deal with the EU has gone “down to the wire” with talks continuing overnight ahead of a major summit with the bloc.

Ministers had appeared confident of securing an agreement, with Number 10 saying on Saturday the Prime Minister would “strike a deal” at the first UK-EU summit on Monday.

But Government sources said late on Sunday: “Negotiations are going down to the wire and a deal is not yet done.

“There are some outstanding issues on both sides and conversations will continue overnight.”

Monday’s summit will see Sir Keir meet European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen for the second time in four days as he aims to strike a deal with the EU on a range of issues.

That includes an expected announcement on defence and security, which could feature an agreement allowing British firms access to a 150 billion euro (£125 billion) EU defence fund.

Deals on allowing British travellers to use e-gates at European airports, cutting red tape on food exports and setting up a youth mobility scheme with the EU are also thought to be on the table.

But reports suggest disagreements over fishing rights and youth mobility have presented last-minute stumbling blocks to an agreement.

Government sources said “huge progress” had been made in agreeing “a mutually beneficial deal with the EU” that would “deliver for British working people”.

But they insisted the Prime Minister had been “clear that he will only agree a deal which delivers in the national interest of the United Kingdom”.

Both Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage have already described the deal as a “surrender”, despite the details not yet being known, and indicated they would tear it up if they came to power.

Youth mobility could prove a major sticking point for the opposition, and Mrs Badenoch said she feared it would involve a return to free movement “by the back door”.

The party has also set out a series of “red lines” on fishing rights, including ensuring exclusive access to Britain’s territorial sea and resisting “a multi-year agreement which only benefits France”.

Shadow environment minister Victoria Atkins said: “The Conservatives have always stood up for our coastal communities, and our fishing industries.

“Labour must not throw our fishing rights overboard in their desperation to bail out their failing fiscal policies.”

Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats urged not to be “dragged back” to “the Brexit wars of the past”, with Sir Ed Davey comparing Mrs Badenoch and Mr Farage to “dinosaurs fighting old battles”.

He said: “Keir Starmer must be bold and ambitious for our country in today’s summit. Voters were promised change by this Government, and they have to deliver.

“Being truly ambitious, including a new UK-EU customs union, would be the single biggest thing ministers could do to boost public finances.

“Anything less would be a choice to limit growth, harming living standards and hitting the NHS and other public services.”