According to the newspaper, the agreement between London and Brussels may be concluded already on 23 November
Leaders of EU member states intend to demand on Thursday that the European Commission publish a plan of action in the event that a trade deal between the EU and the UK is abandoned after Brexit. This was reported by The Times with reference to a senior EU diplomat.
“Now we have to come up with [what will be] the emergency measures [in case of trade disruption]. Approaching 1 January 2021, we need insurance. <…> I know that the [EU] member states will ask for extraordinary measures to be made public”, – the newspaper quotes a diplomat as saying.
He also emphasised that the requirement for the EC is first and foremost a political signal. According to The Times, the agreement between London and Brussels could be concluded already on Monday.
“However, the time has come to prepare people and businesses in case we cannot conclude the deal on time”, – the diplomat said.
The newspaper does not specify which European heads of state are planning to make this demand. At the same time, it is reported that the governments of the Netherlands, France and Belgium, among others, are concerned about the lack of an action plan in case of a deal failure.