The European Commission believes in an agreement with Britain, it does not renew emergency plans

The European Commission believes in an agreement with Britain, it does not renew emergency plans

The Netherlands, France, Belgium and Spain have asked the European Commission, which is negotiating with Britain on behalf of the 27 EU countries, to update emergency plans to mitigate the worst damage if a new trade agreement cannot be concluded in time. The Commission has so far resisted this demand, arguing that it continues to focus on reaching an agreement and that states, businesses and people have long been preparing for a sudden break in ties. The head of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will briefly inform the leaders of the 27 bloc states about the course of negotiations during the virtual summit, which, however, is to focus mainly on the pandemic, the budget and the recovery fund. Several EU leaders are expected to emphasize the need to prepare for the worst-case scenario that would affect bilateral trade in the order of trillions of euros per year. EU chief negotiator Barnier will brief Member States' envoys on the latest developments in the negotiations. Some EU sources have interpreted the Commission's silence on preparations for Brexit without agreement as an indication that it does not want to disturb the atmosphere in the final phase of the talks. However, according to diplomats who did not want to be appointed, there was still no breakthrough in the three remaining problem areas - fisheries, ensuring fair competition and a dispute settlement mechanism. Especially when it comes to fishing, negotiations are still spinning, according to one of the diplomats. Both sides are said to agree that the other must take a step forward.