Politics

'It's not bluff, Brexit is in sight' – even the French now feel Boris has Brexit solution


Philippe Bernard, London bureau journalist for leading French newspaper Le Monde. even claimed “Brexit in sight” after Mr Johnson and Irish leader Leo Varadkar emerged from a Wirral wedding venue after hours of wrangling over border and customs issues claiming they could see a “pathway to a possible deal.” The five crucial words “pathway to a possible deal” were being seen around the world – and across Europe – as the first sign that the EU, and the Irish and British Governments were finally preparing to shift entrenched positions and moving forward on a possible Brexit deal. Mr Bernard tweeted: “Boris Johnson yields on the Irish backstop. To keep his Brexit promise to 31/10, he agrees to keep Northern Ireland in the EU’s customs union.

“His bet: win the elections hands down and dispense with the votes of the DUP. If it’s not bluff, Brexit in sight.”

Today the Varadkar-Johnson talks were being followed-up in Brussels where Brexit

Secretary Steve Barclay and Michel Barnier held a breakfast meeting to see if a last minute deal could be salvaged – with just 20 days to go to the Prime Minister’s self-imposed October 31 deadline.

The details of the new developments are very sketchy – and journalists, locked out of talks, were having to work with scant information. Even Cabinet ministers have been kept in the dark on the details of the proposals.

Indeed ITV’s Robert Peston tweeted: “Dublin says @BorisJohnson has made “a big move on customs arrangements” for the island of Ireland.

“London says @LeoVaradkar has made a “big move to secure a deal”. Are the statements compatible?”

But even the famously tough-talking Mr Peston conceded: “Certainly there is striking degree of optimism that a Brexit deal is possible.”

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The hope is that the move would not require any formal border infrastructure – perhaps the biggest stumbling block to a solution in Ireland.

If the meeting between Mr Barclay and Mr Barnier is successful a so-called “tunnel” of intensive negotiations will start in the coming days – ahead of a crunch EU summit next Thursday.

But Mr Varadkar added a note of caution and said: “’There’s many a slip between cup and lip and lots of things that are not in my control.”

A joint statement issued after yesterday’s Wirral meeting added: “Both continue to believe that a deal is in everybody’s interest. They agreed that they could see a pathway to a possible deal.”

Michael Gove described the talks as ‘very encouraging’, and added: “I hope the optimistic and constructive approach that both sides showed can result in more progress.”



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