Michel Barnier raises his hand during a meeting of ambassadors of European Union governments in Brussels. Reuters

The European Union’s Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said on Monday sealing a new trade pact with Britain was still possible and that negotiations are continuing to attempt to solve rifts over access to UK fishing waters and rules of economic fair play for companies.

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“We’ve only been negotiating for nine months, we’ve needed at least five years for all the previous agreements, we are going to give every chance to this agreement... which is still possible,” Barnier told journalists, on arriving to update envoys from the 27 EU countries in Brussels on the UK talks.

“A good, balanced agreement. That means two conditions which aren’t met yet. Free and fair competition... and an agreement which guarantees reciprocal access to markets and waters. And it’s on these points that we haven’t found the right balance with the British. So we keep working.”

Reuters