EU warns Britain - Don't assume free trade deal for London

PanARMENIAN.Net - European Union leaders will warn Britain it cannot assume its big financial services industry will be included in any free trade deal after Brexit, diplomats said on Monday, April 24 after fixing negotiating terms in a draft document, Reuters reports.

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, who will open negotiations with the EU in June assuming she wins a snap election she called last week, singled out banking and other financial services among her priorities for a future trade deal with the bloc after Brexit.

But France and other member states pressed for changes to the draft at Monday's meeting to ram home their opening position that any deal to allow the City of London, Europe's leading financial centre, continued easy access to EU markets must bind Britain to continuing regulation and supervision by Brussels.

"The 27 will not necessarily consider financial services in a free trade agreement, as Theresa May has expected," one said after aides to the 27 EU leaders, who will meet to agree the terms on Saturday, endorsed a draft of the so-called guidelines.

The new draft of the guidelines for EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier will be reviewed by ministers on Thursday and is expected to be signed off swiftly at Saturday's EU27 summit.

"There is nothing controversial in this among the 27," a second diplomat, who took part in Monday's talks, said. "We found a way to say things so that everybody feels safe."

Several other participants said that, as under the previous draft, there would be no specific mention of financial services as an economic sector, but that the guidelines for Barnier would stress that any future relationship should not endanger the "financial stability" of the EU's economy.

"Any future agreement on financial services will be subject to EU supervision and regulation," one said.