UK Prime Minister Johnson calls EU trade terms 'unacceptable' ahead of final Brexit talks

In an address to the British House of Commons, Prime Minister Boris Johnson claimed that the European Union’s terms of a post-Brexit trade deal were intended to "punish the UK" and can’t be agreed on by any Prime Minister. Johnson’s remarks came as he prepared to fly to Brussels to hold talks with EU President Ursula von der Leyen and key Brexit negotiators in a final meeting to reach an agreement before the end of transition on December 31.

In an address to the parliament, the British PM said that the EU had to dismiss the terms that are clearly "unacceptable" to the UK as an independent nation if there has to be a Brexit trade deal. Johnson was answering veteran Tory backbencher Edward Leigh about the possibilities of striking a comprehensive agreement with the EU. 

Read: Brexit Trade Talks Reach 'critical Point', EU And UK Agree To Expanding 'further Efforts'

"Our friends in the EU are currently insisting that if they pass a new law in future with which we in this country do not comply or don’t follow suit, then they want the automatic right to punish us and to retaliate," Johnson said in a live-streamed address to the House of Commons. He objected to the EU’s demands that "snatched" from the UK the sovereign control on its territorial waters for fishing like Australia or Canada.

Read: Boris Johnson, EU Chief Negotiators Seek To Break Brexit Impasse On Dec 7

Hefty tariffs

According to The Guardian reports, Johnson was challenged by Labour Party leader Keir Starmer about a no deal Brexit by end of the year. Johnson insisted that the UK "will prosper mightily" and will emerge as a hub of international trade and commerce despite no deal. Jobs will be created because of Brexit, Johnson stressed, not "in spite of Brexit".

The British PM emphasised that the administration was looking at a Canadian solution or an Australian solution. However, Starmer was wary about Johnson’s inability to negotiate and secure a deal, which he believed will be disastrous as it would lead to hefty tariffs on British goods.

Meanwhile, the British PM cited the withdrawal agreement that entered into force on 1 February 2020 as his "oven-ready deal", which he said had set the framework for the UK’s future relationship with the rest of the EU. Britain exited the European Union on January 31, however, the nation is yet to reach an agreement for post-Brexit trade with respect to fisheries activities, freedom of competition, handling of future relations, and police and judicial cooperation on criminal matters. 

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Read: As Brexit Transition Nears End, UK PM Boris Johnson To Visit Brussels For Final Talks

(Image Credit: Twitter/@Borisjohnson)