9 hours Ago By Archie Mitchell
The European Union will play tough with Sir Keir Starmer as he seeks to build closer ties with Brussels in his post-Brexit reset , top diplomats have said. Sir Keir on Monday will become the first prime minister to attend a dinner with EU leaders since Brexit, and is expected to discuss a security and defence deal between the UK and its European allies. But, despite Sir Keir’s welcome efforts to engage with European leaders since being elected in July, the PM will be warned he faces the same fate as Boris Johnson in talks with the bloc - with tough concessions demanded in return for any new relationship.
Sir Keir will be warned that progress on issues such as defence and security is not an option unless he is willing to give ground on issues such as EU access to Britain’s fishing waters and a youth mobility scheme. “It worked for us the first time around with Boris and it will work for us again with Starmer,” a diplomat told The Times. The EU has made a youth mobility scheme , which would allow 18 to 35-year-olds to move and work freely between countries for up to two years, a key sticking point in negotiations about its future relationship with the UK.
It is also demanding ongoing access to Britain’s fishing waters, which is due to expire when an existing agreement ends next year. Another senior EU diplomat said: “There are many buckets in the future relationship, and of course, there is an interlink between all of them because at the end of the day, that is a package. “The security part is essential for us, we share security interests with the UK but at the same time there is no beating around the bush that fisheries are also very important.
” It sets the stage for the EU to follow the strategy it adopted when former PM Mr Johnson was negotiating Britain’s exit from the bloc, blocking efforts to agree deals in individual areas without simultaneous progress in all areas. It comes after a diplomatic document in Brussels last month was revealed which said the UK must agree to “the maintenance of the status quo” on access for European boats to British waters before talks can begin, including the same levels of catch allowances as those that are currently in place. The document also established a youth mobility scheme as a priority for talks with the UK.
Downing Street has so far repeatedly refused to agree to a youth mobility deal, with fears it would be portrayed as a return to freedom of movement and a betrayal of Brexit. Ahead of Sir Keir’s working dinner with EU leaders on Monday, European Council president António Costa said: “The UK is a key partner for the European Union, notably in the field of defence. I expect the discussion to focus on that dimension of our relationship.
" It comes after the prime minister was warned his post-Brexit reset has so far been anaemic, with Labour’s EU policy branded vague and unambitious. Britain’s top post-Brexit think tank UK in a Changing Europe (UKICE) said it appears that EU policy is “peripheral to Starmer’s government” and that lower economic growth appears to be “baked into Labour’s strategy”..
