Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Stressing on 'free trade' Johnson says to prepare for no-trade deal Brexit in 10 weeks

BRITISH prime minister Boris Johnson said on Friday(16) it was now time to prepare for a no-trade deal Brexit in 10 weeks time unless the EU fundamentally changed course, though Brussels said talks would continue.

"I have concluded that we should get ready for January 1 with arrangements that are more like Australia's based on simple principles of global free trade," Johnson said.


"With high hearts and with complete confidence, we will prepare to embrace the alternative and we will prosper mightily as an independent free trading nation, controlling and setting our own laws," he added.

Johnson's remarks, which follow an EU demand that London make further concessions, may push Brexit towards disorder, though he still left open the possibility that the EU could change course and offer Britain a better deal.

"Unless there is a fundamental change of approach, we're going to go for the Australia solution. And we should do it with great confidence," he said.

A so-called "Australia deal" means that the UK would trade on World Trade Organization terms: as a country without an EU trade agreement, like Australia, tariffs would be imposed under WTO rules.

Asked if he was walking away from talks, Johnson said: "If there's a fundamental change of approach, of course we are always willing to listen, but it didn't seem particularly encouraging from the summit in Brussels."

The EU said it would continue to seek a Brexit trade accord and that its chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, would be in London next week to intensify the search for a deal.

"The EU continues to work for a deal, but not at any price," said EU president Ursula von der Leyen. "As planned, our negotiation team will go to London next week to intensify these negotiations."

French President Emmanuel Macron said the EU's 27 government leaders were united in their views about Brexit and had tasked Barneir to extend talks with Britain for two weeks.

Britain formally left the EU on Jan. 31, but the two sides have been haggling over a deal that would govern trade in everything from car parts to medicines when informal membership known as the transition period ends Dec. 31.

Johnson had repeatedly asserted that his preference is for a deal but that Britain could make a success of a no-deal scenario, which would throw $900 billion in annual bilateral trade into uncertainty and could snarl the border, turning the southeastern county of Kent into a vast truck park.

Comprehensive trade deal

Johnson said discussions showed the EU would not give Britain a comprehensive trade deal such as the one the bloc has with Canada. "It does seem curious that after 45 years of our membership they can offer Canada terms they won't offer us."

EU officials have said Britain, with the world's 6th largest economy and geographically next door to Europe, poses a much bigger competitive challenge than distant Canada and so cannot be offered a similar accord.

The EU's 27 members, whose combined $18.4 trillion economy dwarfs the United Kingdom's $3 trillion economy, says progress had been made over recent months though compromise is needed.

German chancellor Angela Merkel, Europe's most powerful leader, said it would be best if a deal was struck but that if not then the EU would have to plan for alternatives.

"We have seen light in the past days but also shadows," Merkel told a news conference after a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels.

More For You

Police Recover £1M Stolen Jewellery in Hounslow, Owners Sought

The jewellery was largely taken from London’s South Asian community in Hounslow between 2023 and 2024. (Photo: Met Police)

Stolen jewellery worth £1m recovered in Hounslow, police seek owners

POLICE are seeking to reunite stolen jewellery worth over £1 million with its rightful owners after recovering the items during a proactive operation across London and the home counties.

The recovered collection includes identifiable pieces such as a World War One officer’s Rolex watch, a gold locket containing old pictures, an engraved gold ring, and an engraved gold pocket watch from Harlow Bros Ltd.

Keep ReadingShow less
british-muslims

The initiative aims to track incidents, raise awareness of hate crime, and provide better victim support.

iStock)

Government announces fund to combat anti-Muslim hate

THE UK government has announced a new fund to monitor anti-Muslim hate and support victims, with applications opening on 7 April.

The initiative aims to track incidents, raise awareness of hate crime, and provide better victim support.

Keep ReadingShow less
Probe launched over racist broadcast at Kent asylum centre

FILE PHOTO: Entrance of Manston short-term holding centre for migrants, near Ramsgate in southeast England. (Photo by BEN STANSALL/AFP via Getty Images)

Probe launched over racist broadcast at Kent asylum centre

AUTHORITIES have launched an investigation following reports that a racist message was broadcast over portable radios at an asylum processing centre in Kent.

The incident occurred at the Manston site, where small boat arrivals are processed by the Home Office and its contractor, Mitie, reported The Guardian.

Keep ReadingShow less
Protest against dog crackdown ahead of Modi's Sri Lanka visit

Sri Lankan animal rights activists take part in a demonstration in Colombo on April 3, 2025, to protest the round-up of stray dogs a day ahead of a visit by Narendra Modi. (Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Protest against dog crackdown ahead of Modi's Sri Lanka visit

SRI LANKAN animal rights activists marched on Thursday (3) to protest the round-up of stray dogs a day ahead of a visit by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi.

Authorities in Colombo and the Buddhist pilgrim city of Anuradhapura have reportedly deployed dog catchers to impound hounds ahead of Modi's visit, which begins on Friday (4).

Keep ReadingShow less
modi-trump-getty

Donald Trump and Narendra Modi hold a joint press conference in the East Room at the White House on February 13, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Explained: Impact of US tariffs on Indian exports

The United States has announced a 27 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods entering the American market.

Industry experts have said these duties will pose challenges for Indian exports, though India's position remains more favourable than some of its competitors.

Keep ReadingShow less