A row over EU demands on fishing rights has been blamed as negotiations over Sir Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset went down to the wire ahead of the prime minister’s major summit in London.
With both sides yet to reach agreement, British and European negotiators were working overnight to hash out a deal before the prime minister appears at a press conference on Monday alongside European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Antonio Costa.
There are still “outstanding issues on both sides”, Downing Street sources said on Sunday night. “Negotiations are going down to the wire and a deal is not yet done … conversations will continue overnight,” an official said.
The prime minister has insisted that closer ties with the EU will be “good for our borders, cut bills and boost jobs”, ahead of the summit on Monday at which he could announce a deal.
While there were conflicting demands over youth mobility and university fees, The Times reported that an EU attempt to tie an agreement on food standards to a deal on fisheries remained the main stumbling block on Sunday night.
Key Points
- EU fishing demands ‘last major hurdle’ as talks go down to the wire
- Negotiations will continue overnight, UK source says on eve of summit
- Starmer urged to be ‘bold’ in Brexit reset talks ahead of crunch meeting
UK returning to EU should be 'at very top of the agenda' on Monday, says SNP
05:00 , Andy GregoryThe UK returning to the European Union should have been “at the very top of the agenda” for Monday's summit in London, the SNP has said.
The party’s Europe spokesperson Stephen Gethins said: “Returning to the EU and returning to the single market and customs union should have been at the very top of the agenda at this EU-UK summit.
“After almost a decade of damage and decline in broken Brexit Britain – there are no ifs, buts or maybes about this – there will never be a better deal than being back in the EU.
“It is the biggest and the best growth strategy available and yet it is the only option the Labour Party have turned their face against – all because they are running scared of Nigel Farage.”
Labour MP warns 'dynamic alignment' on EU food rules would be 'betrayal' of Brexit
04:00 , Andy GregoryA Labour MP has warned that accepting “dynamic alignment” with the EU rules for a deal on food standards would amount to a “betrayal” of Brexit.
One of Labour’s manifesto pledges was to strike a veterinary agreement to cut unnecessary border checks and bring down the cost of food for British consumers.
The promised agreement on food and agricultural standards, or sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement, would see Britain agree to European food rules in order to reduce red tape for exporters and cut checks on food between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
European trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic has said an SPS agreement would require Britain to accept dynamic alignment with EU rules.
In remarks to The Telegraph, Labour MP Graham Stringer said that accepting such a demand “completely undermines the whole reason for being out” of the EU, adding: “I think dynamic realignment is definitely a betrayal because it’s giving everything up.”
What deal is Starmer hoping to reach on security?
03:01 , Andy GregoryBoth Britain and Brussels have expressed an interest in strengthening cooperation on defence and security.
A pact would allow British firms to access a major European defence fund – under which EU countries will spend €150bn buying air defence systems, drones and other military equipment – set up in response to US president Donald Trump’s apparent reluctance to guarantee the continent’s security.
It would build on a bilateral pact struck between the UK and Germany in October, under which it was agreed the the Luftwaffe would operate from a base in Britain to help protect the North Atlantic from the growing threat from Russia, with 400 jobs created in a new munitions factory in the UK.
But Nigel Farage claimed a defence pact would represent “the big next step towards a European army”, with the Reform leader insisting that Nato was “enough” to show support for Ukraine against Russia’s invasion.
Mr Farage told The Telegraph: “I don’t mind enhanced European cooperation within the framework of Nato, but what I’m seeing is enhanced military cooperation under the guise of the European Union, with soldiers wearing European Union flags and European Union anthems.”
Watch: Elton John calls Labour ‘absolute losers’ over AI copyright plans
02:03 , Andy GregorySir Elton John branded the Labour government “absolute losers” after calls by the House of Lords to amend the Data (Use and Access) Bill to include greater copyright protections against artificial intelligence (AI) were resisted, my colleague Holly Patrick reports.
Peers supported an amendment designed to ensure copyright holders would have to give permission over whether their work was used, and in turn, see what aspects had been taken, by whom and when.
Talks over winter fuel payment U-turn ‘intensify’ as Labour bids to repair relationship with voters
01:01 , Andy GregorySir Keir Starmer is poised to reverse controversial reforms to his government’s infamous winter fuel payment cuts as soon as June, according to reports.
The move could allow the party to repair its damaged relationship with voters and tackle the threat from Nigel Farage and Reform UK.
Rachel Reeves’s decision to strip 10 million pensioners of the payment within weeks of taking office has proven toxic for her party and was a key issue during last month’s local elections, which were disastrous for Labour.
Discussion on the policy within No 10 has intensified after focus groups of voters showed Labour could be forgiven for the move if there was a full or semi-U-turn, according to The i Paper. And, asked during a trip to Albania whether he was considering changing course, the PM refused to rule out making more people eligible for the allowance.
Ministers are considering whether to give more pensioners the allowance, by increasing the £11,500 income cut threshold over which they no longer get the payment or by reversing it altogether, the paper reported.
Kate Devlin and Archie Mitchell report:
Talks over winter fuel U-turn ‘intensify’ amid hopes voters will forgive Labour
Fisheries, youth mobility and university fees among issues still in contention, reports suggest
Monday 19 May 2025 00:05 , Andy GregoryFishing rights, youth mobility and university tuition fees are reported to be issues still being negotiated into the night on Sunday, just hours before Sir Keir Starmer hopes to unveil his UK-EU deal in London tomorrow.
One EU diplomat told The Guardian: “The whole discussion is a package. We will not accept elements that are only at the advantage [or] request of the UK without strong guarantees and commitments on other issues of importance for the EU, such as fisheries, energy, youth mobility.”
EU fishing demands ‘last major hurdle’ as talks go down to the wire
Sunday 18 May 2025 23:27 , Andy GregoryEU demands for greater access to British fisheries were the main outstanding issue as Sir Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset negotiations went down to the wire on Sunday night, it was reported.
According to The Times, UK negotiators were surprised by an EU bid to tie any deal on easing checks on UK food exports to an agreement on fishing rights, with Brussels reported to be taking a hard line on the issue.
It has previously been reported that France and other European countries are seeking continued access to British fishing waters after June 2026, rather than having to renegotiate quotas every year.
Farage claims he will undo Starmer 'reset' deal if he becomes PM
Sunday 18 May 2025 23:14 , Andy GregoryNigel Farage has claimed he would tear up any deal reached by Sir Keir Starmer with the EU tomorrow if he enters Downing Street at the next election.
Labelling the prime minister’s reset deal – details of which are still being agreed – an “abject surrender”, the Reform UK leader claimed it would put the UK on the “slippery slope to rejoin”.
“The Prime Minister thinks he’ll get away with it but he perhaps underestimates how strong Brexit feeling still is in the Red Wall,” Mr Farage told The Telegraph. “The whole thing is an abject surrender from Starmer and politically, something he will come to regret.”
'Red Wall' MP raises concerns over youth mobility scheme
Sunday 18 May 2025 22:22 , Andy GregoryLabour MPs have warned Sir Keir Starmer that his sought-after Brexit reset deal risks a backlash from voters.
Expressing concerns over a youth mobility scheme, Jo White, head of the Red Wall group of MPs, told The Telegraph: “We tighten immigration with one hand and potentially loosen the strings with the other.
“Whilst the scheme already operates with Australia, Canada and New Zealand, I don’t see young people from areas like mine benefiting from it unless there are very clear parameters.”
The Bassetlaw MP added: “If this just becomes a way of overseas kids filling the low paid job vacancies in London rather than looking to see how young people from areas like mine could be opened up to opportunities and experiences that they would never have otherwise dreamed of then I would really question the value of it.”
The £25bn-a-year prize at stake in Starmer’s Brexit reset talks with EU
Sunday 18 May 2025 21:28 , Andy GregoryA £25bn annual boost to British exports is at stake for Sir Keir Starmer as he tries to secure a Brexit reset deal at a crucial summit on Monday, analysis shared with The Independent reveals.
Removing trade barriers on goods, including food and drink and electrical items, could result in a 2.2 per cent uplift in gross domestic product in the long run, boosting the economic growth the prime minister so desperately wants to deliver, financial analysts Frontier Economics found.
And a separate assessment by the National Institute for Economic and Social Research (NIESR) warns that a failure to land a deal for easier trading could lead to a 2.7 per cent drop in exports by 2027, costing the UK economy almost £30bn.
Alicja Hagopian and David Maddox report:
The £25bn-a-year prize at stake in Starmer’s Brexit reset talks with EU
How would a youth mobility scheme between the UK and EU work?
Sunday 18 May 2025 20:32 , Andy GregoryThe UK looks increasingly likely to agree to a post-Brexit youth mobility scheme with the European Union at a major UK-EU summit on Monday.
Such an agreement would be a major step towards resetting Boris Johnson’s damaging Brexit deal, and has been pushed by European officials for months.
The move, which is being demanded by European countries and commissioners in Brussels, would help to create much closer ties with the bloc and begin to repair the shattered relationship left by the previous Tory government.
Here, The Independent looks at how such a scheme would work in practice, who would be eligible to take part and whether or not there is support for it in Britain:
How would a youth mobility scheme between the UK and EU work?
‘A deal is not yet done’: Talks ‘down to the wire’ and will continue overnight, UK source says
Sunday 18 May 2025 19:40 , Archie Mitchell, Political CorrespondentSir Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset is still being negotiated with just hours before the prime minister is to host Ursula von der Leyen and Antonio Costa in London.
With both sides yet to reach agreement, British and European negotiators will work overnight to hash out a deal before the prime minister appears at a press conference alongside the European Commission and European Council presidents on Monday.
Downing Street sources said there are “outstanding issues on both sides”.
“Negotiations are going down to the wire and a deal is not yet done… conversations will continue overnight,” an official said.
Watch: Labour says UK is pushing EU to ease border delays
Sunday 18 May 2025 19:00 , Rebecca WhittakerBritain's Labour government wants to negotiate a defence and security pact
Sunday 18 May 2025 18:00 , Rebecca WhittakerBritish Prime Minister Keir Starmer will welcome European Union leaders to London on Monday to help reset relations with the bloc.
Both sides will be aiming to secure progress in some specific areas, including defence and security.
Britain's Labour government wants to pursue a defence and security pact that previous Conservative governments opted not to seek when Brexit was first negotiated.
Both sides agree it is imperative for Europe to work more closely together on defence, given Russia's invasion of Ukraine and calls by US President Donald Trump for NATO's European members to shoulder more of the burden of the alliance.
Britain could try to negotiate access for UK companies to joint defence projects under Security Action For Europe - an EU loan scheme worth 150 billion euros ($168 billion) - and how much it will have to pay for that access. This could also facilitate greater foreign policy co-ordination.
British travellers could get access to EU passport queues again in Brexit reset deal
Sunday 18 May 2025 17:00 , Rebecca WhittakerBritish tourists arriving in Europe could be able to use EU passport gates once again under Sir Keir Starmer’s post-Brexit reset deal.
Sir Keir’s EU minister said the government was pushing for measures to speed up the process in interviews on Sunday morning, after reports the UK was on the verge of striking a deal.
Read more from our political correspondent Archie Mitchell here:
British travellers could get access to EU passport queues again in Brexit reset deal
Referendum rejection would need to be reviewed if there is ‘overwhelming desire’
Sunday 18 May 2025 15:47 , Sam RkainaThe UK Government should reconsider allowing a second independence referendum if there is an “overwhelming desire” for it in Scotland, Michael Gove has said.
The Tory grandee was part of successive governments which turned down formal requests for another vote in recent years.
But speaking to the BBC, he said an increase in support would warrant a rethink in Westminster.
“I don’t believe that it’s necessary at the moment,” he said of another vote on separation.
“I think if there’s an overwhelming desire on the part of the Scottish people for one, then we’d have to review the situation.”
Surrender a ‘big word’ for Nigel Farage, Emily Thornberry claims
Sunday 18 May 2025 15:00 , Sam RkainaEmily Thornberry has lashed out at Nigel Farage, claiming that surrender is a “big word” for the Reform UK leader.
The chairman of the foreign affairs committee hit back at Mr Farage’s opposition to Labour’s planned youth mobility scheme with the EU, which he has said amounts to an upicking of Brexit.
Speaking to LBC, Ms Thornberry said: “The public… want, if their neighbours run a small business, to be able to export sausages to France and for it not to be held up.
“They want to be able to travel to Europe and not have their passport stamped and be able to go through e-gates and be able to travel more easily, and they want more money in the economy.”
Asked specifically about Farage’s “surrender” claim, Ms Thornberry said: “Big word for him, isn’t it?”
She added: “There's 13 of these youth mobility schemes already with the UK and the sky hasn’t fallen in, and I think youngsters in Britain would like to be able to travel in Europe and so it has to be reciprocal.”
Starmer deal is ‘step back toward EU control’, Lord Frost claims
Sunday 18 May 2025 14:30 , Sam RkainaBritain’s former chief Brexit negotiator has said Sir Keir Starmer’s reset of relations with Brussels is a “step back towards being controlled by the European Union in important areas of our national life”.
“That’s not what people voted for in 2016,” Lord Frost told GB News.
He said Labour does not want Britain “to be a completely free country”, and will see the UK accept EU laws.
And Lord Frost denied there are problems that need fixing with the current deal underpinning Britain’s trade with the bloc.
Lord Frost was seen as partly responsible for Britain’s strained relations with Europe due to his hardball approach as Brexit negotiator.
EU student numbers slashed in half since Brexit
Sunday 18 May 2025 14:00 , Rebecca WhittakerEU officials want lower fees for their students, according to reports, which is causing tension ahead of Monday’s talks.
International students currently pay around £12,000 more in fees on average per year than domestic students.
The number of EU students at UK universities has dropped by nearly half since Brexit, with 75,000 EU nationals enrolled in British colleges and universities in the 2023/24 academic year – down from 148,000 in 2019.
EU talks going ‘to the wire’ as Starmer prepares to announce deal
Sunday 18 May 2025 13:55 , Sam RkainaTalks on a UK-EU deal are in their “final hours” ahead of a major summit with the bloc, the minister in charge of negotiations has said.
Sir Keir Starmer is expected to announce a deal with the EU when he meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa in London on Monday.
The Prime Minister said the agreement would be “another step forwards” for the UK and “good for our jobs, good for our bills and good for our borders”.
But on Sunday Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said the final details of the deal were still being worked out, with talks going “to the wire”.
Monday’s summit has been expected to bring an announcement on British access to a 150 billion euro (£125 billion) EU defence fund, in what could be a boost for UK defence companies.
But reports suggest there could also be agreements on allowing British travellers to use e-gates at European airports, cutting red tape on food exports and imports, and setting up a youth mobility scheme with the EU.
Provisions covering fishing and energy need be negotiated
Sunday 18 May 2025 13:30 , Rebecca WhittakerProvisions covering fishing and energy are due to expire in 2026, and need to be extended or renegotiated over the next year.
The post-Brexit trade agreement transferred existing quotas to the bloc for a transition period.
But from 2026 they will need be negotiated on an annual or multi-annual basis.
EU diplomats have said that a fisheries deal should be the same length as any agreement on sanitary and phytosanitary measures, to ensure equal leverage during any renegotiations, while France is pushing for any defence deal to be contingent on a fisheries agreement.
Fishing has long been a source of tension. The EU has taken Britain to court over its ban of fishing for sand eels in UK waters.
Britain left the EU's internal energy market after Brexit, but the UK's energy industry is pushing for more efficient and closer electricity trading arrangements with the bloc.
Britain imported around 14 per cent of its electricity in 2024, a record high, through power links with Belgium, Denmark, France and Norway.
Youth mobility scheme would mean more EU youths working in UK
Sunday 18 May 2025 13:00 , Rebecca WhittakerSummit could pave way for deal that reduces impact of the Irish Sea border
Sunday 18 May 2025 12:30 , Rebecca WhittakerThe UK-EU summit could pave the way for a deal which could reduce the impact of the Irish Sea border.
The summit on Monday is expected to include an "agreement to agree" on trade issues. This will include trade in food and agricultural products.
The Labour government made a manifesto commitment to seek a new agri-food agreement with the EU.
In 2022 Sir Keir Starmer said the party would eliminate “most border checks created by the Tory Brexit deal”, and implement a “new veterinary agreement for Agri-products between the UK and EU”.
If a full food and agricultural deal does follow later this year, it will reduce the need for checks and controls on products being sent from GB to Northern Ireland.
It could mean the end of using ‘Not for EU’ labelling.
Closer EU ties could boost UK exports by £24.8bn
Sunday 18 May 2025 12:00 , Rebecca WhittakerGordon Brown’s former economic adviser summed up the importance of Starmer's summit
Sunday 18 May 2025 11:30 , Rebecca WhittakerGordon Brown’s former economic adviser Lord Jim O’Neill summed up the importance of Sir Keir’s summit in London: “Obviously, the closer and more serious we can get, the better it is for reversing our net trade losses, and importantly, net investment from EU areas.
“Given the shock from Trump [tariffs] to Europe, especially on Germany, on top of the Ukraine shock and China slowdown, I think Germany [will be] more open to pro-UK trade issues than before.
“Also, I suspect the EU is going to give more than lip service to cross-border services sector reform now. Given UK net advantages in service sector exports, this is important to us.”
Starmer accused of shutting foreign press out of major post-Brexit reset summit
Sunday 18 May 2025 11:00 , Rebecca WhittakerA foreign journalist said news wires from Spain, Italy and Germany have been denied access to the EU-UK summit on Monday.
With the prime minister set to unveil his post-Brexit reset plans alongside Brussels leaders, the Foreign Press Association (FPA) has said “almost every European news outlet” with a foreign correspondent in London has been denied access to the summit.
In a letter sent to Downing Street the FPA, which represents foreign journalists based in the UK, said: “Sir Keir Starmer, you state that you want a reset with the EU. You organise a summit between the UK and the EU to restart the relationship.
“Yet you deny accreditation to almost every European news outlet who has a foreign correspondent in London, leaving out the biggest news agencies, the most important papers, the most trusted broadcasters.”
Read more by our political correspondent Archie Mitchell:
Starmer accused of shutting foreign press out of major post-Brexit reset summit
Scotland’s former first minister hits out at Starmer's 'dog whistle' stance on immigration
Sunday 18 May 2025 10:45 , Rebecca WhittakerScotland’s former first minister Humza Yousaf has hit out at Sir Keir Starmer for his “dog whistle” stance on immigration.
The comment comes after the prime minister said the UK risked becoming an “island of strangers” if immigration levels were not cut.
In a piece written by Yousaf for LBC, the former leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) repeated claims the prime minister's recent remarks on immigration were a "modern echo" of Enoch Powell's infamous 1968 Rivers Of Blood speech.
He wrote: "Starmer's invocation of 'strangers' is a modern echo - a dog-whistle to voters who blame migrants for every social ill, from stretched public services to the cost-of-living crisis.
"It betrays a failure to understand, or deliberately mask the fact that Britain's prosperity depends on migration, on openness not building walls."
But Starmer has since rejected the comparison to Powell.
An official spokesperson said migrants have made a "massive contribution" to society but his point was that the Tories "lost control of the system".
The Government would be willing to align with EU rules
Sunday 18 May 2025 10:30 , Rebecca WhittakerThe Government would be willing to align with EU rules in some areas, Nick Thomas-Symonds said.
Asked about alignment, he told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “What we are looking to do, we don’t come at this from an ideological perspective, we come from a practical perspective.
“Where it is in our national interest to align on common standards to make sure we get far easier trade, to mean that businesses that frankly have had to stop trading with the EU because of the red tape, can start trading with the EU again.”
He added: “It means taking a sovereign choice as to the standards, the common standards we wish to align.
“That’s what we did in the US deal where we wouldn’t compromise on our food standards and it’s exactly that same pragmatic approach for jobs and growth here in this country we are taking in this negotiations.”
He also said that the Government would assess whether to contribute money to EU projects on a case-by-case basis, saying it would “consider each one on its merits”.
Deal on youth mobility scheme will have to be 'smart and controlled'
Sunday 18 May 2025 10:15 , Rebecca WhittakerAny deal on a youth mobility scheme with Europe will have to be “smart and controlled” and will be “absolutely consistent” with the Government’s immigration policy, a minister has said.
Nick Thomas-Symonds told the BBC’s Sunday With Laura Kuenssberg: “It’s about a smart and controlled scheme.
“As of today we have already 13 youth mobility schemes with other countries, nobody is remotely suggesting that that is freedom of movement with those countries, it absolutely isn’t.”
He added: “It will be absolutely consistent with the objective the Government set out in the Immigration White Paper last week.
“It is to reduce the level of net migration, that is the objective we set out last week.”
'we’re coming for you', says Keir Starmer to those working illegally
Sunday 18 May 2025 10:00 , Rebecca WhittakerSir Keir Starmer has said he is “coming” for the people who are working in the UK illegally.
In a post on X he said that Illegal working raids are up 40 per cent and he does not intend on stopping there.
He wrote: “If you work here illegally or employ people who do, we’re coming for you. Illegal working raids are up 40 per cent. And we won’t stop there.”
If you work here illegally or employ people who do, we’re coming for you.
— Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) May 18, 2025
Illegal working raids are up 40%. And we won’t stop there.
