EU offers UK Canada +++ Brexit deal
Brexiteers hail breakthrough as European Parliament president calls for ‘respect’
![Donald Tusk](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/k8SfB3nxz9CVRrhH4rMC9k-415-80.jpg)
Brexiteers have jumped on the EU’s offer of a “Canada +++” free trade deal for the UK once it quits the bloc, piling more pressure on Theresa May to ditch her compromise Chequers deal.
European Council President Donald Tusk said that such an arrangement would be “much further reaching on trade, internal security and foreign policy cooperation”.
The Canada +++ deal was the favoured option of former Brexit secretary Davis Davis “and essentially what Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary, is demanding (although Johnson calls it Super Canada)” says The Guardian.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
![https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516-320-80.jpg)
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
However, in a sign of the febrile state of negotiations, Tusk, the former Polish prime minister, said the UK would have to show more respect to Brussels to get any deal. It follows comments by the UK foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, comparing the EU to the Soviet Union.
The Daily Telegraph says Tusk’s remarks were “welcomed by leading Brexiteer MPs who back a looser ‘Canada plus’ free trade deal with the EU over the closer Chequers vision championed by Mrs May”.
As City A.M. says, Tusk has “delighted” the “chuck Chequers” faction - but The Daily Telegraph’s James Rothwell is among those sounding a note of caution:
Steve Baker, who quit his role as Brexit minister this summer over the Chequers deal, said he was “deeply encouraged” by Tusk’s comments, while leading backbench Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg described it as “excellent news”.
“This would unite the Conservative Party, be a good deal for the country, deliver on Brexit and it is really difficult to see why the Government is not embracing this,” Rees-Mogg said.
He added that a Canada +++ deal would mean “the challenge for the Government is solely solving the Irish border question – which is a political issue”.
Fellow Tory MP Crispin Blunt was even more optimistic, declaring: “If this offer is for the UK, job’s done!”
However, Ireland remains a major remaining stumbling block. The deal put forward by Tusk would see Northern Ireland stay in the EU’s customs union and single market in order to avoid a hard border with the Republic - something May’s parliamentary partners the DUP have categorically ruled out, notes Politico correspondent Tom McTague.
The prime minister says she is opposed to such a deal precisely because it would require a customs border in the Irish Sea, and would lead to the break-up of the UK as we know it because Northern Ireland would have to be treated differently to the rest of the UK.
Downing Street has yet to respond to Tusk’s latest remarks, “although they are likely to be viewed as unhelpful in the wake of the PM’s call for unity at the Tory conference”, says Sky News.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Video game performers to strike over AI concerns
Speed Read SAG-AFTRA members are unhappy with gaming production companies
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Today's political cartoons - July 26, 2024
Cartoons Friday's cartoons - campaign donations, yellow buses, and more
By The Week US Published
-
California orders mass dismantling of unhoused people's camps
Speed Read Gavin Newsom's move follows a Supreme Court ruling last month in favor of an Oregon city that ticketed people for sleeping outside
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
How could J.D. Vance impact the special relationship?
Today's Big Question Trump's hawkish pick for VP said UK is the first 'truly Islamist country' with a nuclear weapon
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
The Tamils stranded on 'secretive' British island in Indian Ocean
Under the Radar Migrants 'unlawfully detained' since 2021 shipwreck on UK-controlled Diego Garcia, site of important US military base
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Britain's Labour Party wins in a landslide
Speed Read The Conservatives were unseated after 14 years of rule
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
'Always played the game with enthusiasm'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Will voter apathy and low turnout blight the election?
Today's Big Question Belief that result is 'foregone conclusion', or that politicians can't be trusted, could exacerbate long-term turnout decline
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Why Emmanuel Macron has called snap elections
Speed Read President surprises France with vote after Marine Le Pen's EU victory
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Is Europe ready to come to its own defense?
Today's Big Question 'There is a risk our Europe could die'
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Xi comes to Europe: what's on the agenda?
The Explainer China's president visiting for first time since 2019, with spotlight on support for Russia over Ukraine and trade tensions with EU
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published