UK politics live: Post-Brexit deal negotiations ‘going down to the wire’ hours before summit, minister says

British 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:

The 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.”

Emily 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.”

Britain’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 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.

Talks 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 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.

The 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.