Impasse in Brexit trade deal talks is fixable, say experts

Sam Lowe of the Centre for European Reform, a think-tank, said a possible solution would be an agreement where UK regulations would only have to be “equivalent”, or equal in effect to those in the EU, rather than having precisely the same text. “Focusing on the actual competitive advantage to businesses rather than the formal regulations would allow Britain to claim victory in the negotiations while also reassuring the EU about its core concern,” he added.

Such a system would place a lot of weight on the dispute settlement process, which would have to make technical judgments about the relative impact of different labour and environmental regulations, said Mr Lowe. But he added it was the most likely possible landing zone for the two sides to avoid a no-deal Brexit.