Keir Starmer issued huge ultimatum by Brussels over 'Brexit reset' plans
The European Union is set to issue a final offer to Sir Keir Starmer, amid growing frustration inside Brussels over the UK's 'Brexit reset' claims.
Officials in Brussels are starting to doubt Sir Keir Starmer's pledges of a reset with the EU. In a test of the British PM's claims, the EU has put together a new youth mobility scheme proposal in what amounts to an ultimatum to the UK.
Sir Keir has previously ruled out any scheme that would make it easier for 18 to 30-year-olds to study, work and live in Europe and the UK. Officials have warned that another rejection from the UK would doom the British government’s hopes of pacts on defence and agriculture.
The new proposal, which has been worked on between member-states over the last month, will be discussed in a working group in Brussels next week. The EU has softened some parts of its scheme proposal in the hope that will be enough to convince Sir Keir's government to back down.
It is thought that Brussels will remove the demand for four-year student exchange programmes in which the students pay the home fees of the university they attend, something UK universities have immediately rejected.
If the working group finalise the proposal next week, the European Commission could hand it to No 10 in October.
In the past, Sir Keir has shut down proposals for the youth mobility scheme, claiming it resembled freedom of movement.
A government spokesperson said last month: “We are not considering an EU-wide youth mobility scheme and there will be no return to freedom of movement.”
Some European diplomats are “dismayed” that the PM has not reversed the British position on a youth mobility scheme.
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One told The Guardian: “The red lines are almost like Theresa May’s, it is difficult to see what has changed.”
Another added it was the last offer the EU would make, saying: “The key to understanding the EU-UK relationship is that we are much less concerned with the UK than the UK is with the EU, especially post-Windsor framework.
“There is absolutely room for improvement in the relationship but the biggest pain has been removed and the UK is not top of the agenda. If Keir Starmer wants us to come to the table, don’t expect us to drop everything to have that conversation.”
When elected, the Labour leader vowed a closer relationship with the EU and a reset following the volatility of Brexit. He has visited the German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, in Berlin and the French president, Emmanuel Macron, in France.
Sir Keir hosted 50 leaders from across the continent for the European Political Community meeting at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire.
However, the EU is frustrated with the lack of any concrete pledges or actions from the UK.
