Tuition fees row threatens to derail Brexit reset... again

Andy Burnham is facing fresh pressure from the EU to make a stronger commitment to cutting university fees for European nationals as the price of a Brexit reset deal , after some nations rejected a key compromise. A draft joint statement being worked on by Brussels officials said an agreement on cutting tuition fees for EU nationals in the UK should be delayed for six months, while other Brexit reset deals on food trade, youth mobility and carbon markets are signed off at a set-piece summit on 20 November.

But the compromise offer was rejected by member state ambassadors at a key meeting in Brussels to discuss the summit text, EU sources told The i Paper , meaning the fraught issue of university fees will continue to plague Brexit reset negotiations. Several EU countries still want a final deal on tuition fees in time for the summit, while “almost all” of them want the joint statement to include tougher language to bind the UK’s hands on the issue, according to one source.

EU negotiators will now once again push the UK for more concessions, which the Prime Minister has been resisting for fears of the impact on cash-strapped British universities . Issue now ‘central’ to EU states One compromise solution could be making it explicitly clear in the summit agreement that the trio of Brexit reset deals – which Burnham has said will boost UK gross domestic product by 0.4 per cent – cannot be implemented until he agrees to cut fees, two sources said.

The issue has now become “central” to the Brexit reset for EU member states, although they acknowledged “it will be difficult for the UK to accept” cutting tuition fees now, “so some compromise language will have to be found”. Cutting tuition fees so EU students in the UK pay the same as domestic British students, around £10,000, rather than higher international rates which can reach up to £38,000 has been Brussels’ key demand in negotiations for the last two years.

The small EU nations in particular are understood to be pushing for cheaper fees so their students can afford to study in Britain. London initially rejected the demand, although Burnham in summer opened the door to cutting tuition fees if Britain received favourable treatment in the EU’s protectionist Made In Europe policy, which threatens UK industry and the economy. Reports suggest the UK Government is considering compensating universities for the cost, which could reach up to £580m.

The draft joint UK-EU statement – seen by The i Paper – suggested a compromise had been reached by delaying negotiations on fees by six months, to allow a deal to be finalised alongside talks on Made In Europe, which cannot be resolved until next year. But EU member states have now made clear they want a stronger commitment, with another meeting of ambassadors in Brussels due next week. The UK’s Brexit reset minister Hamish Falconer is also believed to be due in Brussels next week for talks which could prove crucial to finding a final deal.

Smokey bacon crisps row It came as the Environment Secretary Angela Eagle told an interviewer to “get a life” when asked about suggestions that smoky bacon crisps could be banned under the food trade aspect of the reset deal to be signed off at the 20 November summit in Brussels. The agreement will see the UK adapt to EU regulations on plant, animal and food trade standards to remove post-Brexit checks from exports, has led to concerns about a ban on smoky bacon crisps.

Reports have suggested the crisp flavour could fall foul of planned EU laws prohibiting the use of “meaty” terms to describe vegetarian food, with manufacturers facing the prospect of having to change its name to remove references to meat. Eagle expressed exasperation when asked about the report, likening it to the Brexit debate about bendy bananas. The claim that Brussels bureaucrats determined the shape of bananas was a Brexiteers’ favourite at the time of the referendum, although there was no ban on the curved fruit.

Asked whether closer alignment with the bloc could lead to the banning of bacon crisps’ labelling, Eagle told Times Radio host Stig Abell: “Oh, Stig. I mean, really, we’ve had EU straight bananas, and now we’re talking about banning smoky bacon crisps, I think you should get a life. “This is actually about ensuring that we can do business with our closest neighbours.” The UK Government was approached for comment.