David Davis will face off against Michel Barnier today for the latest round of Brexit talks amid reports Britain will dramatically increase its divorce bill offer.
The Brexit Secretary will be pushing for the EU to agree to move on to trade talks when he meets their EU chief negotiator in Brussels today.
The Brussels club have been refusing to kick off the next stage of talks amid hopes they can squeeze more money out of Britain for the so-called divorce bill.
And there are signs that Theresa May is preparing to pay in more cash in order to break the deadlocked negotiations and try to move on to trade talks before the end of the year.
David Davis and Michel Barnier, pictured in Brussels in September where they met for a round of Brexit talks. They are meeting in the Belgian capital again today where Mr Davis will be pushing the Eropeans to move on to trade talks
The Prime Minister has already €20 billion (£17.7bn) into the EU’s coffers for a two-year transition deal which keeps the UK in the customs union and singe market.
And she has guaranteed the bloc that no member state will be left poorer by our exit in March 2019.
In signs a breakthrough may be on the horizon, reports today said both sides are moving towards an agreement which would see the UK agree to pay more in return for agreement on the transition deal.
A senior EU official told the Financial Times: ‘It is tactical but the situation is delicate.
‘She has to move soon.’
Mr Barnier yesterday called for Britain to offer some ‘real clarification’ on the financial settlement.
Theresa May, pictured leaving No10 yesterday, is reportedly considering upping the amount Britain pays into the EU for the divorce bill in a bid to unblock the Brexit talks
British officials are said to be confident they can agree the divorce bill and move on to trade talks by the end of the year.
And Tory Brexiteers have signalled their support for Mrs May paying some more into the EU’s budget to kick start the next phase of talks.
On MP told the paper: ‘It’s money down the back of the sofa.’
Another said: ‘There’s a range of options. But if it was packaged as paying for past commitments, not market access, and if it wasn’t too big, I think most people would go along with that. We would be free, after all.’
Bernard Jenkin, a veteran Eurosceptic , said: ‘There will be a balanced judgment to make about whether a very expensive deal is worth it.
‘That depends on the quality of the deal they are promising to make at the end of an implementation period.’
Jacob Rees-Mogg, a leading Brexiteer, said it was ‘perfectly reasonable to give some money’ but only if it is tied to a final deal.
And he warned a €60 billion (£53bn) is ‘ridiculous’.