A landmark Brexit reset deal is moving closer as the EU works on a plan to ensure British under-30s can work in any job in Europe under a youth mobility scheme with the UK, The i Paper has learnt.
Brussels is working to find a way around a roadblock in Brexit reset talks that has led to fears that British young people’s access to the planned “youth experience” scheme could be more restricted than EU nationals coming to the UK.
This is because even if there is a deal between London and Brussels to allow under-30s to move, study, work and live more easily between the two sides, it is EU member states that individually have the final say over who can be issued work visas in their countries.
Brussels is negotiating internally among member states to try and secure a political agreement that will make clear that there will be no restrictions on what jobs British under-30s can do if they are coming to the EU under the scheme, in a bid to ensure they are not treated differently in different countries.
A source with close knowledge of the negotiations on the UK side has indicated this would likely be acceptable to British negotiators and help pave the way for a deal on youth mobility, which would unlock a wider package of Brexit reset agreements on food and drink trade and carbon markets at the 20 November UK-EU summit announced by Andy Burnham this week.
The two sides are also working on a compromise on how many people can access the scheme, with the final number likely to land between UK demands for a cap of 50,000 visas and the EU’s push for 150,000, meaning tens of thousands of British young people could get the right to work in Europe if they access the scheme.
Hopes of delay on tuition fees cut
And hopes are rising further as some in the EU are beginning to contemplate delaying a demand for Britain to cut university tuition fees for European nationals coming to the UK under the scheme.
The UK is still resisting the demands amid warnings from cash-strapped universities, despite the EU proposing a compromise in which European students would pay tuition fees at the cost of delivering their course, thought to be around £13,000 a year.
Brussels had originally demanded EU students pay the same as domestic British students, around £10,000, in what would be a major reduction on the current international fees for foreign students, which can reach up to £38,000 for graduates.
While some member states are still putting “intense pressure” on EU negotiators to secure a reduction in UK tuition fees, sources from other countries believe the issue may have to be delayed to get a reset deal over the line at the 20 November summit.
One source said they have realised lucrative international fees are “too important” for British universities, while another said it may make sense for the EU to retain the demand on fees as a “bargaining chip” for future negotiations.
A separate EU source said that “all sides are trying to find a way out” of the impasse, while a UK Government source, who is not directly involved in the talks, warned: “There is no way we are giving them home fees”.
“They [negotiators] will find a way through,” the UK source added.
The progress on youth mobility, which had emerged as a key sticking point in Brexit reset negotiations, came as France and Germany opened the door to removing another major obstacle by offering to include the UK in the EU’s protectionist “Made In Europe” policy, as long as it hikes tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs).
Downing Street said joining Made In Europe, a key plank of which is the Industrial Accelerator Act, would be “good news” for Britain’s car industry but refused to say whether it would impose levies on Chinese EV imports, saying there was “still a European process to run”.
A UK Government spokesman said: “We are building an ambitious, close relationship with the EU that will strengthen our economy and create more opportunities for young people and communities across the whole UK.”