Image source, Reuters

If you're just joining us, here's a quick rundown of the main developments so far:

• UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen were due to speak by telephone at 16:00 GMT to try to find a way through the deadlock in the Brexit trade talks
• The UK and EU negotiating teams are meeting in Brussels to try to find an agreement on "significant differences" between them
• The UK left the EU on 31 January, but remains under its trading rules until the end of the year
• If a deal is not agreed by then, tariffs - or taxes on goods - could come into force
• Leaders of the EU's 27 member states are due to gather for a 2-day summit in Brussels on Thursday.

The phone call between UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was scheduled to start at 16:00 GMT.

Yes, that is well over an hour ago!

We are sure you are as impatient as us for some news, but we are expecting something soon, so do stay tuned!

Image source, Getty Images

As time runs out for the UK and EU to agree a post-Brexit trade deal, three areas remain unresolved.

They are:

• The "level playing field" - the disagreement is over the extent to which the UK will follow EU rules in the future, for example on government support for business and industry, and workers’ rights .
• Governance - the two sides need to agree how any deal will be enforced and how disputes will be resolved.
• Fishing - the UK says any agreement must be recognise that "British fishing grounds are first and foremost for British boats", whereas the EU wants access for its boats with a quota system that shares how much fish could be caught by its member states.

You can read more about the sticking points here and we’ll also be bringing you further explanations in this live page.

Image source, Getty Images

No, you’re not imagining it, the UK has already signed a deal with the European Union.

That was the withdrawal agreement - or the 'divorce deal' - which passed in 2019, setting out the terms of the UK’s exit from the bloc.

Today we’re talking about something different: the possibility of a trade agreement between the two sides. This agreement would set out how the two sides do business with each other long into the future.

And just to quickly recap - the talks resumed in Brussels this morning, after the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday “significant differences remain on three critical issues: level playing field, governance and fisheries”.

Image source, Reuters

So, the UK and EU are hoping to resolve "significant differences" between them, as they try to thrash out a post-Brexit future.

But what could happen they do not agree a trade deal?

In trading terms, they will start to trade under World Trade Organisation rules.

This could mean tariffs (or taxes on imported products) would be charged on some goods moving between the two sides.

Whatever happens - deal or no deal - there will be significant changes from 01 January to the checks made on goods as they cross the border. But they could be even more complicated if a deal cannot be agreed.

And it could still be possible for the EU and UK to agree specific deals for different areas at a later date – for example, on aviation – to mitigate the effects of no deal.

You can read about no-deal in much more detail here.

Image source, Reuters

In the Commons, MPs are beginning to wind up their discussion of the ongoing UK-EU trade talks.

A little earlier, SNP MP Martin Day says modelling by the Scottish Government suggests the trade deal the UK is aiming to negotiate will still see Scotland's economy grow less quickly than it would have done if the UK had remained in the EU.

Penny Mordaunt says he should focus on the "opportunities" brought by investments that had been made during the Brexit transition period.

"We will hopefully have news of a deal, but certainly we will have certainty for all of our businesses and constituents in the coming days," she adds.

Katya Adler
Europe Editor

The announcement by UK government that it might soon remove controversial clauses from its UK Internal Market Bill has been weakly welcomed in the EU.

Those clauses, and the expectation of others in the soon to appear Taxation Bill, led many in Brussels to describe them as making already very thorny trade discussions “even more impossible” and “destroying trust”.

The government has always insisted the clauses were only a “safety net” to safeguard trade within the UK in the case of a no deal scenario.

If the clauses disappear, that removes one dark cloud hanging over negotiations from the EU perspective - but there are a number of others.

”At least the Johnson government seems more serious about trying to get a deal,” was view of one EU insider on hearing the news.

You can read more here about legislation MPs will vote on in the Commons this week, from our parliamentary correspondent Mark D'Arcy

Image source, Getty Images

While the questions have been flying in the Commons, the government released a statement about a later debate that has been causing tensions.

As we said earlier, MPs will be debating the UK Internal Market Bill from around 17:30 GMT.

The bill has upset the EU as some of its clauses let the government ditch its obligations from the withdrawal agreement - the treaty it signed with Brussels when we officially left in January.

Ministers have admitted this "breaks international law" and plenty of people on UK soil dislike the idea too.

But, in the statement just released, the UK government says it would be willing to remove those clauses if -and, at the moment, that is still a big if - a deal is done.

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg says the timing of the statement "seems a rather public olive branch".

But BBC Newsnight's Lewis Goodall says the clauses would only be used if there wasn't a trade deal anyway, "so Brussels is unlikely to see it as a huge concession".

Image source, HoC

Plaid Cymru's Hywel Williams upbraids Environment Secretary George Eustice for suggesting over the weekend that taxes - or tariffs - imposed on imports in the event of a no deal would have only a "modest" effect on food prices.

Pointing to the higher tariffs this would produce on beef, cheese and oranges imported from Europe, he says this is "not true" for children in poverty.

Penny Mordaunt says she understands his concerns but says simply that the UK negotiators are aiming to avoid tariffs and strike a deal.

Image source, HoC

Back over in the Commons, a number of Conservative MPs have set out what they want the government to achieve as the EU-UK talks continue in Brussels.

Former international trade secretary Liam Fox said the EU wants to limit the “competitive potential” of post-Brexit Britain and called on British negotiators to resist this.

Tom Hunt, Tory MP for Ipswich, asked for an assurance the UK will be able to "chart our own course” away from EU regulations after the transition.

Likewise Rob Butler, who represents Aylesbury, said the UK should not sign up to “any agreement that compromises our sovereignty".

Image source, Getty Images

• Brexit happened but rules didn't change at once:The UK left the European Union on 31 January but leaders needed time to negotiate a deal for life afterwards - they got 11 months
• Talks are on again:The UK and the EU have until 31 December to agree a trade deal as well as other things, such as fishing rights
• If there is no deal:Border checks and taxes will be introduced for goods travelling between the UK and the EU. But deal or no deal, we will still see changes

So what happens next?

Image source, Getty Images

The future of fishing has become one of the three remaining sticking points in trade negotiations.

Fishermen from EU countries currently have access to fish in UK waters under a quota system.

Although the UK officially left the EU in January, those rules will stay in place until 31 December - during the what's known as Brexit transition period.

The EU wants to retain this access on the same terms for a period of 10 years. But the UK wants to prioritise its own fishing industry and give it a higher share of the catch – something it says it has a right to do as an independent country.

But it gets a little more complicated. The EU says if it is not happy with its quota allocation, it won’t allow British fisherman access to its markets. This would be a problem for the UK as a large proportion of the fish caught by British fishermen is exported to European markets.

Nick Beake
Brussels Corrspondent

EU sources have accused the UK of making new and “egregious” demands on fishing in the Brexit trade talks.

One diplomat told the BBC that British negotiators are now insisting that boats must be majority British owned in order to take advantage of a larger catch in UK waters.

The source said it was unclear whether the proposal would apply to the current fleet operating in British waters or to future fishing boats, but that it was “an egregious, last minute demand.”

But a second EU diplomat said the claim was wholly inaccurate and revealed a “complete of lack of understanding of the dynamic in the negotiating room.”

British sources suggested the UK position had long been clear that vessels should have “genuine economic ties” to their flagged country.

More on the debate on fishing is available here.

Image source, Reuters

As the time ticks past 16:00 GMT, we expect Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen to begin their phone call at any moment.

We have been hearing rumour and speculation from both sides of the Channel about the prospects of a deal, but this top level conversation could decide the future of the talks altogether.

We are expecting to hear something from the call within the hour, so stay with us for all the updates.

Image source, HoC

Joining by video link SNP MP Pete Wishart says we are now at "the 59th minute of the 11th hour" with trade negotiations.

He says it has become "the biggest un-concluded disaster of modern times", adding: "We still don't know the scale of the carnage each sector will have to endure."

Wishart claims the government "simply don't care about the repercussions" on his country of Scotland, which voted against Brexit in 2016.

But when asking if negotiations had been a "shambles", Mordaunt dismisses the claims and says "many aspects" highlighted by the SNP had been taken on board in negotiations.

Image source, HoC

Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith says he has confidence UK chief negotiator Lord Frost, as well as the PM, will aim to negotiate a "sovereign departure" from the end of the Brexit transition period.

He says a trade deal should ensure the UK has control over its laws and "territorial waters" - and if it does, Conservative MPs will be "completely behind" them.

In reply, Penny Mordaunt says the EU has had "difficulty" in "coming to terms" with the idea that the UK is a "sovereign equal" in the negotiations.

"That is the sticking point," she adds.

Image source, HoC

Mordaunt says she has not been in the room for negotiations, and it must be how an "expectant father feels waiting for news outside".

She says all MPs are "invested in getting a good result" and should be providing "united support" for the negotiating team

But Mordaunt accuses Labour of "failing" to do that, saying they may not have a position on Brexit yet, but they "might like to get one in the next few days".

She adds: "We must show support and resolve to get the deal... that we all want for citizens and businesses, not just in the UK but for the remainder of the EU.

"We are making every effort to securing a deal - but that deal must respect the United Kingdom's sovereignty and integrity as a nation."

Image source, HoC

Replying to Penny Mordaunt, Labour's Rachel Reeves says that government ministers must "take responsibility for their failure" if there is no deal.

The shadow Cabinet Office minister asks how many farms would "go to the wall" if there is no deal, and an assessment of the impact on carmakers.

She asks for an update on the number of customs agents who have been recruited to police the UK's borders after the Brexit transition.

Image source, HoC

Over to the UK Parliament now, and the Labour Party has just asked the government for an update on the progress of post-Brexit trade negotiations with the EU.

The government minister who has been working on the future relationship with Brussels - Tory MP Penny Mordaunt, gets the lucky job of answering.

She starts by saying "intensive talks continue" between the two sides, and the UK's negotiating teams are working "tirelessly" to get a deal.

Mordaunt adds: "Whilst there has been some progress.. familiar differences remain" - namely over fishing, competition rules and the policing of any deal

"We are at a critical moment in the negotiations," she concludes.

"We are all working to get a deal but the only deal that is possible is one that is compatible with our sovereignty".

Image source, EPA/ Reuters

Talks between the UK and EU are continuing in Brussels this afternoon, as the two sides make a final bid to reach a post-Brexit trade deal.

They are trying to resolve disputes over fishing rights, business rules and how a deal would be governed.

The UK government said agreement was "still possible" with time in "short supply", but the EU mood was described as "gloomy".

Read more about the talks here