Summary

  • Talks have ended in Brussels between Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

  • Downing Street said "very large gaps remain between the two sides and it is still unclear whether these can be bridged"

  • The two leaders will come to a decision about the future of the talks by Sunday

  • Johnson and von der Leyen were working through a list of sticking points that have so far blocked a Brexit trade deal being agreed

  • Three "critical issues" need to be resolved - fishing rights, government support for industry and how a deal is enforced

  • Time is running out to reach a deal before 31 December, when the UK stops following EU trading rules.

  • 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

Live Reporting

Jennifer Scott and Paul Seddon

  1. EU to publish no-deal plans

    EU flagGetty Images

    Ahead of Johnson and Von der Leyen's meeting, another bit of information has just come out of Brussels.

    The European Commission is planning to publish its contingency plans in case a deal isn't agreed between the two sides.

    An EU diplomat told the BBC said they didn't want to publish them any earlier so as "not to send a negative signal".

    But they will be released either tonight or tomorrow, as the "time-frame is getting tight".

    Quite the timing with less than an hour until the leaders meet...

  2. What are the sticking points?

    French boat in British watersReuters

    French boat in British waters

    There is key phrase in their statement from Monday night that has been repeated over and over during the negotiations, which started in March – there are “significant differences on three critical issues”.

    That means the negotiators appear to have hit a brick wall on some fundamental issues.

    Those three “critical issues” are:

    • The’ level playing field’ - this disagreement is over the extent to which the UK will follow EU rules, for example on government support for businesses and industry and workers’ rights, once it has left the transition period
    • Governance - the two sides need to agree how any deal will be enforced and how disputes will be resolved
    • Fishing - The UK wants its fishermen to have rights to all the fish in its waters, whereas the EU wants to maintain the quota system that shares these fish among member states

    The post-Brexit talks to find a new agreement on how the UK and EU will trade in the future need to make progress in the next few days if a deal is to emerge before the end of the year.

    Our Reality Check correspondent Chris Morris explains it all here.

  3. WATCH: Johnson arrives at Embassy

    Boris Johnson touched down in Brussels about 45 minutes ago and has now made his way to the British Embassy in Brussels.

    Our producer was on site to capture the moment he arrived.

    This Twitter post cannot be displayed in your browser. Please enable Javascript or try a different browser.View original content on Twitter
    The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
    Skip twitter post

    Allow Twitter content?

    This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy and privacy policy before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.

    The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.

  4. So what will they discuss tonight?

    Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen speaking on MondayReuters

    Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen speaking on Monday

    Boris Johnson and Ursula von der Leyen spoke on the telephone on Saturday and again on Monday night. After Monday’s call they released the following joint statement:

    As agreed on Saturday, we took stock today of the ongoing negotiations. We agreed that the conditions for finalising an agreement are not there due to the remaining significant differences on three critical issues: level playing field, governance and fisheries. We asked our chief negotiators and their teams to prepare an overview of the remaining differences to be discussed in a physical meeting in Brussels in the coming days.

    Joint statement from UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President von der Leyen

  5. Known unknowns

    Boris Johnson and UK chief Brexit negotiator Lord Frost boarding their flight to Brussels earlierAndy Parson/ No 10 Downing Street

    Boris Johnson and UK chief Brexit negotiator Lord Frost boarding their flight to Brussels earlier

    UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrived in Brussels just after 17:30 GMT for a critical meeting with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

    And he is now at the British Embassy awaiting the meeting.

    So how could the night pan out?

    Johnson is due to arrive at the Commission’s HQ – the Berlaymont building – around 19:00 GMT.

    The PM and Mrs von der Leyen will hold a short meeting before dinner. The two men who have been leading the Brexit negotiations for the past ten months – Michel Barnier for the EU side and Lord Frost for the UK – will also attend the meeting.

    They’ll then all sit down for dinner, along with a small group of officials.

    And that’s as much as we know for now.

    Will there be any announcements or statements after the dinner? We don’t yet know.

    Will they talk all night? We don’t know that either.

    But if and when there are any developments we will bring them to you as soon as we hear.

  6. Hello

    BBC Politics

    Welcome to our live coverage of tonight’s crucial Brexit talks in Brussels.

    If you were with us earlier for Prime Minister’s Questions, we’re delighted to have you back - we admire your stamina!

    If you’re coming here fresh from a busy day elsewhere and want to catch up, then stay with us as we take you through all the twists and turns.

    Thanks for joining us – do stay tuned.