European diplomats gave a guarded response to Theresa May’s Brexit compromise, while voicing concern about the existential threat they see to the EU’s single market.

EU negotiators did not want to shoot down the prime minister’s hard-won Brexit compromise on day one, but remain deeply uneasy about giving the UK unique status outside the EU.

One diplomatic source said the British prime minister had gone “through political hell” to secure the Chequers deal but that did not mean that “the British compromise is more palatable to the European Union”.



“We will try to receive it as well as possible but from what we understand it is still a carve-out of the single market,” said the source, describing May’s proposed single market for goods as “a lot of fudge with a cherry on top”.



Since the Brexit vote, European leaders have insisted the UK should not be able to cherrypick the EU rulebook. The four freedoms underpinning the internal market – goods, services, capital and people – have been declared indivisible, because leaders fear unravelling the entire European project.

“We are very unsure this is going to fly,” the source said. “This position of the UK will demand so much political will on the EU side to make it happen ... [May] will not be able to go much further than this and quite frankly it’s probably not good enough for the EU.”

As May’s statement hit the newswires on Friday night, Pieter Omtzigt, a Dutch centre-right MP, tweeted that the Dutch parliament remained “very worried about a chaotic Brexit”.

“This is the agreement that should have been reached the day Britain tabled article 50 notification,” he said. “It would have been a viable starting point for the negotiations a year and two months ago.”

He welcomed what he saw as the British decision “to cross one of its red lines by accepting the European court of justice because it will have to accept [the court’s jurisdiction] over trade rules”.

Alarmed at the threat of a no-deal Brexit, the Netherlands is recruiting 930 customs officers and 100 veterinary officials, following a recommendation from Omtzigt and two fellow MPs. “The way Britain has waited so long has imposed real costs even if it is solved.”

The European commission is withholding judgment until it sees the British white paper, which is expected on Thursday. Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, is expected to give his verdict at a meeting of Europe ministers on 20 July. Although this meeting is seen as an important moment in the Brexit calendar, insiders suggest it may not bring a definitive answer to the UK.

For the EU, a soft Brexit is the most difficult Brexit to negotiate. Diplomats say the full technical and political complexities will only be worked out once formal trade talks begin, after the UK has left in March 2019. Both sides are aiming to secure a political declaration on the future relationship in the autumn, paving the way for post-Brexit trade talks.

“The EU is not going to negotiate its entire future relationship with a G7 country in three months,” said one senior diplomatic source, describing the single market for goods proposal as “very complex” requiring “a long time to work out”.

The EU fears handing a competitive advantage to a major economy on its doorstep. The Chequers promise not to fall below EU standards on environment, employment law and consumer protection will be closely analysed by Brussels negotiators. “The simple reassurance from the UK, ‘of course we are not going to lower our standards. Trust us,’ is not going to fly,” said another diplomatic source.

Sources said May’s customs compromise – “a facilitated customs arrangement” – looks very similar to the “new customs partnership” that the EU rejected as “magical thinking” 11 months ago. Both give the UK a role collecting customs duties for the EU – an idea that has been dismissed as a non-starter.



The untested idea has run into a brick wall of opposition, partly because EU officials do not trust UK authorities. The European commission is taking legal action against the UK, having accused British official of lax customs controls that allowed fake Chinese goods to flood into European markets, losing the EU budget €2.7bn (£2.4bn).

One senior diplomat said the Chequers meeting had resulted in a “melange of earlier proposals that were not really feasible”. Stressing that his government needed to see the white paper before taking a position, he said: “A goulash gets better the more it is recooked, I am not sure about whether the customs proposals share the same quality.”



But the source was still betting on a Brexit deal. He said: “Everybody wants an agreement and the UK needs an agreement more urgently than us. So I think in the end it will come to something. If it is not in October, then maybe in November or December.”

EU diplomats were left unsure about what the Chequers plan meant for the crucial issue of the Irish border. At a meeting last Thursday, EU Brexit experts criticised what they saw as the UK’s failure to propose realistic proposals to avoid a hard border in Ireland. Barnier’s fallback plan for Ireland means putting a border in the sea, but May has said no British prime minister could accept that.



On Saturday, Ireland’s foreign minister, Simon Coveney, tweeted:

Statement by British Govt on #Brexit last night needs and deserves detailed consideration. We look forward to publication of white paper next week so that the EU task force can examine new UK approach. Lots of work ahead. — Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) July 7, 2018

Striking a similar tone, Barnier tweeted:

#Chequers discussion on future to be welcomed. I look forward to White Paper. We will assess proposals to see if they are workable & realistic in view of #EUCO guidelines. Next negotiations w/ #UK on WP, & Withdrawal Agreement, w/c 16 July #Brexit — Michel Barnier (@MichelBarnier) July 6, 2018

Guy Verhofstadt, the Belgian MEP, who is coordinating the European parliament’s Brexit position, tweeted: