Leo Varadkar says UK and EU will still have to negotiate, with same problems on agenda

The Irish prime minister has warned Boris Johnson there will be no “clean break” from the EU, with further fraught negotiations to come if Britain crashes out without a deal.

In a tough message to his British counterpart on the steps of Ireland’s Government Buildings, Leo Varadkar said Britain would be back to square one on the very issues on which it refuses to agree now in a no-deal scenario.

“The story of Brexit will not end if the United Kingdom leaves on 31 October or even 31 January – there is no such thing as a clean break. No such thing as just getting it done. Rather, we just enter a new phase,” he said.

“If there is no deal, I believe that’s possible, it will cause severe disruption for British and Irish people alike. We will have to get back to the negotiating table. When we do, the first and only items on the agenda will be citizens’ rights, the financial settlement and the Irish border. All the issues we had resolved in the withdrawal agreement we made with your predecessor. An agreement made in good faith by 28 governments.”

Varadkar warned that even if a deal were agreed, Britain should not be deluded about the future relationship negotiations.

“We will enter talks on a future relationship agreement between the EU and UK. It’s going to be tough dealing with issues ranging from tariffs to fishing rights, product standards and state aid. It will then have to be ratified by 31 parliaments,” he said.

Varadkar told Johnson free-trade agreements were difficult to strike but Ireland would be his friend and ally.

“Negotiating FTAs with the EU and US and securing their ratification in less than three years is going to be a herculean task for you. We want to be your friend and ally, your Athena, in doing so,” he said.

Johnson refused to answer questions about the Irish border or when he had most recently visited it, but said his preference was for a deal.

The two agreed there would be no breakthrough at their hour-long meeting on Monday morning, but Johnson was confident the Irish border backstop could be replaced.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Boris Johnson holds a joint press conference with Leo Varadkar, right, at the Government Buildings in Dublin. Photograph: Aidan Crawley/EPA

“Like you, I’ve looked carefully at no deal and I’ve assessed its consequences,” he said. “Be in no doubt, that outcome would be a failure of statecraft of which we would all be responsible. I would overwhelmingly prefer a solution.”

While Johnson’s remarks seemed to indicate a subtle shift in his previously implacable opposition to the backstop, Varadkar warned twice that any alternatives would have to be legally binding.

“What we cannot do, and will not do, is replace a legal guarantee with a promise,” he said. Speculation is mounting in Dublin that Johnson may consider a Northern Ireland-only backstop, which would set him on a collision course with the Democratic Unionist party.

The meeting was described as “positive and constructive”, with both leaders agreeing “common ground was established in some areas although significant gaps remain”.

In a joint statement, they described the meeting as an “essential and timely opportunity to establish a relationship and a better understanding of each other’s positions”.

Varadkar’s words echoed those of his deputy, Simon Coveney, who told an audience including Michael Gove on Friday that Anglo-Irish relations had been severely “dented” by a letter from Johnson to the European council president, Donald Tusk, last month in which the prime minister rowed back on commitments made by Theresa May to Ireland a year before she struck her Brexit deal.

Johnson confirmed he was moving ahead with his proposal to create a single regulatory zone north and south of the border for food and agriculture. Checks on animals and fresh produce would be carried out at ports and airports, rather than the border, and there would be pre-clearance systems for large, “trusted” traders.

What is the Brexit backstop? Read more

Johnson said it would go “a long way” to solving the Irish border problem, although Varadkar told reporters on Sunday it would not be enough to replace the backstop.

Johnson said he did not underestimate the political sensitivities of the border issue but would try to find a solution for the “sake of business, farmers and millions of ordinary people”.

He added: “I have one message that I want to land with you today, Leo, and that is that I want to find a deal. I want to get a deal.

“The landing zone is clear to everybody. We need to find a way in ensuring that the UK is not locked in the backstop arrangements so there is a way out while giving Ireland assurances that it needs.”

Johnson denied not putting in the effort required to secure a deal, saying he could not share the “abundance of proposals” on the table with the press.

In a carefully managed press conference that took place before the talks, Johnson was not challenged about Amber Rudd’s attack on his lack of planning for a deal or the prospect of him breaking the law to achieve Brexit on 31 October.

He said he was “undaunted by whatever may take place in parliament” but did not say what this would be.