UK Brexit secretary Davis warns EU against 'cherry picking'

UK Brexit secretary David Davis has warned the European Union against "cherry picking" the terms of a future trade deal with the UK – redirecting a criticism often levied against the UK.

The European Commission's positions for the upcoming negotiations on the UK's departure explicitly state there should be no "cherry picking" during a possible two-year transition period.

In an editorial in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on Tuesday, Davis said the future relationship should be based on the "full sweep of economic cooperation that currently exists" with minimum additional barriers or friction.

"A deal which took in some areas of our economic relationship but not others would be, in the favoured phrase of EU diplomats, cherry picking," Davis wrote.

He said the final deal should cover goods, agriculture and services – including financial services.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier previously told journalists that the UK cannot have a special deal for the City of London.

British banks and financial firms would inevitably lose their passporting rights, which allow them to sell services across the bloc, as a result of the UK leaving the single market, Barnier said in December.

However, Davis said his objective is that services can be traded across borders, including financial services and artificial intelligence – which he acknowedged would require some adherence to common principles, cooperation with regulators and effective dispute resolution and remedies.

"We start from the uniquely trusted position, closer than Canada or Japan, bigger than Norway, and more deeply integrated, from energy networks to services, than any other trade partner," he wrote.

A two-year transition period, where the UK leaves the EU but remains inside the single market and customs union, would be in the "economic interests" of both sides, he wrote, making agreement by March "doable".

He said it would be "inconsistent" for the UK to bound by "every rule and regulation" in the EU once it leaves the bloc.

But Davis said the recognition of regulatory standards on products like cars to medical devices should continue after Brexit.

Britain's emphasis would be on "raising standards" after it exits the EU, he wrote, amid concerns there could be a 'race to the bottom' on regulatory standards come its departure in 2019.