Fmr UK Perm Rep To EU: 'No Appetite' From Either Side To Reopen Deal

Speaking to EU-UK Forum on the current difficulties facing UK exporters with regards to the Brexit deal, former UK permanent representative to the EU Sir Ivan Rogers - a member of the MNI Connect Advisory Panel - says "There's no appetite on either side of the table to reopen it... I really don't think that's where we are,".

• Says that those sectors experiencing hardship in exporting from GB to Northern Ireland, or to the EU, looking for the gov't to "rejig, refine" the deal are likely to be left disappointed.
• Says the issues facing the UK with regards to food exports were well known in advance and an expected consequence of lowering safety standards, adding that, "You have to take the rough with the smooth."
• Argues that while PM Boris Johnson wants to diverge from EU, he 'doesn't know where or on what'. On his encounters with Johnson says "You didn't get much of a reply in 2016 and you don't get much of a reply at the beginning of 2021".