The working paper, seen by RTÉ News, said that in order to avoid a hard border it is essential that there be no divergence of rules on either side of the Irish border.
That scenario would effectively require Northern Ireland to remain in the single market and the customs union.
The working paper is described as an internal document from the EU's Brexit Task Force led by Michel Barnier.
It was circulated to the 27 member states on Wednesday night and presented to British negotiators in Brussels yesterday.
It comes as Mr Barnier met Brexit Secretary David Davis in Brussels today for round six of the negotiations.
The paper contains the most explicit expression yet by the EU that the only way to avoid a hard border is for the UK to remain in the customs union and the single market, or at least for Northern Ireland to remain within those structures.
[rte.ie]
10/11/17
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The European Union's chief negotiator for the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the bloc on Friday said that London had a deadline of two weeks to clarify which financial commitments towards the EU the British government would honor.
ReplyDeleteDuring a joint press conference in Brussels detailing the negotiations' status after a sixth round of Brexit talks, Michel Barnier and the UK's Brexit Secretary David Davis acknowledged that little progress had been made on the issue of the so-called "divorce bill," thus precluding a new phase of talks on the future trade relationship between the parties.
EFE/EPA