
Gibraltar will not be excluded from any aspect of the UK’s Brexit negotiations, Prime Minister Theresa May insisted again, after the European Commission appeared to indicate that Spain would have a veto on any transitional arrangements covering the Rock.

Theresa May has acknowledged that Britain will be unable to implement any new trade deals during a Brexit transition phase, telling MPs that although the country would have left the customs union it would still be bound by its rules.

By Gwynne Dyer - Politicians never lie. Well, hardly ever. They're not into full disclosure, as a rule, but they know that if you lie, sooner or later you will be caught out, and then you are in deep trouble. So just change the subject, or answer a different question than the one you were asked, or just keep talking but saying nothing until everybody gets bored and moves on.

The European Union has dashed the British government's hopes of carving out a special arrangement to allow City firms to trade freely in the EU if Britain leaves the single market. Michel Barnier, the European Commission's chief Brexit negotiator, said he was not open to a free trade agreement including financial services.

Theresa May is due to meet her “Brexit cabinet” - about a dozen of her most senior ministers - to discuss for the first time what the UK's future relationship with the EU should be. The PM will later tell MPs the UK wants to sign trade deals during what she calls an implementation period.

Britain and the EU face a “furious race against time” to agree a transition deal and future trade relations within the next 10 months, European Council president Donald Tusk has said. In a letter to the leaders of the 27 remaining EU states ahead of a crucial summit on December 14-15, Mr Tusk urged them to show continued “unity” as Brexit negotiations enter their second phase.

The British government has been narrowly defeated in a key vote on its Brexit bill after a rebellion by 11 Tory MPs. In a blow to Prime Minister Theresa May, MPs voted to give Parliament a legal guarantee of a vote on the final Brexit deal struck with Brussels.

The European Commission stressed Tuesday that licenses to operate flights between Britain and Europe will cease to be valid. Other major changes are also foreseen since open-skies agreements made with the United States and other countries via the European Union will not be forceable post Brexit.

Scottish Brexit minister Mike Russell has called for basic answers about the deal struck with European leaders ahead of talks with UK ministers. Mr Russell is in London for a summit with members of the UK government and the other devolved administrations.

Fishermen's leaders have urged ministers to rule out a long Brexit transition as officials meet in Brussels for fish quota talks. The Scottish Fishermen's Federation (SFF) said only a nine-month transition period was needed for UK fleets to leave the Common Fisheries Policy.