Responding to Barnier’s comments that there has been no progress on key Brexit issues including fisheries and state aid, Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Alistair Carmichael said: “With just weeks to go and our country already facing the biggest economic crisis in generations, it is unthinkable that the UK would crash out of the transition period without a deal in place or with a bad deal.
“Boris Johnson must start putting the nation first, rather than sacrificing everything and anything in his ideological pursuit of Brexit. Our NHS, jobs, and the economy are already suffering as a result of coronavirus. The Government must ensure that they are not brought to their knees as a result of the double whammy of a bad Brexit deal and the pandemic.
“The Government must redouble their efforts to reach a deal with the EU. The time for posturing is long over.”