Brexit trade talks kick off in Brussels without handshake to avoid spreading coronavirus

Discussions are taking place in Brussels this week

UK and EU negotiators marked the start of Brexit trade talks without a handshake on Monday, as a precaution to avoid giving each other Coronavirus.

Michel Barnier, the EU's chief negotiator, met with David Frost, his UK counterpart, in the early afternoon, with a broader meeting including all negotiators later.

Over 100 British officials were drafted in for talks in the Belgian capital, with rounds of discussions set to alternate between there and London over the coming months.

Three further days of meetings in Brussels await officials this week, with discussions on nine different areas taking place simultaneously – across topics as diverse as as trade in goods, transport, fishing, judicial cooperation, and the controversial "level playing field".

Hand sanitisers and NHS advice has been stationed throughout the UK's Brussels headquarters to reduce the risk of infection, following the significant influx of visitors. Officials confirmed the resolution not to shake hands for the camera this time had been mutual on both sides.

UK officials say Mr Frost told them they were in the EU capital to deliver on Boris Johnson's manifesto pledge, and that negotiations should be friendly but robustly defensive of the UK's sovereignty.

Mr Barnier said following Monday's meting: "Negotiations started today in Brussels. We approach these negotiations in a constructive spirit. We want to agree an ambitious and fair partnership. We will respect our prior joint commitments."

The EU Brexit chief confirmed that he would "debrief the press" on Thursday at the end of the round of talks – though the UK negotiator Mr Frost is not expected to face any media scrutiny.

“The UK negotiating team led by David Frost began the first round of UK-EU FTA negotiations today in a two hour meeting with Michel Barnier and Commission officials," a UK government spokesperson said.

"The UK will engage constructively to reach a free trade agreement which fully respects the UK’s political and regulatory autonomy.”

Mr Frost described talks as "constructive".

Contentious issues in the talks are expected to be the extent of European Court of Justice involvement in governance, EU fishing access to UK waters, and the extent to which the UK aligns itself with EU rules.

Boris Johnson has set himself a December 31 deadline to get a trade agreement sorted with the EU. If none is in place by then the UK will revert to WTO terms, a change expected to cause significant economic damage to the British economy.

The withdrawal agreement Mr Johnson signed allowed the trade negotiating period to be extended by up to two years, but a decision has to be taken by July to extend the transition – during which the UK stays tied to all EU rules. Mr Johnson has said he will not use the extension.