What happens if an EU leader vetoes a UK trade deal?

Any deal must be approved by the European Council and European parliament, writes Andrew Woodcock

Michel Barnier returns to Brussels from London yesterday as Brexit trade talks stall (Getty)

Attention has understandably been focused over the last weeks and months on the UK’s efforts to strike a trade deal with the European Commission, but agreement with Brussels is not the last hurdle to be overcome to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

As the deadline of 31 December approaches, the question has also been raised over what would happen if one of the EU’s 27 member states vetoes the deal.

France has been open in its warnings that it could wield its blocking vote if President Emmanuel Macron believes that any deal negotiated by Michel Barnier fails to protect its national interests, and particularly the needs of its fishing industry.