A fishing vessel comes into the harbour in the fishing village of Howth, Dublin, Ireland, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. Irish coastal communities will be "...
A fishing vessel comes into the harbour in the fishing village of Howth, Dublin, Ireland, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. Irish coastal communities will be "annihilated" if Britain's post-Brexit fishing demands are granted, an Oireachtas committee has been told. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)
A fisherman aboard a vessel after docking in the fishing village of Howth, Dublin, Ireland, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. Irish coastal communities will be...
A fisherman aboard a vessel after docking in the fishing village of Howth, Dublin, Ireland, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. Irish coastal communities will be "annihilated" if Britain's post-Brexit fishing demands are granted, an Oireachtas committee has been told. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)
Britain's chief negotiator David Frost leaves the UK delegation to meet European Commission's Head of Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom...
Britain's chief negotiator David Frost leaves the UK delegation to meet European Commission's Head of Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom Michel Barnier in Brussels, Thursday, Dec. 17, 2020. The European Parliament has issued an ultimatum to Brexit negotiators, warning that MEPs will not ratify a trade deal this year if an agreement is not secured by Sunday night. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
European Commission's Head of Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom Michel Barnier talks to the media outside the EU headquarters in Brusse...
European Commission's Head of Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom Michel Barnier talks to the media outside the EU headquarters in Brussels, Monday, Dec. 14, 2020. Teetering on the brink of a no-deal Brexit departure, Britain and the European Union stepped back from the void Sunday and agreed to continue trade talks, although both downplayed the chances of success. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union's chief negotiator said Friday that the bloc and the United Kingdom are starting a “last attempt" to clinch a post-Brexit trade deal, with EU fishing rights in British waters the most notable remaining obstacle to avoid a chaotic and costly changeover on New Year.
Michel Barnier told the EU parliament he “can't say what will come out during this home straight of the negotiations," which have already come a long way in nine months of talks. He called it “a very serious and somber situation" with the jobs of hundreds of thousands of people at stake.
The EU parliament has set a Sunday night deadline on the talks since it still will have to approve any deal ahead of Jan. 1, when a transition period following the Jan. 31 departure of Britain from the bloc will expire.
“It's the moment of truth," said Barnier. “We have very little time remaining — just a few hours."
