EU rejects Britain's key elements of special customs plan after Brexit

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union’s chief Brexit negotiator ruled out on Thursday some of the main ideas of a British proposal for a new facilitated customs arrangement with the bloc, while saying he still hoped for a deal with London in October.

European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier gestures as he holds a joint news conference with Britain's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union Dominic Raab (not pictured) in Brussels, Belgium July 26, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman

“The EU cannot and ... will not delegate the application of its customs policy and rules, VAT and excise duty collection to a non-member, who would not be subject to the EU’s governance structures,” Michel Barnier told a news conference with Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab.

“Any customs arrangements or customs union ... must respect this principle. A customs union, which would help to reduce friction at the border, would come with our common commercial policy for goods,” he told reporters

Reporting by Alastair Macdonald, Jan Strupczewski, Robert-Jan Bartunek, Robin Emmott

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