Britain's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, Dominic Raab
EU and UK negotiators on Friday talked up prospects of agreeing a Brexit deal this autumn, citing recent progress in detailing very close security cooperation to take effect after Britain leaves the bloc.
The European Union's Michel Barnier said it was "possible" to get an agreement in time for a summit of all the bloc's leaders in Brussels on Oct. 18-19, though added a delay into November was also possible .
After his latest talks with Barnier, Brexit minister Dominic Raab said he was "stubbornly optimistic" and "as confident as before, if not more" that there would be a deal.
The European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said on Friday that the bloc was seeking an "ambitious partnership" on security issues with Britain after its exit from the bloc.Barnier said he had discussed security cooperation after Britain leaves the EU with Brexit minister Dominic Raab at a meeting in Brussels on Friday."We discussed a subject which is extremely important, serious, which is the security of our citizens," Barnier told reporters after the Raab meeting."On internal security matters, we are prepared to build an ambitious partnership with the United Kingdom." Britain starts work on satellite system to rival EU's GalileoBrexit, opportunity for boosted Turkey-UK ties: ExpertUK May says no-deal Brexit not 'the end of the world'
EU's Barnier sees ambitious security partnership with Britain after Brexit
The two said they made progress over security cooperation, including on exchanging data.
"Europe's security is the United Kingdom's security," Raab told a joint news conference.
Barnier said unresolved issues included geographical indications, the role of the EU's top court in policing the agreement, Euratom cooperation and data protection, among others.
Fishing industry officials from France and Britain will try to strike a new deal on dredging for scallops next week following violent skirmishes in the Channel, authorities said on Friday.On Tuesday, French vessels rammed British trawlers off the coast of Normandy, hurling projectiles and insults in a dispute which erupted after a previous agreement broke down.French fishermen accuse the British of unfairly catching scallops in the Baie de Seine in the summer months when French boats are banned from doing so under rules imposed by the Paris government to conserve stocks of the shellfish.French Agriculture Minister Stephane Travert told Europe 1 radio he had discussed the issue with a British minister on Thursday night and that the industry representatives would meet next week to work out an agreement."We both condemn the violent acts and we want to return to a spirit of responsibility," Travert said.Travert said he had asked British fisheries minister George Eustace to ensure UK vessels do not sail south of the Barfleur-Antifer line, the scene of this week's clashes.The industry representatives would meet in London on Wednesday and French government officials would also attend, said Dimitri Rogoff, who heads the Normandy fishing association.Bertie Armstrong, chief executive of the Scottish Fishermen's Federation, said it was time for calm, for rational discussion and peaceful resolution, not conflict at sea."As control over access and fisheries resource changes in the next few years, it will be imperative that the rules are agreed, accepted and, where necessary, enforced," he said.NATIONAL RULESScallops - known as Coquilles Saint Jacques in France - are one of a handful of species whose catch is governed by national rather than European Union regulations.While British ships have no access to French territorial waters up to 12 nautical miles (22 km) off the coast, they can legally operate in the expansive Baie de Seine between Cherbourg and Le Havre.France bans its fishermen from scallop dredging between May 15 and Oct. 1, but Britain allows its vessels to operate year-round.After similar clashes in 2012, French and British fishing organisations negotiated an agreement each summer under which the UK fleets do not start scallop dredging in the Baie de Seine before the French, in exchange for part of the French fishermen's dredging permits.But small British vessels were excluded from that agreement. The French say the British have undermined the spirit of the deal by sending more and more small vessels. In protest, the French have not signed any agreement this year.British fisherman face losing access to EU waters after the country leaves the bloc next year, in the absence of any deal.Rogoff said that ahead of Brexit, British fishermen had increased scallop trawling, risking wiping out the seafood during their breeding season."The British scallop harvest has grown more than tenfold in the past decade, they now catch more than we do," he said, adding that by the time the season opens in October there are few scallops left for the French fleet. 
French, UK fishermen to seek scallops deal after sea skirmishes