Britain set to reject EU alignment in trade talks

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will say he won't accept any alignment with European Union rules when negotiating a trade deal with Brussels, following Britain's official withdrawal from the EU on Friday.

Johnson will use a speech in London on Monday to toughen his post-Brexit stance ahead of trade talks, after reports suggested EU chiefs want the United Kingdom to continue to follow Brussels-made rules.

There now begins an 11-month transition period, during which the government must secure a future trading and security relationship with the EU to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

The British government is understood to be frustrated by what it perceives to be attempts by Brussels to change the terms of the deal struck in October as part of the withdrawal agreement.

The EU is seeking alignment on standards and state subsidies, and wants the UK to accept the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, known as ECJ, over matters relating to any trade deal.

The prime minister is expected to tell the EU he will accept no alignment, no jurisdiction of the European courts, and no concessions to any Brussels' demands when talks start in March.

Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab on Sunday told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show that agreeing to align strongly with EU rules would "defeat the point of Brexit".

The Cabinet minister said: "We are entering into these negotiations with a spirit of goodwill. But we are just not doing that other stuff. The legislative alignment, it just ain't happening."

Asked about reports of EU demands for the European Court of Justice to oversee disputes in any trade deal with the UK, Raab said: "We all agreed that we weren't going to do that.

"You knew that, you signed up to the withdrawal agreement and political declaration on that basis. Why are you trying to shift the goalposts?

"We want to have a good positive win-win new deal with the EU. That's not going to happen if they pull the rug, shift the goalposts."

A government source told the PA news agency that Johnson is aiming for a Canada-style free-trade deal that would allow tariff-free trade for the majority of goods, but that would not include the UK's dominant services sector.

But Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told the BBC that the UK needed to commit to a level playing field to get a free-trade deal. Labour's John McDonnell said by seeking to move away from EU rules, Johnson was contradicting promises he made to protect standards on the environment, workers' rights, and consumer protections.

Meanwhile, former European Council president Donald Tusk says Brussels feels "empathy" toward an independent Scotland joining the European Union.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said an independent Scotland would seek full EU membership. When asked if this would be looked upon favorably, Tusk said there would be enthusiasm but he warned the country would not be automatically accepted.

Tusk, a Polish politician who served as European Council president for five years until November last year, said he had to "respect the internal debate in the United Kingdom" and it was not his role to intervene.

On an independent Scotland joining the union, he said: "Emotionally, I have no doubt that everyone will be enthusiastic here in Brussels, and more generally in Europe. If you ask me about our emotions, you will witness I think always empathy."