The European Union is refusing to back down on its demands for discounted student fees to be included in any Brexit reset deal.
Brussels’ insistence that young Europeans are charged domestic rates to study at British universities risks becoming a flashpoint in Andy Burnham’s negotiations with the bloc before an expected summit.
As previously reported by The Telegraph, UK and EU officials are seeking to organise a meeting between Mr Burnham, Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, and Antonio Costa, her counterpart in the European Council, after the party conference season.
On Monday, Thomas Byrne, Ireland’s European affairs minister, was in London to continue those discussions with the Government.
A summit date had been agreed between the EU and Sir Keir Starmer in the dying days of his premiership last month, but Brussels shelved the plans after he announced his resignation.
At the time, The Telegraph reported that Sir Keir had agreed to reduce tuition fees for European students from £38,000 to £9,535 per year, in line with domestic UK undergraduates, as the price for securing the date for the UK-EU summit.
Sir Keir Starmer had offered to reduce tuition fees for European students before his resignation last month – Marcin Nowak/Anadolu via Getty Images
It is not yet known whether Mr Burnham will offer the same concession to get talks about the youth mobility scheme over the line.
The scheme, which will allow young Europeans to live, work and study in Britain, was a key part of the Government’s deal to reset relations with Brussels. European sources have said repeatedly that a British concession on tuition fees is vital for the success of the overall reset deal.
Asked whether the EU would insist on domestic fees for European students, Mr Byrne told the Financial Times: “That’s the way it always was when you were part of the EU.”
The wider package also includes separate pacts to ease trade restrictions on food, drink and energy between the UK and the EU, which are expected to be finalised at the planned leadership summit.
The Telegraph understands that the trade elements of the deal are close to completion, but discussions over the youth mobility scheme remain blocked.
Brussels is also looking to increase the number of young people who can access the scheme and has pitched a rough upper limit of around 100,000, more than double the cap proposed by Britain.
British negotiators had pushed a cap between 30,000 and 50,000, which could be increased if enough young Britons use the scheme to travel to Europe. The sliding-scale offer was formulated as a way to avoid the scheme affecting net migration figures.
Speaking at a Chatham House event, Mr Byrne said the looming summit date would help deliver progress in the stalled talks, adding: “The deadline is what makes things happen. It will be important to get an early date.
“We have to do what we agreed to do first. I think we want to be very ambitious for the relationship. Then there are other things we can agree as well, but they all involve give and take on both sides.
“I think the expectations are very high on the British side, and we welcome that. But I think we also have to be realistic.”
A Government spokesman said Hamish Falconer, the Brexit minister, had held “a productive, wide-ranging discussion on the UK-EU relationship and reaffirmed their shared commitment to a closer, more ambitious partnership” with Mr Byrne.