But Boris Johnson will be physically out of the front line over the next 10 days, potentially covering the final phase off Brexit negotiations.

The prime minister will be allowed no further than his flat on his office in Downing Street, where he'll have to work alone.

So no chance for AIDS to pass hand written notes in any crunch.

Zoom calls with you.

Britain's chief negotiated David Frost has returned to Brussels talking of recent progress, but he says the talks may still fail.

At least one thing is clear.

Boris Johnson won't be leaving this building any time soon.

As for the chances of a deal with the EU, well, there's less clarity on that.

Boris Johnson is hoping for a deal, but he's saying that the UK can prosper if the U fails to recognize the U.

K.

As an independent sovereign country.

Brexit territories are saying that they're getting encouraging noises from inside this building, but they'll be examining the small print.

If a deal emerges at the 11th hour, it will involve movement by both sides in the two most difficult areas on fishing.

The UK is prepared to allow reduced but substantial you access to UK waters.

But you would have to agree that this could be changed.

Perhaps every five years on the UK would agree not to undercut the you on areas such as labor laws on state subsidies.

This could be done through a so called non regression clause.

Ah, pledge not to lower standards.

The you may agree this could be policed on the UK side by a UK body, perhaps the competition on markets authority.

Ah, former Brexit minister is not holding his breath for a deal.

I think it's going to be challenging that there's no doubt that you seem to be very reluctant, for example, to move very much on the issue of fisheries, which of course, is one of their own red lines.

In addition, of course, there's the crucial issue from the British point of view off.

Sovereignty on has taken a long time for us, David Frost said.

The European Union to internalize the fact that we are no longer an EU member state but a nen dependent country.

So all this has caused huge delay and I think that at the moment it is looking marginally Mawr like there will be no deal than there will be a deal.

France's former European affairs minister is still hopeful.

We are very near to the end point.

We are very near to the moment of truth and I do hope that we are able to ah region agreement that is beneficial to both sides, even if it will never be as beneficial as having the U.

K as a member state.

But we fully understand that it was a sovereign democracy decision.

We respect it, we implemented.

But we don't want to hurt or economies to hurt or workers because of the consequences of this decision.

Happier times as the UK agreed the terms of its departure a different atmosphere now as the two sides struggle to agree a future partnership.

Nick what Well, Dr Philippa Whitford and Damian Green are still with me and we're joined too, by the conservative MP and longtime campaigner for Brexit Peter Bone.

And indeed, tomorrow morning Sun will suggest that there could be a deal next Tuesday at Peter Born.

First of all, it may not be your guys Lee Cain and Dominic Cummings, but there you're kind of brexiteers, and with them gone, do you think Do you think there is more chance of negotiation from the UK?

Not my sort of brexiteers.

I walked out of vote lead because Mr Coming So you're wrong on that?

Well, I mean, on hard red lines, I Look, I think there's gonna be a deal.

Aziz, You right?

You've just said I think it's gonna be within the next seven days.

Um, it's in the interests of both EU and UK.

They're very close to a deal.

It seems silly now not to complete it.

And I'm sure there will be some sort of compromise on the areas where there is some disagreement among believe e think it will happen.

So you're now saying that if there is compromise on state aid alignment and indeed, if there's compromise on fisheries which was the big, totemic thing off leave EU is the big determined thing.

We're an island nation.

We need to protect our waters urine izing.

If there's compromise on that, you would back that and that would be a good Brexit trade deal.

Well, I think what happened a few weeks ago?

Waas the British government said, Okay, it's going to be no deal because the you are refusing to move their position.

If the you have compromised on their position, I'm sure a deal could be done.

They realized the You realize it's very much in their interest to do it.

They said, Sell £100 billion more of goods to us than we do to them and, of course, free trade, the benefit of free trade.

It's better on business unemployment.

So let's, let's be clear, pitiable.

And you are now seeing that you accept alignment with E U rules on things like state aid and things like, um, any sweeteners or whatever to make sure that there is a level playing field.

You actually are moving towards that.

Now that is not a red line anymore.

I don't think you could possibly interpret what I said is that clearly were an independent nation.

We can't have rules and regulations made by the EU, and you can't have rights over our fishing.

But as you said there, probably about the you will be allowed to take some fishing from our waters until our British fleets build up again.

But we can't be have rules and regulations from the EU.

That's the whole point of coming back and taking control.

Have our laws and borders and waters I train.

There's no compromise on any of that, but the fine detail could be.

Maybe there has to be compromised on that.

You talk about fine detail and this is interesting is it's almost sophistry, isn't it?

What is the what is the negotiating position?

That maybe moves is an inch?

And what is just the fine detail, I think, are people prepared to blur the lines now to get a deal?

Well, I think everyone realizes a deal is a good thing, and they've got to reach an agreement that's suitable for the UK and suitable for the U.

I think they're very close.

I don't think these talks would have continued unless they were very close on the fact that Law Frost is reported to have told the prime minister tonight to expect the deal within seven days.

I think it's a good news and I don't think we should be doom and gloom about this.

I think we're on the verge of having a comprehensive free trade agreement, which is in our interests, and you use interest.

If it could not be completed in time, would you be prepared to accept a technical extension in order just to get it done?

No, no more extensions.

Look, the thing that I find strange is that this had what we had.

We had the you saying it had to be done by the 31st of October.

It couldn't be ratified.

That's being extended.

Well, the only reason for extension must be that they're very close.

But this cannot go on.

Business needs toe have certainty of what?

What the trading relationship will be at the 31st of December.

So I think we're in the You know, I wouldn't be surprised if the deal wasn't completed this week.

Damian Green.

Do you have any concerns at all about the fact that we could be busting what?

Where Boris Johnson's Red Lines to get a deal done.

I've argued all the way along that it's better to leave with the deal.

As somebody who campaigned for remain, I accepted the result of the referendum on said, Okay, let's let's get a deal.

So I'm delighted to hear Peter say that he wants a deal because he and I are now on the same page on this issue, which is It's a historic first historic, but a lot of historic for us tonight.

But let's just talk about that then because you know what Peter born and things were not going to accept you rules and regulations.

But the truth is, if you are moving towards some kind of alignment on state aid rules on drools on on a level playing field, you are, in essence, accepting EU position as they would be accepting years.

Well, what we're not saying we'll set our own rules and we'll have the freedom to change them in the future on def.

We do change them in the future, then that may well have consequences in other parts.

But I think the idea that a conservative government in particular would not sign the deal because we wanted to subsidize industries too much is a bit weird.

The state aid rules we're date back to Margaret Thatcher.

She saw the logic of saying trying to keep failed industries going with all the fuss about this then, because you're both, you know, I sort of expected you would realize, but Peter, born to, is now being this an exceptional position of yes, we're going to negotiate our way into this in the next 10 days is all going to be fine.

Well, because there are a lot of areas that have to be negotiated.

Most of them have bean.

We've we've got, as you say, state AIDS and fish.

Oddly enough, fish, I think, is one of our stronger negotiating points in that If we don't come to a deal, then the French fishermen in the Spanish fishermen and so on have no rights at all in British waters.

They don't want that.

They know there's gotta be something.

Yes, Simon Coveney, the Irish from has said that there's been no movement on fisheries since the summer that presumably is just another negotiating ploy then well, I think because it's it's such an understandably emotive issue on both sides of the channel that this was always going to be one of the ones that was settled last, and so there may not have been much form, so your understanding would be, then, that Scottish fishermen, fishermen from all over the UK will be able to sell their catches into the you in entirety if they want at the end of next week by the end of next week.

Well, I hope that where, uh, fishermen, I mean, you say the Scottish fishing fleets very important sell their fish is eyes a matter for them as well?

Let's let's actually what they're allowed to catch.

Let's ask Philippa Whitford, would you be very glad to have ah deal on fisheries then?

Because, as you very well know was, the Scottish fishermen were very keen on the last deal that was done in the U over fisheries.

Well, I've got a fishing constituency here on the West Coast on my fishermen largely don't gain anything from leaving the common fisheries policy because seafood they catch wasn't a quota catch.

At 85% of our langoustine go to Europe on whether there's a deal or no deal.

What we're going tohave is the enormous costs of bureaucracy and delay at borders that a lot of them are beginning to think is going to put them out of business.

So you know the kind of fishing side of it may benefit some of the big trawler fleet owners in the north east of Scotland, but it doesn't help the inshore fishermen on the west of Scotland.

I I mean, I agree.

I think there probably will be a deal.

But at this late stage, I think it's going to be a very thin law deal on a lot of the bureaucracy, delay and problems for business is gonna happen regardless.

On Peter and I sit on the Brexit committee on, he talks about, you know, business needs surety.

We have listened to sector after sector from pharmaceutical road holier to farming two fishermen, the whole works talking about we're not.

Let me let me ask you just to move that on slightly at the weekend, the SNPs Westminster leader Ian Blackford said There must be a referendum next year.

Do you think there should be another referendum on Scottish independence next year?

And the reason I asked that will have implications for the U.

So tell me, do you think there should be a referendum next year?

Well, obviously I'd like I'd like a referendum as soon as possible, but at the moment the Scottish government are focused on the pandemic.

But I mean, it is clear.

But we talked about a few principle.

The idea of devolution being rolled back, but also underlying that the people of Scotland voted against Brexit.

You see the reason I ask you that?

Philip.

What?

I'm so sorry because we're running out of time.

But I do want to ask you this.

Do you see a referendum next year on Scottish independence as a way back into the U?

Well, obviously, that's one of the aims.

Whenever the referendum would be suitable, toe have our aim would be to return to the U thank you all very much indeed.