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Mr Newton-Dunn asked: “You said that tolerance is going down and trust is at rock bottom. What does that hardening of approach look like?<\/p>\n
“Some are beginning to talk about retaliatory trade tariffs. It is available under the agreement.”<\/p>\n
Mr Almeida said: “We are ready for worst-case scenarios. There are means ready under the agreement we signed to address those issues. I hope we won’t get there, but we are ready.”<\/p>\n
Mr Newton-Dunn said: “You won’t say the words trade tariffs but I think we know what you are talking about.”<\/p>\n
Brexit: Boris Johnson's fishing deal slammed by Mummery<\/h3>\n
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Mr Almeida also appeared to blame Brexit Minister Lord David Frost for creating a “toxic” atmosphere around the Northern Ireland Protocol talks. <\/p>\n
He warned that the alternative to progress was “unrest in Northern Ireland and putting at risk the integrity of the single market”.<\/p>\n
Senior Brussels diplomats have claimed that Lord Frost has “completely failed to engage” with the European Commission on implementing the agreement.<\/p>\n
The trade deal signed between the UK and EU on December 31 states either side can impose retaliatory tariffs on the other’s exports for breaching the agreement.<\/p>\n
DON’T MISS:<\/strong><\/p>\n BBC host slams Sadiq Khan’s demands for MORE money [VIDEO] EU insiders claim the European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic has felt betrayed that the UK had not yet started building infrastructure for physical checks on goods entering Northern Ireland, despite promises from Michael Gove.<\/p>\n Mr Almeida also hinted at a showdown at the G7 this week, as he said: “The G7 will bring together a number of European leaders.<\/p>\n “There are nine leaders around the table and five of them come from the EU, with Boris hosting. It is a rare moment of intimacy.”<\/p>\n Mr Newton-Dunn suggested that Charles Michel, Ursula von der Leyen, Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel “may take that opportunity to take Boris aside to have a private chat to make some progress during the G7”.<\/p>\n A senior Number 10 source hit back at EU threats this week and said Lord Frost had in fact put forward more than a dozen papers with solutions to the problems but had received no written response from the EU.<\/p>\n They said: “Throughout these talks the EU has prioritised the protection of the single market above all else, even though there is very little risk to it.<\/p>\n “The EU has a responsibility to work with us to find solutions to address the issues we are facing and ensure the protocol can operate in a pragmatic and proportionate way.”<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Bob Geldof urges Boris to change his mind on foreign aid cut [INTERVIEW]
<\/strong>UFO sightings above key US nuclear weapon sites spark fear [VIDEO]<\/strong><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/139\/590x\/secondary\/BREXIT-TIMELINE-3088898.jpg?r=1622984107515\")
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