Brexit: Johnson heads to Brussels after UK holds out olive branch

PM to make trip in 11th-hour effort to break impasse, raising hopes of a deal on trade and security

Boris Johnson will travel to Brussels for a face-to-face summit with the European commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, in an 11th-hour attempt to break the impasse in the Brexit negotiations.

A long-awaited crunch meeting will be held in the coming days", the two leaders said in a joint statement following a phone call lasting over an hour, keeping hopes alive of agreement on a trade and security deal. Sources on both sides pointed to Wednesday or Thursday as the most likely dates.