Belgian Walloons yield on EU-Canada deal under pressure, but sorry saga is a warning for Britain

Simon Tilford from the Centre for European Reform said the lesson of Ceta is that any future deal between the EU and Britain could be held up by any country, for any reason.

"It is going to take a lot longer to negotiate a deal after Brexit than people seem to think, and ratification is not going to be plain-sailing," he said.

"The small states can always be strong-armed but the real problem is the internal politics of Italy, France and Spain. Trade has become a political minefield," he said.