The European Union and Britain have so far failed to reach agreement on three most persistent sticking points in talks, both sides said on Tuesday, suggesting any breakthrough in securing a trade deal is still a way off. After nearly two weeks of intensified talks to try to strike a deal to protect nearly a trillion dollars of trade from severe disruption, stubborn differences over fisheries, fair competition and settling disputes have yet to be overcome. Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said time may run out to strike a deal, adding that some progress on safeguarding economic fair play was not enough. “If there is not a basic set of rules around fair competition… and if there is not a governance structure that can deal with disputes, then in my view there will not be a trade deal,” Coveney told an online conference.