Two big speeches given this week by the UK minister responsible for agriculture, Michael Gove, and the UK’s chief Brexit negotiator, David Davis, suggest some practical thinking may be emerging in London.

On Tuesday, Gove delivered the keynote address at the National Farmers Union (NFU) AGM. He was unequivocal in saying that there would be no reduction in the UK’s standards on production, welfare or environmental protection. He went so far as to say that if this meant no trade deal with the US, then so be it.

For Irish farmers and trade on the island of Ireland, this means that the alignment with the EU standards will be kept, which should facilitate ongoing trade.

Meanwhile in Vienna, Davis, in a heavily promoted address, spoke at length about the UK wanting to lead a “global race to the top” in rights and standards not “competitive race to the bottom”.

Like his colleague at the NFU event, the message was that alignment with the EU standards, if not higher, was the ambition and that should enable a mutual recognition to take place.

The problem with the Brexit discussions to date is that sensible dialogue is often followed by something suggesting something different. We are getting to a point where certainty has to prevail and let us hope it is built on alignment with the EU, not separation from it.