PM Theresa May has struck a last-minute deal
with the EU in a bid to move Brexit talks on to
the next phase.


There will be no "hard border" with Ireland; and EU
citizens in the UK, and UK citizens in the EU, will see
their rights protected.


The so-called "divorce bill" will amount to between £35bn and £40bn, the BBC understands.
The European Commission president said it was a
"breakthrough" and he was confident EU leaders will
approve it.


They are due to meet next Thursday for a European
Council summit and need to give their backing to the deal if post-Brexit trade talks are to begin.

The UK will then have about a year to hammer out an
agreement on future relations, which will have to be
ratified by the EU nations and the UK Parliament, before
the UK leaves in March 2019.


Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, whose
opposition on Monday led to talks breaking down, said
there was still "more work to be done" on the border
issue and how it votes on the final deal "will depend on
its contents". Mrs May depends on the party's support to
win key votes in Westminster.


The pound was trading at a six-month high against the
euro as news broke of the draft agreement.


The Irish border - and regulatory alignment


The joint report agreed by Mrs May and Mr Juncker
states, that if a trade deal cannot be agreed, the UK will
maintain "full alignment" with elements of the EU single
market and customs union mentioned in the Good Friday agreement.

Some in the DUP would have liked to remove "full
alignment" from the report altogether, but that would not have been acceptable to the Irish government, says the BBC's Chris Morris.


It is a fallback position, he adds, and the detail of how it
might be done remains to be negotiated, and is likely to
be highly controversial.


EU negotiator Michel Barnier told journalists that it would apply only to the "island of Ireland", not the rest of the UK: "It's a unique situation, therefore specific solutions are needed."


Citizens' rights

Mrs May said that EU citizens in the UK would have their
rights "enshrined in UK law and enforced by British
courts". But the agreement also says the European Court of Justice will continue to have a role in overseeing their
rights for eight years after Brexit, a move which may
concern some Brexiteers. Guarantees will also apply to UK citizens living in other EU countries.


The divorce bill

Theresa May said it would be "fair to the British taxpayer" and would mean the UK in future "will be able to invest more in our priorities at home, such as housing, schools and the NHS".

EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said the EU had
agreed to drop the cost of relocating UK-based EU
agencies from the final divorce bill.


What has changed since Monday?
The DUP, whose opposition on Monday led to talks
breaking down, say there have been six "substantial
changes" to the text.

In a crucial passage, which appears to have been added
to satisfy DUP concerns, it states that "no new regulatory barriers" will be allowed between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, and that the province's businesses will continue to have "unfettered access" to the UK internal market.


Party leader Arlene Foster said they would mean there
was "no red line down the Irish Sea" - meaning no
customs barrier between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.


BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg's analysis;

Theresa May has achieved what she wanted - the green
light to move on. Had she not, she was in deep, deep
political trouble.

But the 15 pages, described as a "personal success" for
Theresa May by Donald Tusk in the last few minutes, give her what she needed for now.

There are additional guarantees for Northern Ireland and the border, but an undefined statement on "full
alignment", if there is no big trade deal.

The implications of what "full alignment" will mean will
still be fought over by the two wings of the Conservative
Party.


How has it been received?

In the UK, ministers lavished praise on the prime minister with Environment Secretary Mr Gove saying it was a "significant personal political achievement" for Mrs May while Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson tweeted:

"Congratulations to PM for her determination in getting
today's deal."



Read more; www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-42277040

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