Prime Minister Theresa May has struck a last minute deal with the EU to move Brexit talks on to the next phase.
There will be no “hard border” in Ireland and EU citizens in the UK, and UK citizens in the EU, will see their rights protected.
European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said “the breakthrough we needed” had been achieved, after months of negotiations.
Talks on post-Brexit trade between the UK and EU can now go ahead.
Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party, whose opposition on Monday led to talks breaking down, said there was still “more work to be done” 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.
Speaking at an early morning press conference in Brussels, Mr Juncker said: “Today’s result is of course a compromise.”
Negotiations had been “difficult for both the UK and the EU”, he added.
Theresa May said getting to this point had “required give and take from both sides”.
What has been agreed?
- Guarantee that there will be “no hard border” between Northern Ireland and the Republic maintaining “constitutional and economic integrity of the United Kingdom”
- EU citizens living in the UK and vice versa will have their rights to live, work and study protected
- Financial settlement which is “fair to the British taxpayer”
The leader of the DUP Arlene Foster, said on Friday she was “pleased” to see changes which mean there is “no red line down the Irish Sea”.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the latest deal was a “very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland”.
Source: BBC
