Mrs May celebrated yesterday after the European Commission cleared the way for negotiations on the future relationship after the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
Britain will pay a 'divorce bill' of between £35 billion and £39 billion under the terms of a withdrawal package agreed with Brussels.
The breakthrough was hailed by Mrs May as 'a hard-won agreement in all our interests'.
Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said it represented 'sufficient progress' for negotiations to move on to their second phase, subject to approval by leaders of the remaining 27 EU states at a summit on December 14-15.
In dramatic pre-dawn scenes, Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis flew to Brussels to confirm with Mr Juncker over breakfast the text of a joint document setting out proposals on the key withdrawal issues of citizens' rights, the Irish border and Britain's exit bill.
But the scene was set for further wrangling, as European Council president Donald Tusk set out guidelines for the next phase of talks, covering the transition to a post-Brexit relationship, which envisage the UK staying in the single market and customs union and observing all EU laws for around two years after the official withdrawal date in March 2019.
PM will confront Boris over Brexit before Christmas: Theresa May prepares for Cabinet showdown as Gove warns her hard won deal could be ripped up at the next election
Theresa May has overcome a Brexit obstacle - but must now deal with Brexiteers
She has arranged a Cabinet meeting for December 19 to discuss Brexit outcome
PM now keen to challenge Boris 'with realities of the next stage of negotiations'
Michael Gove, meanwhile, has said the British people will have their say on deal
By Iain Burns For Mailonline and Press Association
9 December 2017
Prime Minister Theresa May has overcome her biggest Brexit obstacle so far by winning a deal with Brussels on future trade negotiations - but now she must face the Brexiteers.
She has arranged a Cabinet meeting for December 19 so her ministers can discuss what Britain's final relationship with the EU will look like.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Environment Secretary Michael Gove are among the leading Brexiteers she is now expected to confront.
The PM and Jean-Claude Juncker were smiling as they shook hands for the cameras on the day the deal was agreed
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson (pictured left) and Environment Secretary Michael Gove (right) are among the leading Brexiteers she is now expected to confront
According to The Times, the Prime Minister has been 'buoyed' by her victory in securing a preliminary deal and is now keen to challenge Boris 'with the realities of the next stage of negotiations'.
It comes as Mr Gove explained yesterday that the public will have their say on the EU deal at the next general election - and stressed that Mrs May's deal might be changed by future governments.
The Times also reports that the exact form of Britain's post-Brexit relationship with the EU will not be determined in the showdown Cabinet meeting, and that ministers will be permitted to put forward their own plans.
Mrs May, however, is said to believe that the reality of needing to gain access to EU markets will force hardline Brexiteers to soften their stance on regulatory compliance.
The environment secretary, one of the leaders of the Leave campaign, explained in The Telegraph that the UK will have 'full freedom to diverge' from the EU on the single market and customs union following the two-year post-Brexit transition.
He also stressed that 'the British people will be in control' and, if they did not approve of a final Brexit deal, a future government will be allowed to 'diverge'.
Prime Minister Theresa May and Brexit Secretary David Davis smiled alongside EU officials after securing a last-minute Brexit deal
Mrs May was pictured greeting EU President Jean-Claude Juncker after she arrived in Brussels just before 6am. Talks started almost immediately after
Brexit Secretary David Davis embraced EU President Juncker early on Friday just hours before the deal was struck
But Mr Gove - who alongside Boris has espoused a Brexit featuring freedom from EU regulation - also praised Mrs May's 'tenacity and skill' in the negotiation.
Mrs May shook hands with the president of the European Council Donald Tusk before the meeting in Brussels yesterday
A senior official told The Telegraph that the 'real battle begins now' and that the 'heart and soul of Brexit is now at stake'.
Mr Gove added in his article that Britain will be free to spend more cash on the NHS and housing once the country has left the EU, as well as being at liberty to make trade deals abroad.
Mrs May celebrated yesterday after the European Commission cleared the way for negotiations on the future relationship after the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
Britain will pay a 'divorce bill' of between £35 billion and £39 billion under the terms of a withdrawal package agreed with Brussels.
The breakthrough was hailed by Mrs May as 'a hard-won agreement in all our interests'.
Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said it represented 'sufficient progress' for negotiations to move on to their second phase, subject to approval by leaders of the remaining 27 EU states at a summit on December 14-15.
In dramatic pre-dawn scenes, Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis flew to Brussels to confirm with Mr Juncker over breakfast the text of a joint document setting out proposals on the key withdrawal issues of citizens' rights, the Irish border and Britain's exit bill.
But the scene was set for further wrangling, as European Council president Donald Tusk set out guidelines for the next phase of talks, covering the transition to a post-Brexit relationship, which envisage the UK staying in the single market and customs union and observing all EU laws for around two years after the official withdrawal date in March 2019.
He said only 'exploratory talks' on a free trade agreement could begin at this stage, with the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier suggesting that 'real negotiations' on trade would get under way once a withdrawal treaty is finalised in October.
Mr Barnier also threw cold water on Mrs May's hopes for a 'deep and special' trading relationship with the EU.
He warned that her 'red lines' of taking the UK out of the single market, the customs union and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice left a free trade deal similar to Canada's as the only option open to Britain.
There was consternation among some Brexit-backers over provisions allowing the European Court of Justice a role in overseeing EU citizens' rights in the UK for eight years after Brexit.
However, Downing Street said they only expected around two or three cases a year to be referred voluntarily by UK judges to the Luxembourg court.
And a compromise on the Irish border - forged in intensive talks late on Thursday night after the Democratic Unionist Party blocked an earlier deal on Monday - states that if no trade deal is reached, the UK as a whole will maintain 'full alignment' with elements of the EU single market and customs union which support the economy of the island of Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson insisted the PM was determined to ensure the measure's 'compatibility with taking back control of our money, laws and borders'
Tory chief whip Julian Smith tweeted a photgraph of Mrs May apparently briefing Mr Johnson on the developments last night
Tory former Brexit minister David Jones warned this could 'severely handicap' Britain's ability to enter free trade agreements covering areas like agriculture with countries outside the EU, like the US.
But Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson insisted the PM was determined to ensure the measure's 'compatibility with taking back control of our money, laws and borders'.
Mr Johnson and fellow Cabinet Brexiteer Michael Gove gave their public blessing to the deal, with the Environment Secretary describing it as a 'significant personal political achievement for the Prime Minister' which would make more money available for the NHS.
The development was also welcomed by business leaders, who had warned that companies would begin activating plans to move staff and activities abroad if no progress was made by Christmas. The pound rose on the announcement.
In a Brussels press conference, Mrs May said the process of arriving at a withdrawal deal 'hasn't been easy for either side', but the agreement represented a 'significant improvement' on the text she was preparing to sign off on Monday.
Provisions on citizens' rights would allow EU nationals in the UK 'to go on living their lives as before'.
Mr Johnson, another senior Brexiteer who has been trying to toughen the government's stance, tweeted his support but made clear the process has only just started
Meanwhile, the financial settlement would be 'fair to the British taxpayer' and the agreement on Ireland would guarantee there would be 'no hard border' between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
'I very much welcome the prospect of moving ahead to the next phase, to talk about trade and security and to discuss the positive and ambitious future relationship that is in all of our interests,' said Mrs May.
Mr Juncker said Brexit was a 'sad' development, but added: 'Now we must start looking to the future, a future in which the UK will remain a close friend and ally.'
Friday's announcement came after late-night telephone conversations with DUP leader Arlene Foster, as the Prime Minister sought a formula which would resolve the party's concerns about Northern Ireland being treated differently from the rest of the UK.
As Number 10's staff Christmas party took place elsewhere in the building, Mrs May finalised a text shortly before midnight.
It specified 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.
Mrs Foster said 'substantial changes' to the text ensured there was 'no red line down the Irish Sea' and no 'special status' for Northern Ireland, but added that there was still further work to be done.
Irish premier Leo Varadkar, who held telephone talks with Mrs May on Thursday as the details of the deal were hammered out, said it was a 'significant day' for Ireland, which 'achieved all that we set out to achieve in phase one of these negotiations'.
The estimated Brexit bill - significantly lower than the £50 billion or more suggested by previous leaks - covers Britain's share of the EU's budget up to the end of 2020, as well as outstanding debts and liabilities for items such as the pensions of staff at European institutions.
It will be paid over several years and the exact figure is unlikely to be known for some time.
The financial settlement 'will be drawn up and paid in euro'.
Jeremy Corbyn said Mrs May had only managed to 'scrape through' the first phase of Brexit negotiations some 18 months after the referendum.
'Tory chaos and posturing has caused damaging delay and risked serious harm to our economy,' said the Labour leader.
'We need a much stronger and more constructive approach in crucial phase two.'
Anatomy of a deal (and how both sides have fudged settling the Irish border question that could keep Britain in the Single Market FOREVER)
Many of the key issues surrounding Britain's exit from the EU have been sorted
Britain will eventually pay a divorce bill of between £35billion and £39billion
Key planks of yesterday's deal concerned citizens' rights and the role of the ECJ
But the most difficult part of the deal - the Irish border - remains unresolved
By Daily Mail Reporter
9 December 2017
The Irish Issue
It was perhaps the most difficult part of the talks – how to square Brexit with the Irish peace process after the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) vetoed a proposed solution on Monday:
The Hard Border
Both the Irish government and Sinn Fein insisted that there must be no barriers between the North and the Republic. Ministers promised not to impose any ‘physical infrastructure’ – meaning border checks and controls and even cameras.
The Union’s Integrity
To reassure the DUP, Mrs May offered a series of assurances. Her six commitments included ‘fully protecting and maintaining’ Northern Ireland’s position within the UK’s single market, no new borders between the province and Great Britain, and an assurance Northern Ireland would leave the customs union and single market.
Prime Minister Theresa May has secured many aspects of the key issues surrounding Britain's exit from the EU - but there are still something that remain unresolved
Fall-Back Position
If the two sides fail to reach an agreement on what to do about the border, the UK agrees to maintain ‘full alignment’ with the rules of the single market and customs union which form part of the Good Friday Agreement. To some Brexiteers, this could be the poison pill which forces Northern Ireland – and the rest of the UK – to stay within the EU’s orbit.
The All-Important Divorce Bill
Britain will eventually pay between £35 billion and £39 billion as part of the so-called Brexit ‘divorce bill’ – provided the EU agrees to the future trade and transition deal the Prime Minister wants. The Government hailed the deal because the payment is much lower than had been expected:
Payments for a Two-Year Transitional Deal
About half of the divorce bill will cover British payments into the EU budget for a two-year transition period. Mrs May used her landmark Florence Brexit speech to announce her desire for a two-year ‘implementation phase’ that will effectively keep the UK in the EU for two years after Brexit. Ministers believe the deal will offer certainty to British businesses and avoid a ‘cliff edge’. In order to remain part of the EU during the period, the UK will guarantee to make payments of between £14.9 billion and £15.8 billion to Brussels until 2020.
Money for 'Outstanding Liabilities'
Britain will pay £20 billion towards EU spending projects and commitments that could run for decades after Brexit. The deal includes a commitment to pay between £7.9 billion and £8.8 billion towards the gold-plated pension scheme enjoyed by eurocrats, a bugbear for Brexiteers. At £59,000, the average Brussels pension payout is more than twice the average UK salary. The agreement also includes a UK commitment to cover payments towards the bloc’s spiralling debt pile. Payments, however, will be taken only as they arise for years to come – and in a boon to the UK, the EU has agreed not to add any additional liabilities that arise during the transition period.
Mrs May - pictured here having breakfast with Brexit Secretary David Davis and EU officials - has still not resolved the issue of the Irish border
Payments into EU Foriegn Aid Schemes
Britain will continue to contribute to the EU’s foreign aid programme until 2020, when the current funding round ends. Like with the wider EU budget, ministers acknowledge that commitments have been made and Britain has agreed to fulfil them. The likely cost is £2 billion.
EU to Pay Back Our Bank Investment
Brussels has agreed to return – over time – our stake in the European Investment Bank. We will receive, over 12 years, 11 instalments of £263.6 million and a final payment of £172.2 million for our 16 per cent stake. The UK may consider taking a stake in the bank – which funds infrastructure projects – as part of phase two of the talks.
Citizens' Rights
Key planks of yesterday’s agreement concerned citizens’ rights and the role of the European Court of Justice:
Minor Role for European Judges
Britain will put into law the rights of EU citizens who decide to stay in Britain – which means anyone who arrives before March next year. Any legal disputes which arise over their rights will first be referred to the UK Supreme Court. However, British judges will have the option to refer such cases to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg if relevant case law doesn’t exist. This is expected to involve two or three cases a year at most, and crucially, with an eight-year sunset clause which begins from the start of any transitional deal.
Criminal Checks for EU Nationals
Any EU nationals applying to stay in Britain after Brexit (who do not already have citizenship) will have to undergo ‘systematic criminality and security checks’. Those who fail the test will be refused the right to stay and forced to leave.
But the deal did settle the so-called divorce bill. Britain will eventually pay the EU between £35billion and £39billion
EU Nationals Bringing In Family Members
EU nationals who get the right to stay will be able to bring in existing husbands or wives as well as members of their extended family – regardless of whether they are EU or non-EU nationals. New relationships formed after Brexit will face tougher checks, the same as non-EU nationals. Any children born after Brexit will also be protected by the agreement, but this is limited to one generation.
Child Benefit For EU Citizens
EU nationals who stay in Britain can get settled status and continue to receive social security payments – such as child benefit – which they can send back to their home countries. Britons living in EU member states will continue to be able to use European Health Insurance Cards to get free medical treatment in the country where they are resident. It is unclear whether the EHIC system will continue for British residents travelling abroad.
Rights for British Citizens in EU States and Free-Movement Rights
UK nationals have not been given the right to move freely for work around the EU post-Brexit, but will have to remain in the country where they reside. There is no deal on voting rights, which ministers will seek to negotiate with individual states.
Britain will pay a 'divorce bill' of between £35 billion and £39 billion under the terms of a withdrawal package agreed with Brussels.
The breakthrough was hailed by Mrs May as 'a hard-won agreement in all our interests'.
Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said it represented 'sufficient progress' for negotiations to move on to their second phase, subject to approval by leaders of the remaining 27 EU states at a summit on December 14-15.
In dramatic pre-dawn scenes, Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis flew to Brussels to confirm with Mr Juncker over breakfast the text of a joint document setting out proposals on the key withdrawal issues of citizens' rights, the Irish border and Britain's exit bill.
But the scene was set for further wrangling, as European Council president Donald Tusk set out guidelines for the next phase of talks, covering the transition to a post-Brexit relationship, which envisage the UK staying in the single market and customs union and observing all EU laws for around two years after the official withdrawal date in March 2019.
PM will confront Boris over Brexit before Christmas: Theresa May prepares for Cabinet showdown as Gove warns her hard won deal could be ripped up at the next election
Theresa May has overcome a Brexit obstacle - but must now deal with Brexiteers
She has arranged a Cabinet meeting for December 19 to discuss Brexit outcome
PM now keen to challenge Boris 'with realities of the next stage of negotiations'
Michael Gove, meanwhile, has said the British people will have their say on deal
By Iain Burns For Mailonline and Press Association
9 December 2017
Prime Minister Theresa May has overcome her biggest Brexit obstacle so far by winning a deal with Brussels on future trade negotiations - but now she must face the Brexiteers.
She has arranged a Cabinet meeting for December 19 so her ministers can discuss what Britain's final relationship with the EU will look like.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson and Environment Secretary Michael Gove are among the leading Brexiteers she is now expected to confront.
The PM and Jean-Claude Juncker were smiling as they shook hands for the cameras on the day the deal was agreed
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson (pictured left) and Environment Secretary Michael Gove (right) are among the leading Brexiteers she is now expected to confront
According to The Times, the Prime Minister has been 'buoyed' by her victory in securing a preliminary deal and is now keen to challenge Boris 'with the realities of the next stage of negotiations'.
It comes as Mr Gove explained yesterday that the public will have their say on the EU deal at the next general election - and stressed that Mrs May's deal might be changed by future governments.
The Times also reports that the exact form of Britain's post-Brexit relationship with the EU will not be determined in the showdown Cabinet meeting, and that ministers will be permitted to put forward their own plans.
Mrs May, however, is said to believe that the reality of needing to gain access to EU markets will force hardline Brexiteers to soften their stance on regulatory compliance.
The environment secretary, one of the leaders of the Leave campaign, explained in The Telegraph that the UK will have 'full freedom to diverge' from the EU on the single market and customs union following the two-year post-Brexit transition.
He also stressed that 'the British people will be in control' and, if they did not approve of a final Brexit deal, a future government will be allowed to 'diverge'.
Prime Minister Theresa May and Brexit Secretary David Davis smiled alongside EU officials after securing a last-minute Brexit deal
Mrs May was pictured greeting EU President Jean-Claude Juncker after she arrived in Brussels just before 6am. Talks started almost immediately after
Brexit Secretary David Davis embraced EU President Juncker early on Friday just hours before the deal was struck
But Mr Gove - who alongside Boris has espoused a Brexit featuring freedom from EU regulation - also praised Mrs May's 'tenacity and skill' in the negotiation.
Mrs May shook hands with the president of the European Council Donald Tusk before the meeting in Brussels yesterday
A senior official told The Telegraph that the 'real battle begins now' and that the 'heart and soul of Brexit is now at stake'.
Mr Gove added in his article that Britain will be free to spend more cash on the NHS and housing once the country has left the EU, as well as being at liberty to make trade deals abroad.
Mrs May celebrated yesterday after the European Commission cleared the way for negotiations on the future relationship after the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
Britain will pay a 'divorce bill' of between £35 billion and £39 billion under the terms of a withdrawal package agreed with Brussels.
The breakthrough was hailed by Mrs May as 'a hard-won agreement in all our interests'.
Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said it represented 'sufficient progress' for negotiations to move on to their second phase, subject to approval by leaders of the remaining 27 EU states at a summit on December 14-15.
In dramatic pre-dawn scenes, Mrs May and Brexit Secretary David Davis flew to Brussels to confirm with Mr Juncker over breakfast the text of a joint document setting out proposals on the key withdrawal issues of citizens' rights, the Irish border and Britain's exit bill.
But the scene was set for further wrangling, as European Council president Donald Tusk set out guidelines for the next phase of talks, covering the transition to a post-Brexit relationship, which envisage the UK staying in the single market and customs union and observing all EU laws for around two years after the official withdrawal date in March 2019.
He said only 'exploratory talks' on a free trade agreement could begin at this stage, with the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier suggesting that 'real negotiations' on trade would get under way once a withdrawal treaty is finalised in October.
Mr Barnier also threw cold water on Mrs May's hopes for a 'deep and special' trading relationship with the EU.
He warned that her 'red lines' of taking the UK out of the single market, the customs union and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice left a free trade deal similar to Canada's as the only option open to Britain.
There was consternation among some Brexit-backers over provisions allowing the European Court of Justice a role in overseeing EU citizens' rights in the UK for eight years after Brexit.
However, Downing Street said they only expected around two or three cases a year to be referred voluntarily by UK judges to the Luxembourg court.
And a compromise on the Irish border - forged in intensive talks late on Thursday night after the Democratic Unionist Party blocked an earlier deal on Monday - states that if no trade deal is reached, the UK as a whole will maintain 'full alignment' with elements of the EU single market and customs union which support the economy of the island of Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson insisted the PM was determined to ensure the measure's 'compatibility with taking back control of our money, laws and borders'
Tory chief whip Julian Smith tweeted a photgraph of Mrs May apparently briefing Mr Johnson on the developments last night
Tory former Brexit minister David Jones warned this could 'severely handicap' Britain's ability to enter free trade agreements covering areas like agriculture with countries outside the EU, like the US.
But Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson insisted the PM was determined to ensure the measure's 'compatibility with taking back control of our money, laws and borders'.
Mr Johnson and fellow Cabinet Brexiteer Michael Gove gave their public blessing to the deal, with the Environment Secretary describing it as a 'significant personal political achievement for the Prime Minister' which would make more money available for the NHS.
The development was also welcomed by business leaders, who had warned that companies would begin activating plans to move staff and activities abroad if no progress was made by Christmas. The pound rose on the announcement.
In a Brussels press conference, Mrs May said the process of arriving at a withdrawal deal 'hasn't been easy for either side', but the agreement represented a 'significant improvement' on the text she was preparing to sign off on Monday.
Provisions on citizens' rights would allow EU nationals in the UK 'to go on living their lives as before'.
Mr Johnson, another senior Brexiteer who has been trying to toughen the government's stance, tweeted his support but made clear the process has only just started
Meanwhile, the financial settlement would be 'fair to the British taxpayer' and the agreement on Ireland would guarantee there would be 'no hard border' between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
'I very much welcome the prospect of moving ahead to the next phase, to talk about trade and security and to discuss the positive and ambitious future relationship that is in all of our interests,' said Mrs May.
Mr Juncker said Brexit was a 'sad' development, but added: 'Now we must start looking to the future, a future in which the UK will remain a close friend and ally.'
Friday's announcement came after late-night telephone conversations with DUP leader Arlene Foster, as the Prime Minister sought a formula which would resolve the party's concerns about Northern Ireland being treated differently from the rest of the UK.
As Number 10's staff Christmas party took place elsewhere in the building, Mrs May finalised a text shortly before midnight.
It specified 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.
Mrs Foster said 'substantial changes' to the text ensured there was 'no red line down the Irish Sea' and no 'special status' for Northern Ireland, but added that there was still further work to be done.
Irish premier Leo Varadkar, who held telephone talks with Mrs May on Thursday as the details of the deal were hammered out, said it was a 'significant day' for Ireland, which 'achieved all that we set out to achieve in phase one of these negotiations'.
The estimated Brexit bill - significantly lower than the £50 billion or more suggested by previous leaks - covers Britain's share of the EU's budget up to the end of 2020, as well as outstanding debts and liabilities for items such as the pensions of staff at European institutions.
It will be paid over several years and the exact figure is unlikely to be known for some time.
The financial settlement 'will be drawn up and paid in euro'.
Jeremy Corbyn said Mrs May had only managed to 'scrape through' the first phase of Brexit negotiations some 18 months after the referendum.
'Tory chaos and posturing has caused damaging delay and risked serious harm to our economy,' said the Labour leader.
'We need a much stronger and more constructive approach in crucial phase two.'
Anatomy of a deal (and how both sides have fudged settling the Irish border question that could keep Britain in the Single Market FOREVER)
Many of the key issues surrounding Britain's exit from the EU have been sorted
Britain will eventually pay a divorce bill of between £35billion and £39billion
Key planks of yesterday's deal concerned citizens' rights and the role of the ECJ
But the most difficult part of the deal - the Irish border - remains unresolved
By Daily Mail Reporter
9 December 2017
The Irish Issue
It was perhaps the most difficult part of the talks – how to square Brexit with the Irish peace process after the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) vetoed a proposed solution on Monday:
The Hard Border
Both the Irish government and Sinn Fein insisted that there must be no barriers between the North and the Republic. Ministers promised not to impose any ‘physical infrastructure’ – meaning border checks and controls and even cameras.
The Union’s Integrity
To reassure the DUP, Mrs May offered a series of assurances. Her six commitments included ‘fully protecting and maintaining’ Northern Ireland’s position within the UK’s single market, no new borders between the province and Great Britain, and an assurance Northern Ireland would leave the customs union and single market.
Prime Minister Theresa May has secured many aspects of the key issues surrounding Britain's exit from the EU - but there are still something that remain unresolved
Fall-Back Position
If the two sides fail to reach an agreement on what to do about the border, the UK agrees to maintain ‘full alignment’ with the rules of the single market and customs union which form part of the Good Friday Agreement. To some Brexiteers, this could be the poison pill which forces Northern Ireland – and the rest of the UK – to stay within the EU’s orbit.
The All-Important Divorce Bill
Britain will eventually pay between £35 billion and £39 billion as part of the so-called Brexit ‘divorce bill’ – provided the EU agrees to the future trade and transition deal the Prime Minister wants. The Government hailed the deal because the payment is much lower than had been expected:
Payments for a Two-Year Transitional Deal
About half of the divorce bill will cover British payments into the EU budget for a two-year transition period. Mrs May used her landmark Florence Brexit speech to announce her desire for a two-year ‘implementation phase’ that will effectively keep the UK in the EU for two years after Brexit. Ministers believe the deal will offer certainty to British businesses and avoid a ‘cliff edge’. In order to remain part of the EU during the period, the UK will guarantee to make payments of between £14.9 billion and £15.8 billion to Brussels until 2020.
Money for 'Outstanding Liabilities'
Britain will pay £20 billion towards EU spending projects and commitments that could run for decades after Brexit. The deal includes a commitment to pay between £7.9 billion and £8.8 billion towards the gold-plated pension scheme enjoyed by eurocrats, a bugbear for Brexiteers. At £59,000, the average Brussels pension payout is more than twice the average UK salary. The agreement also includes a UK commitment to cover payments towards the bloc’s spiralling debt pile. Payments, however, will be taken only as they arise for years to come – and in a boon to the UK, the EU has agreed not to add any additional liabilities that arise during the transition period.
Mrs May - pictured here having breakfast with Brexit Secretary David Davis and EU officials - has still not resolved the issue of the Irish border
Payments into EU Foriegn Aid Schemes
Britain will continue to contribute to the EU’s foreign aid programme until 2020, when the current funding round ends. Like with the wider EU budget, ministers acknowledge that commitments have been made and Britain has agreed to fulfil them. The likely cost is £2 billion.
EU to Pay Back Our Bank Investment
Brussels has agreed to return – over time – our stake in the European Investment Bank. We will receive, over 12 years, 11 instalments of £263.6 million and a final payment of £172.2 million for our 16 per cent stake. The UK may consider taking a stake in the bank – which funds infrastructure projects – as part of phase two of the talks.
Citizens' Rights
Key planks of yesterday’s agreement concerned citizens’ rights and the role of the European Court of Justice:
Minor Role for European Judges
Britain will put into law the rights of EU citizens who decide to stay in Britain – which means anyone who arrives before March next year. Any legal disputes which arise over their rights will first be referred to the UK Supreme Court. However, British judges will have the option to refer such cases to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg if relevant case law doesn’t exist. This is expected to involve two or three cases a year at most, and crucially, with an eight-year sunset clause which begins from the start of any transitional deal.
Criminal Checks for EU Nationals
Any EU nationals applying to stay in Britain after Brexit (who do not already have citizenship) will have to undergo ‘systematic criminality and security checks’. Those who fail the test will be refused the right to stay and forced to leave.
But the deal did settle the so-called divorce bill. Britain will eventually pay the EU between £35billion and £39billion
EU Nationals Bringing In Family Members
EU nationals who get the right to stay will be able to bring in existing husbands or wives as well as members of their extended family – regardless of whether they are EU or non-EU nationals. New relationships formed after Brexit will face tougher checks, the same as non-EU nationals. Any children born after Brexit will also be protected by the agreement, but this is limited to one generation.
Child Benefit For EU Citizens
EU nationals who stay in Britain can get settled status and continue to receive social security payments – such as child benefit – which they can send back to their home countries. Britons living in EU member states will continue to be able to use European Health Insurance Cards to get free medical treatment in the country where they are resident. It is unclear whether the EHIC system will continue for British residents travelling abroad.
Rights for British Citizens in EU States and Free-Movement Rights
UK nationals have not been given the right to move freely for work around the EU post-Brexit, but will have to remain in the country where they reside. There is no deal on voting rights, which ministers will seek to negotiate with individual states.
