A breakthrough has been made, according to Jean-Claude Juncker.
The European Commission will tell the European Council that “significant progress” has been made in the first phase of Brexit talks, with Theresa May guaranteeing that no hard border will be put in place between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
In an early morning announcement on Friday, Juncker stated that a breakthrough had been made following last Monday’s confusion and May – who revealed that she had spoken to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar on Thursday – insisted that there would be no barriers to trade ‘north-south or east-west’.
On the border, the agreement confirmed, the UK will keep ‘full alignment’ with the EU Single Market and those customs rules so central to the Belfast Agreement.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney welcomed the news.
He tweeted: “Deal Confirmed! Ireland supports Brexit negotiations moving to Phase 2 now that we have secured assurances for all on the island of Ireland – fully protecting GFA, peace process, all-Island economy and ensuring that there can be NO HARD BORDER on the Island of Ireland post Brexit.”
Deal Confirmed! Ireland supports Brexit negotiations moving to Phase 2 now that we have secured assurances for all on the island of Ireland – fully protecting GFA, peace process, all-Island economy and ensuring that there can be NO HARD BORDER on the Island of Ireland post Brexit
— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) December 8, 2017
Will be on @morningireland shortly to explain and outline detail of Irish assurances on Brexit deal – very good outcome for everyone on the island of Ireland – no Hard Border guaranteed!
— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) December 8, 2017
DUP leader Arlene Foster, whose objections to the original text of the Phase 1 agreement saw negotiations break down at the start of the week, was pleased with this morning’s developments.
“We’re pleased to see those changes because for me it means there’s no red line down the Irish Sea and we have the very clear confirmation that the entirety of the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union, leaving the single market, leaving the customs union,” she told Sky News.
“There are still matters there that we would have liked to have seen clarified, we ran out of time essentially, we think that we needed to go back again and talk about those matters but the prime minister has decided to go to Brussels in relation to this text.”
In NI we will guarantee there will be no hard border – Theresa May pic.twitter.com/HVKzhelhKG
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) December 8, 2017
Clip via RTÉ
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