WHAT’S BEEN AGREED – AND WHAT HASN’T

l Transition: The UK will leave the EU at midnight on 29 March, 2019 but will continue to abide by many of its rules and regulations until 31 December, 2020. The UK government had asked for this to extend for a full two years. A joint committee will be set up with members from both sides to oversee the agreement and resolve any disputes l Trade: Britain will be free to negotiate, sign and ratify trade deals with other countries during the transition period. Existing EU trade deals with other countries will still apply in the UK l Gibraltar: The agreement confirms that the transition will apply to the Rock, following some controversy over whether Spain would have a veto – but the UK will have to secure Madrid’s approval for the final deal to apply to Gibraltar l Fishing: The UK will cease to be part of the common fisheries policy on Brexit day, but will have to continue to observe EU quotas until the end of the transition. The UK will be consulted on the quota for 2020, but will not have a formal input. The size of the UK’S total catch will not be changed l Northern Ireland: Without a full solution to the Irish border question, the UK has had to agree to a “backstop” proposal to keep Northern Ireland in the customs union, despite Theresa May saying she could “never accept” that option. The two sides have agreed to explore technological and legal alternatives to avoid the fall-back becoming necessary l Money: The agreement unveiled yesterday confirmed agreement on the terms of the UK’S £40bn divorce settlement. This will carry on being paid until 2064, to cover EU officials’ pensions and European Investment Bank projects l Migration: Free movement of people will continue to apply throughout the transition on current terms, and to both UK and EU nationals l Residency: Following a climbdown by the UK, EU citizens who move to Britain during the transition will be eligible for full residency rights. This will also be available to UK citizens moving to the EU during the same period, and Brussels appears to have accepted demands that Britons settled in the EU keep the right to move between different European countries after Brexit, although campaigners said yesterday that they are seeking further guarantees l Policing: Security and justice co-operation will form part of the next stage of negotiations, and the two sides have not yet agreed how police bodies will work together on ongoing cases during the transition phase