What the commentators said

Only a few months ago, press conferences on the state of the Brexit talks could be excruciating affairs, said Asa Bennett in The Daily Telegraph. Any claim of “concrete progress” on the British side would be met with a flat denial from Barnier. So how to explain his new conciliatory approach? My hunch is he’s taking his cue from his “political masters”. EU Council president Donald Tusk spoke recently of the need for an “ambitious” deal; Luxembourg finance minister Pierre Gramegna has even raised the possibility of a “bespoke” pact with Britain covering financial services. At last, it seems, the EU’S big hitters have come to realise that both sides stand to gain from a far-reaching agreement. Well, I see little reason for the Brexiteers to crow, said George Eaton in the New Statesman. Not long ago they were insisting that no transition period would be necessary at all. Now they’re grateful for an extra two years of talks. That’s a long way from the prompt taking back of control they once promised.

The Irish border is the crucial unresolved issue, said Jonathan Powell in The Independent. The negotiators failed yet again to find a solution – for the simple reason there isn’t one. No technology has been identified that would make an “invisible” border possible. Theresa May seems to have agreed in theory that if no solution is found, the UK will remain in regulatory alignment with the EU, said Katy Balls in The Spectator. That, many Leavers fear, removes any incentive for the EU to play ball. Nor are they happy the UK only gets to “consult” on EU fishing quotas during the transition: that has particularly enraged Scottish MPS and Brexit voters swayed by the Leave pledge to regain control of UK waters. Yet Brexiteers are largely staying silent, said David Allen Green in the FT. Are they happy waiting until 2021 to see sovereignty restored? No. But they realise that if the treaty is approved, a key goal will have been achieved: a legal recognition that Britain is leaving the EU. And once out, it will be “hard to rejoin”. Job done.