EU seals Brexit deal; May faces hard sell

BRUSSELS — After months of hesitation, stop-and-start negotiations and resignations, Britain and the European Union on Sunday finally sealed an agreement governing the U.K.’s departure from the bloc next year. So much for the easy part. British Prime Minister Theresa May must now sell the so-called “Brexit” deal to her divided Parliament — a huge task considering the intense opposition from proBrexit and pro-EU lawmakers alike — to ensure Britain can leave with a minimum of upheaval on March 29.

It’s a hard sell. The agreement leaves Britain outside the EU with no say but still subject to its rules and the obligations of membership at least until the end of 2020, possibly longer. Britons voted to leave in June 2016, largely over concerns about immigration and losing sovereignty to Brussels.

EU leaders were quick to warn that no better offer is available.

“I am totally convinced this is the only deal possible,” European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said. “Those who think that by rejecting the deal that they would have a better deal will be disappointed the first seconds after the rejection.”

For once, May was in complete agreement.

“This is the deal that is on the table,” she said. “It is the best possible deal. It is the only deal.”

Acknowledging the vast political and economic consequences of Brexit, May promised lawmakers their say before Christmas and said that it “will be one of the most significant votes that Parliament has held for many years.”

She argued that Parliament has a duty “to deliver Brexit” as voters have demanded.

“The British people don’t want to spend any more time arguing about Brexit,” she said. “They want a good deal done that fulfills the vote and allows us to come together again as a country.”