EU leaders agree unanimously on tough stance on Brexit
 

European Union leaders have unanimously agreed to tough negotiating guidelines for Brexit talks with the UK, suggesting that they will demand Britain agrees on payments to the bloc before considering a new trade deal.

The heads of the remaining 27 countries agreed to adopt the draft guidelines issued by Donald Tusk last month less than 15 minutes into a special summit in Brussels on Saturday. The European council president tweeted that a “firm and fair political mandate” for the negotiations was now ready.

The EU is expected to demand that Britain resolves the key divorce issues of citizens’ rights, the divorce bill and the Irish border before any talks on a future trade deal between the UK and the EU can begin.

Tusk, the president of the council, whose members comprise the EU states, said ahead of the meeting on Saturday: “We all want a close and strong future relationship with the UK. There’s absolutely no question about it. But before discussing the future, we have to sort out our past. We will handle it with genuine care, but firmly. This is, I think, the only possible way to move forward.

“We also need solid guarantees for all citizens and their families who will be affected by Brexit, on both sides. This must be the number one priority for the EU and the UK.”

The EU has taken some confidence from the fact that Theresa May has not recently repeated her claim that “no deal is better than a bad deal”, despite being pushed to do so by politicians in favour of a hard Brexit.

“We are convinced that no deal is in no one’s interest. We appreciate the fact that the tone of the debate in the UK on this issue has changed,” said a senior EU official on Friday.

Asked to respond to claims from the prime minister on the general election campaign trail that member states were preparing to “line up to oppose us”, one senior EU diplomat admitted: “She’s right. She should not underestimate the commitment to unity.”

The leaders are also set to back automatic EU membership for Northern Ireland if it votes in the future to reunify with Ireland, and will call for Spain to have a say over any deal that affects Gibraltar in a document detailing the European council’s negotiating guidelines, which will set the broad political goals of the 27 states when talks start in June.

During a working lunch to approve the position drafted by officials, leaders will furthermore discuss for the first time the relocation of EU medical and banking agencies that are currently based in London. The European commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, along with Tusk, is expected to offer an indication of the selection criteria that will be used to choose between the many states bidding.

Dublin presented its request over Northern Ireland and the implications of reunification in the future during a meeting of EU ambassadors last Wednesday, it is understood. “There was no discussion, because there was no need for a discussion”, an EU source said. “There is total agreement.”

The first of the key issues the EU guidelines say Britain must resolve, however, is the fate of 3 million EU citizens living in Britain and 1 million Britons on the continent, and what happens to their rights to work and claim benefits abroad.

Leaks suggest the leaders believe that any EU national who moves to the UK before the withdrawal date should have all the rights they would have expected in the past, including that of being able to enjoy permanent residency status once they have lived in the UK for five years, no matter when that period of residence begins.

The EU27 will also call for action to avoid a “hard border” between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, as fears persist that Brexit could undermine the peace process.

The most contentious issue, however, is likely to be Britain’s exit bill, estimated at around €60bn (£50.4bn), covering financial commitments made by the bloc during Britain’s time as a member.

Only once “sufficient progress” has been made in the talks on these issues, will the European council countenance talks about the future relationship.

Asked what sufficient progress would mean in relation to the UK’s divorce bill, a senior EU diplomat said the European council’s guidelines were quite explicit about what would be expected and that there would be little “wiggle room”.

Of course we don't have to give them all their own way. We can always just ... leave.

Looking forward to May's backtracking as she looks to salvage any kind of deal with EU.

"No deal is better than a bad deal" :rolleyes:

Well at least people will now realise that the EU has demanded a hard Brexit, not the PM.
Hopefully she won't give in to all demands but is willing to compromise on some.

This! Hopefully the ones she does compromise on are the ones she, and the majority of us, were happy to compromise on all along. She needs to play a clever game.

How anyone could think the EU would roll over and do Mrs May's bidding is beyond me.

The remaining 27 member Nations are and should be the EUs only concern.
Also following the hardline tone and attitude of this govts Ministers and some of it's MPs too.

To expect an easy ride was totally pie in the sky.
If this woman is leading the negotiations with the likely intake of more hardline wreckers Con MPs.
I would despair myself.

Thankfully I'll be watching the likely chaotic mess elsewhere but feeling really sad for the UK and more likely what will eventually be all that remains in time of what was the original UK.

Play them at their own game then

I'm sorry that you are all doom and gloom on this subject but it is very early days and you may yet have cause to eat your words. Time will tell.

This might come across as baity but were leavers expecting a good deal with the EU? I know Farage kept making the point about German cars in Britain, but nobody actually believed that we'd keep the privileges did they? Leavers left cos they assumed we could get good deals with other countries, right?

This leaver voted for being able to rule ourselves once again.
I have no illusions that we may suffer short term after Brexit, but my vote is for my kids, who hopefully will benefit from it in the future.
No gain without some pain I guess.

What benefits can you see for your kids Smudgie, genuine question?

Genuinely.
A country that rules itself and doesn't need the blessing of 27 other countries.
Hopefully we will be able to trade with the rest of the world much easier, however if a decision arises to trade with Europe to both sides advantage I am all for it.
More control over our immigration, being able to take the best and leave the rest.
Hoping our government of the day ( whoever they may be) can stand up for Britain when it comes to quotas.
No doubt it is going to be a rocky road, but I don't think it is going to be as bad as feared by some.
The EU countries are hardly going to ban holiday makers etc, might just have to get a passport or visa but it's hardly the end of the world.

I always hated this side of the argument. What if Hitler-2.0 gets eleted and he can just do whatever he wants with your children and their future? I feel like this was poorly thought out by a lot of leavers. But yes hopefully we'll get a few good trade deals outside of the EU, that will be the saving grace.

We managed without being stupid enough to vote for a dictator before, given that more people get to vote now I would hope common sense will prevail.
Thank goodness for democracy and parliament.

Hard to do when they hold all the cards though. Which is why I've always said Brexit was a bad idea, we don't have a leg to stand on in these negotiations.

Spot on.The UK doesn't.
Yes times change admittedly.

However before we joined the then common market in the early 70s, we were then trading with other Nations but desperate to get into that trading area of the EEC.
Being denied same more than once.

The EU as it is,has become so with the UK in it,we have helped form it as it is too in a great part.

To think that the UK now walking away after all that and expecting the best of deals now from them is really likely is in my view unbelievable.
I really do think in time, the UK will be back just about to the early 70s, again likely doing okay but looking in from the outside,on a trading area it knows it should be part of and wants to be but cannot be fully at the table.

The EU has its loyalty to need to be given to the 27 members it still has and to the Nations who also want to join them, not to the UK.
On this one,the UK now will be rightly punching above its weight on this one.

There's an attitude of 'We don't need the EU but the EU needs us' that's been prevalent in the Leaver camp so I'm happy to see that incorrect assumption crushed.

We do not hold any cards, we are not that important to any other country. We can't have a superiority complex when we're in such a precarious position.

What did anyone expect? EU to roll over for us?

Enjoy being Trump's puppy dogs I guess.

When you leave, you leave. You don't stay half in. Absolutely no illusions about that.

The vote was to leave as members not stop dealing with the EU full stop.
That is and would be economic madness.

You are possibly one who would rather have no deal at all with the EU.
Thankfully,I doubt a pretty strong number at the very least, who did fall for voting leave,would have wanted or were voting for that when they actually cast their votes.

What did the leave voters 'fall for' ? They fell for nothing. They have a different opinion to you. Unless you are an economist or a clairvoyant you are no expert and your opinion is just opinion the same as everyone else.

To keep implying that those with a different opinion to yourself are ill-informed gullible fools is unproven and therefore incorrect (as a lawyer you should know that) and it is not your place to make such assumptions.

They were hardly going to say, so long... we'll miss you... keep in touch xxx They want to dissuade any other country from going down the same road.

Tell them if they refuse to protect our citizens then theirs will have to leave the UK then we will see how quickly their attitudes change

Yes thats OK