We should not let the dramatic events on Monday obscure the reality that there has been genuine progress in the UK’s exit negotiations, not least because of the compromise proposals put forward in the prime minister’s Florence speech. The key problem which occurred was that the commission briefed MEPs that a text had been agreed in relation to the Irish border when it had not. According to a tweet from the RTE journalist, Tony Connolly, this ‘agreement’ included a commitment that there would be ‘no regulatory divergence’ between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. That was interpreted by many as leaving Northern Ireland in the single market after the rest of the UK leaves. That led to an inevitable rejection by Arlene Foster and…

Source: The Times December 06, 2017 00:00 UTC