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A deal has been struck between the European Commission and the UK on the first three Brexit issuesPictured: Martin Selmayr, head of Juncker's cabinet, tweeted a picture of white smoke coming out of a chimney before the press conference.Picture credit: Martin Selmayr 

On Friday 8 December, the European Commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the British prime minister, Theresa May, had a last-minute meeting in which they hashed out an agreement.

The deal was reached just in time; the European Council meets next week to officially decide whether to start negotiations on a future relationship, after the UK decided to leave the European Union in March 2017.

A commission press release stated:

“The European Commission has today recommended to the European Council (Article 50) to conclude that sufficient progress has been made in the first phase of the Article 50 negotiations with the United Kingdom.

The rights of EU citizens living in the United Kingdom and United Kingdom citizens in the EU27 will remain the same after the United Kingdom has left the EU. The Commission has also made sure that any administrative procedures will be cheap and simple for EU citizens in the United Kingdom.

As regards the financial settlement, the United Kingdom has agreed that commitments taken by the EU28 will be honoured by the EU28, including the United Kingdom.

With regard to the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, the United Kingdom acknowledges the unique situation on the island of Ireland and has made significant commitments to avoid a hard border.”