Donald Tusk, the president of the European council, has presented the draft Brexit negotiating guidelines that have been issued to the bloc’s 27 remaining member states.



The draft will be discussed in national capitals and refined during a summit of prime ministers and presidents at the end of April at which the EU27’s position will be finalised before talks on the UK’s exit begin.

Here are some of the key points from the guidelines:

No parallel talks

In her letter formally notifying the EU that Britain was triggering article 50 to begin the Brexit process, the prime minister, Theresa May, said she wanted “to agree the terms of our future partnership alongside those of our withdrawal”.

The guidelines (and Tusk, speaking at a press conference) have explicitly said talks on future relations will only be possible once “sufficient progress” has been made on the divorce settlement. They also specify that it will be the EU27 who define “sufficient progress”.

No future deal before UK leaves

The guidelines say an agreement on the future UK-EU relationship “can only be concluded once the UK has become a third country” – in other words, once it has officially left the bloc.

They add that during any transition deal bridging Britain’s departure and the beginning of the new relationship, the EU’s “existing regulatory, budgetary, supervisory, and enforcement instruments and structures” must apply.

That will not please Brexit ministers who want Britain removed from the jurisdiction of the the European court of justice, in particular, from the moment it leaves the bloc.

Divorce: citizens’ rights, exit bill, Northern Ireland

The EU’s top priorities in the article 50 divorce settlement include:

Securing the rights and status of EU citizens in Britain and UK nationals on the continent who are “affected by the UK’s withdrawal from the union”

Preventing a legal vacuum for businesses once EU treaties cease to apply

Agreeing “a single financial settlement” – Britain’s exit bill – covering legal and budgetary commitments and liabilities, to ensure the UK “respects the obligations undertaken before the date of withdrawal”

Protecting the peace process in Northern Ireland, including finding “flexible and imaginative solutions” to avoiding a hard border with the Republic.

Future deal: no ‘cherry picking’, individual deals, low-tax regime

The EU’s top objectives in defining its future relationship with Britain include: