Brexit: EU-UK negotiations, London and Brussels still distant. Citizens’ rights, Ireland and finance under discussion

(Brussels) The fourth round of the Brexit negotiations has finished in Brussels. “Crucial” and with “definite progress” on key issues, as defined at the press conference by David Davis, UK State Secretary for Brexit; “constructive” but “not enough progress yet”, according to Michel Barnier, the EU Commission’s negotiator. For both parties, Prime Minister Theresa May’s Florence speech on September 22^nd gave “new momentum” to the negotiations. This week, three issues have been negotiated: citizens’ rights, Ireland, and the financial agreement. The parties agree on a number of points, first and foremost that “citizens may keep living their life peacefully”, as summed up by Davis with reference to a document that will be issued in the afternoon with details of the points the parties have agreed upon. Barnier already mentioned that the EU citizens can invoke their European rights with the British Courts as well, but the authority of the European Court, the right to family reunions, and the export of welfare benefits are still controversial. Then, again, Ireland: both parties acknowledge the “unique situation” of the island and agree that the citizens’ rights must be protected under the Good Friday agreement, though “they are working at how to do it”, Davis pointed out. Lastly, the economic contribution: “The obligations undertaken by Great Britain within the 28-group will be kept”, but the amount of expenses that are part of such obligations and for how long the rule will apply are not clear yet.