Brexit deal done: Boris Johnson confirms UK-EU free trade deal

Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president, gave a press conference on the deal in Brussels.

Credit: Dursun Aydemir/Anadolu Agency/Bloomberg

Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, said that there will be "real changes" as soon as the Brexit transition period comes to an end.

Mr Barnier said that he "regrets" the choice of the British Government not to participate in the Erasmus exchange programme, but added the clock was "no longer ticking" — his phrase of choice during negotiations — on a deal.

What happens now?

The deal will be put before Parliament on Dec 30, the day before the UK leaves the EU.

This will mean MPs and peers are recalled in order to vote the deal through.

While it is too late for an emergency session of the European Parliament, the EU will invoke a process called "provisional application".

This way, the agreement will come into effect without the approval of MEPs, who will approve it retrospectively.

"We have resolved a question that has bedevilled our politics for decades," Boris Johnson said. "It is up to the UK to realise the immensity of this moment."