What to know about Brexit

The UK and the European Union (EU) have finally made a deal on how they will trade and what their future relationship will be, after Brexit.

Ever since the UK left the the EU on 31 January, both sides have been talking about what the new rules should be, , reports BBC.

The negotiations have gone down to the wire, as the current UK/EU relationship (called "the transition") ends on 31 December. 

What are the EU and Brexit?

The EU is made up of 27 European countries.
EU citizens are free to live and work in other EU countries, and firms in those countries can buy and sell each other's goods without checks or extra taxes at borders.
The UK was the first country to leave the EU and this was known as Brexit - British exit.

What is this deal?

The deal contains new rules for how the UK and EU will live, work and trade together. They will start on 1 January 2021.

It includes an agreement for no charges on each other's goods when they cross borders - known as tariffs - to keep down the cost of trade. It also gets rid of quotas (limits on the amount of things which can be traded).

The UK government says the deal covers trade worth £668bn in 2019.
However, even with a deal, there will be some new border checks - so businesses will need to be ready for changes.

There's a lot of detail to go through and it may take some time to fully understand what the deal means for everyday life, including going on holiday or studying in the EU in future.

How important is this deal?

The EU is the UK's nearest and biggest trading partner, so getting a deal was always a priority.
While the UK was in the EU, companies could buy and sell goods across EU borders without paying tariffs. Without the deal, businesses would have had to start paying these taxes, which would have added to their costs.
No deal would have also meant more border checks, which could have caused delays for lorries transporting products.

What about other UK trade deals?

When the UK was in the EU, it was automatically part of the trade deals it has with more than 70 countries.

Since leaving, the EU has made deals with 58 of those countries, in order to continue trading in the same way. Talks with 10 countries are still going on, but many of the most important agreements have been done.

Brexit supporters say leaving the EU will give the UK more freedom to strike trade deals around the world. Opponents say it is better to remain close to the EU as it is such an important trading partner.
Why did Brexit happen?

A public vote - or referendum - was held in June 2016, to decide whether the UK should be in the EU.

Leave won by 52% to 48%. The referendum turnout was very high at 72% and more than 30 million people voted. 

What happens next?

Even though the deal has been agreed, it still needs to be made law.
For that to happen it must be looked at and approved by both the UK and European parliaments.

As it's been left so late, the European Parliament won't have time to sign it off before the end of the year. That shouldn't stop the deal coming into force on 1 January, but it will take longer before it's officially rubber-stamped.

The UK government could summon back MPs over the Christmas period in order to vote on the deal. However, there wouldn't be time to debate and look at the details closely.

And in one sentence?

A deal has been agreed, but people and businesses don't have much time to get ready for the changes that will start from 1 January.

What Brexit words mean?

The last few years have seen many words and phrases enter our lives. We haven't used them here, but politicians do use them. Here's what some of them mean:

Transition period: The 11-month period following the UK's exit from the EU (finishing at the end of 2020), during which time the UK has followed EU rules, to allow leaders to make a deal

Free trade agreement: This is what the EU and the UK have now agreed - a deal between countries that encourages trade by getting rid of barriers like taxes on goods

WTO rules: If countries don't have free trade agreements, they must trade according to rules set by a global body called the World Trade Organization (WTO), which can mean taxes on goods