Although few of them were allowed to vote during the referendum, the millions of EU citizens living in the UK will be among those affected the most by Brexit. The EU wants to reach a deal to protect their rights as soon as possible during the upcoming negotiations with the UK. This week Parliament is holding a hearing on the situation and rights of EU citizens in the UK. Watch the meeting live online and check out our infographic...

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The Bank of England on Friday made public for the first time how many special loss-absorbing bonds British-based banks must issue to prevent taxpayers having to pay for bank bailouts in the future. by Huw Jones The bonds, known as MREL, are aimed at ending "too big to fail" banks, which means banks will have enough resources to draw on in a crisis without going cap in hand to taxpayers. MREL bonds convert into equity capital once a bank's main capital reserves...

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President Juncker participates in the European Council to prepare the Brexit negotiating mandate and helps finding solutions on a number of bilateral issues. At the European Council on Article 50 today, leaders adopted the EU's Political Guidelines for the Brexit negotiations. President Juncker welcomed the adoption of the Political Guidelines which reflect the joint work of President Juncker and President Tusk and their teams. He also underlined the Commission's commitment to defending the interests of the EU27 and building the best...

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European Council (Art. 50) guidelines following the United Kingdom's notification under Article 50 TEU On 29 March 2017, the European Council received the notification by the United Kingdom of its intention to withdraw from the European Union and Euratom. This allows for the opening of negotiations as foreseen by the Treaty. European integration has brought peace and prosperity to Europe and allowed for an unprecedented level and scope of cooperation on matters of common interest in a rapidly changing world. Therefore,...

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What is Article 50? Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union sets out the procedure for a Member State to withdraw from the European Union, if it should wish to do so. It was first introduced by the Lisbon Treaty in 2007. How does a Member State trigger Article 50? A Member State must notify the European Council of its intention to leave. There are no particular requirements regarding the form. What happens once Article 50 has been triggered? The withdrawal agreement must...

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  By Elizabeth Piper, Kylie MacLellan and William James | LONDON British Prime Minister Theresa May called on Tuesday for an early election on June 8, saying she needed to strengthen her hand in divorce talks with the European Union by bolstering support for her Brexit plan. Standing outside her Downing Street office, May said she had been reluctant to ask parliament to back her move to bring forward the poll from 2020. But, after thinking "long and hard" during a walking...

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MEPs overwhelmingly approved a resolution setting out European Parliament's priorities for the negotiations concerning the UK's withdrawal from the EU during this week's plenary session in Strasbourg. In addition MEPs urged European authorities to establish new checks to prevent car emissions fraud and also approved stricter rules to ensure the safety of medical devices as well as plans to enable more flexibility regarding the EU's long-term budget. Brexit Any Brexit agreement will require Parliament's approval before it can enter into force....

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An overwhelming majority of the house (516 votes in favour, 133 against, with 50 abstentions) adopted a resolution officially laying down the European Parliament’s key principles and conditions for its approval of the UK's withdrawal agreement. Any such agreement at the end of UK-EU negotiations will need to win the approval of the European Parliament. MEPs stress the importance of securing equal and fair treatment for EU citizens living in the UK and British citizens living in the EU. They...

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Today, the European Council received a letter from the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, notifying the United Kingdom’s intention to leave the European Union. This notification follows the referendum of 23 June 2016 and starts the withdrawal process under Article 50 of the Treaty. We regret that the United Kingdom will leave the European Union, but we are ready for the process that we now will have to follow. For the European Union, the first step will now be the...

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