Skip to content

CFDs are complex financial instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money. CFDs are complex financial instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work, and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.

EU refuses to budge on Irish backstop

The European Union has told British Prime Minister Theresa May that it will not make any concessions over the Irish border, despite it being crucial to garnering support for her deal from Eurosceptic MPs.

Brexit Source: Bloomberg

The European Union has made it clear to Theresa May as she attempts to break the Brexit deadlock in parliament that it will not renegotiate the Irish backstop, even though it is crucial for her to get the deal passed by Eurosceptic MPs.

There is now less than nine weeks until the UK is due to bail out of the bloc, with no agreement on the terms of its departure from the EU yet ratified by MPs in parliament, after the House of Commons rejected May’s Brexit deal earlier this month.

Irish backstop concessions crucial to appease Conservative rebels

After May had her Brexit deal defeated by the largest margin since the 1920s earlier this month, the root cause behind her lack of support centred around the Irish backstop, with many pro-Brexit Conservative rebels concerned it would leave Britain in the EU custom unions indefinitely.

In reaction to this, May has returned to Brussels ahead of a crucial parliament vote aimed at breaking the Brexit deadlock and asked EU officials to drop the backstop and replace it with something more palatable to MPs.

Irish backstop component non-negotiable, EU says

But despite the prime minister’s pleas, Ireland and the EU Commission on Monday reiterated that the backstop component is not open for renegotiation.

‘The European Parliament will not ratify a withdrawal agreement that doesn’t have a backstop in it, it’s as simple as that,’ Ireland’s Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney told the BBC.


This information has been prepared by IG, a trading name of IG Limited. In addition to the disclaimer below, the material on this page does not contain a record of our trading prices, or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instrument. IG accepts no responsibility for any use that may be made of these comments and for any consequences that result. No representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of this information. Consequently any person acting on it does so entirely at their own risk. Any research provided does not have regard to the specific investment objectives, financial situation and needs of any specific person who may receive it. It has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such is considered to be a marketing communication. Although we are not specifically constrained from dealing ahead of our recommendations we do not seek to take advantage of them before they are provided to our clients.
CFDs are a leveraged products. CFD trading may not be suitable for everyone and can result in losses that exceed your initial deposit, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved.

Trading around Brexit

Find out how Britan’s EU exit continues to affect traders, and discover:

  • How you can trade on Brexit
  • The markets you should be watching
  • Brexit trading strategies for key assets

Live prices on most popular markets

  • Forex
  • Shares
  • Indices

Prices above are subject to our website terms and agreements. Prices are indicative only. All shares prices are delayed by at least 15 mins.

Plan your trading week

Get the week’s market-moving news sent directly to your inbox every Friday. The Week Ahead gives you a full calendar of upcoming economic events, as well as commentary from our expert analysts on the key markets to watch.

For more info on how we might use your data, see our privacy notice and access policy and privacy webpage.

You might be interested in…

Find out what charges your trades could incur with our transparent fee structure.

Discover why so many clients choose us, and what makes us a world-leading provider of CFDs.

Stay on top of upcoming market-moving events with our customisable economic calendar.