EU leaders seal Brexit deal, urge Britons to back May

"THIS IS THE MAXIMUM"

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, whose country is one of Britain's closest trading partners, praised May's handling of the difficult negotiations.

But he also had a warning for those in May's Conservative party as well as the Labour opposition who argue that a better deal can still be done before Britain leaves in four months if lawmakers deny her minority government support on Brexit.

"This is the maximum we can all do," Rutte said, shaking his head when asked if the EU might make more concessions.

The biggest question now facing the EU is whether May's divided minority government can steer the deal, which foresees London following many EU rules for years to come to keep easy trade access, through fierce resistance in parliament.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said that the Brexit deal was a "staging post" towards Britain getting everything it wanted from leaving the EU, but that the arithmetic for getting the deal approved was looking "challenging".

Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite said there were at least four possible outcomes if parliament blocks the package. She named three - that Britons would hold a second referendum, hold a new election to replace May or return to Brussels to try and renegotiate the package.

A fourth is that Britain will simply crash out of the bloc on March 29 without legal clarity.

Both sides have been making preparations for such a "no deal" scenario, though the EU insists Britain has more to lose. The pound has strengthened since the deal came together over the past 10 days, but companies and investors remain nervous.

The package foresees little changing during a transition period lasting another two to four years. The two sides are due to start negotiations on their future ties after the Brexit day.

"We now need to get going on the 27 negotiating mandate for the talks on our future relationship, said an EU diplomat dealing with Brexit, adding it would be an extensive document covering trade, security, financial services, fisheries, phytosanitary controls and much more.

"But having it done here before the UK parliament vote would risk giving more ammunition to Brexiteers to bring down the Brexit deal. So we wait."