EU and UK officials announced Thursday that a post-Brexit trade deal has been agreed. The deal follows four years of negotiations that ensued after the UK voted to leave the EU in a June 2016 referendum.

At the press conference on the outcome of the EU-UK negotiations, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, stated that a ‘fair and balanced’ deal had been achieved. She noted that EU-UK cooperation would continue “in all areas of mutual interest” and that the “EU’s rules and standards” would be respected.

Following von der Leyen’s press statement, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson made a statement on the outcome of the negotiations, confirming the deal ‘will allow UK goods and components to be sold without tariffs and without quotas in the EU market’.

On legal issues post-Brexit, Johnson stated:

We have taken back control of laws and our destiny… British laws will be made solely by the British Parliament. Interpreted by UK judges sitting in UK courts. And the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice will come to an end.

The Prime Minister added that UK lawyers would continue to be able to practice across the EU.

The deal must now be ratified by the governments of the 27 member states and the European Parliament. It is expected that Johnson will recall the UK Parliament (which went into recess on 17 December) to debate and vote on the agreement.

If the deal is ratified, it will come into force on January 1. If not, the UK will begin trading with the EU on World Trade Organisation terms.