The British government agrees to Brexit draft agreement after a fierce battle by Theresa May to defend it

British government on Wednesday backed a draft of the London-based agreement with the European Union after Prime Minister Theresa May fought a tough battle to defend him in a meeting with her divided government, putting her career and political career at stake.

May emerged from the five-hour meeting and the pound pounded the announcement that it had the full support of them to move ahead with its plan on Brexit.

“The collective decision of the government is that it has to approve the draft withdrawal agreement”, May told government headquarters, but acknowledged it could face stronger resistance when the 585-page text moves to parliament for approval next month.

Rumors of resignations in the government and intentions among opposition MPs in the May party to oust them have led the pound to lose 1 percent of its value in one of its moments of volatility.

In turn, the Prime Minister acknowledged that she engaged in “heated debate” with members of her government, noting “difficult days ahead”.

“This is a decision that will be carefully considered and so things must be done, which is perfectly understandable”, she said, referring to the upcoming parliament vote.

EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said Wednesday that a solution had been reached between the European Union and the United Kingdom in the draft agreement on Brexit to avoid a “physical border” between the Republic of Ireland, a member of the European Union, and Northern Ireland, the British province.

The Irish border issue has stalled negotiations between Brussels and London for weeks.

“We have reached a solution together with the United Kingdom to avoid physical borders on the island of Ireland”, Barnier told a news conference.

This solution is intended to preserve the 1998 peace agreements in Ireland, which the parties had promised to, achieve when the negotiations began.

Barnier said there would be a “single customs zone” between the European Union and the United Kingdom that would allow British goods to be “free of charge and without quotas in the market of the 27 countries”.

Furthermore, the Northern Ireland Province will remain a common market standard “as a basis for avoiding physical limits”.

The European negotiator considered that “decisive progress” had been made towards an agreement that would allow for “orderly withdrawal” of Britain on 29 March 2019.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has asked European Council President Donald Tusk to draw up “this decisive progress” and authorize the “conclusion” of the London exit negotiations.

Aware of British Prime Minister Theresa May’s difficulties in passing the divorce agreement, Barnier called on “everyone” to “shoulder his responsibilities”.

The framework agreement is a complex and bitter one-and-a-half-year negotiation aimed at ending Britain’s 46-year membership in the European Union.

Amid economic uncertainty in the wake of the global financial crisis and fears of an influx of immigrants, the British voted 52 percent to 48 percent in a June 2016 referendum on leaving the European Union.

May faced an opposition at the House of Commons earlier on Wednesday either by those who want a complete break from the bloc or from those who see in Brexit a disaster for Britain.

Jeremy Corbin, leader of the opposition Labor Party, which is seeking early elections, called the entire negotiation process “shameful”.

“This government has spent two years negotiating a bad deal that will leave the country between withdrawal and withdrawal indefinitely”, he said.

For his part, conservative MP Peter Boone, a prominent supporter of Brexit, criticized the prime minister.

“You do not respect what Brexit supporters voted for, and today you will lose the support of many conservative MPs and millions of voters”, he said.

Brexit supporters and opponents rallied outside 10 Downing Street.

Lucy Harris, who founded the pro-Brexit “Levers of London” gathering among the attendees, said the agreement “sold the country completely.

We will become an EU state”.

But the worst was from the Northern Irish Party – the Unionist Democratic Party – its indispensable ally in the government, threatening to break the coalition in the wake of leaks about arrangements for the British province.

Party leader Arlen Foster said she was waiting for May to look at the deal, warning of “consequences” if the leaks on the Northern Ireland situation proved correct.

A European official told Agence France-Presse that the final agreement included a so-called “safety net” to keep the whole of the UK in customs arrangements with the European Union.

The agreement will give Northern Ireland a special status, which means that some barriers will be needed between Northern Ireland and the rest of the country.

The current arrangement has not received positive repercussions in Scotland, where its pro-independence government has questioned the draft agreement.

Scotland’s Prime Minister Nicola Storgen asked why Northern Ireland had a special status to keep it in the European single market while Scotland did not.

European sources in Brussels told Agence France Presse that if May got the support of her government, the meeting of EU ambassadors could be followed by a second meeting on Friday and a preparatory meeting for a summit of European Union ministers on Monday.

Negotiations have stalled for months as both sides differed on how to avoid setting up border points between Northern Ireland and the EU member state if London reached a new trade deal with Brussels.

The agreement includes, according to reports, a review mechanism Britain can use to withdraw from the safety net, a key requirement for conservative EU regulators.

Former Conservative leader William Hague warned supporters of Brexit that they could blow up the entire process if they did not support the May plan.