Even for the most dedicated followers of the Brexit negotiations, the last few weeks have been hard going, with ever more impenetrable arguments about the fate of the “Irish backstop”.

But for the City two key points emerge once you cut through the undergrowth. The first is that the chances of the UK crashing out of the EU without any agreement have receded. The second is that the City is no nearer to knowing the terms on which it will be able to access EU markets in the long term.