Insiders tell Sky News' political correspondent Tamara Cohen it came down to the union and fears about the break-up of the UK.
"No-deal is better than a bad deal" was Theresa May's mantra for two years, making clear that Britain would walk away from negotiations with the EU if necessary.In a move which threatened to split her party - always something she had sought to avoid - Mrs May dramatically changed strategy and announced she would seek a deal with Labour support.
Two other government sources told Sky News they believed the union was the decisive factor in Mrs May's thinking. It is also true that the government's economic predictions suggest no-deal would, in the long run, wipe 9% off the economy, and government departments have warned Number 10 about the disruption which could ensue.
He wrote a letter to the cabinet last week about the risks of no-deal, which was leaked to the Daily Mail.The memo, which was discussed at Tuesday's cabinet states, says, according to the newspaper:"The stability of the union would be dislocated".The Assembly at Stormont has not sat for two years, with civil servants running day-to-day operations.
Sinn Fein has called for this to happen within five years, but it is opposed by all unionist parties.
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