Tag: Brussels

The EU has pencilled in April Fools’ Day 2020 as a leading option for Britain’s first day outside the bloc, should the UK government ask Brussels for a lengthy extension of article 50 in three weeks’ time, it can be revealed. The date was to be offered at the leaders’ summit last week if Theresa May had followed through on her promise to request a short extension in the event of passing her Brexit deal, and a longer one should it be rejected again by the House of Commons. A one-year extension, ending on 31 March 2020, was, however, written into internal EU papers before the summit as an offer that could be made to May should she formally seek a longer extension, sources said. “That would safeguard our work during this year and basically allow us to turn to it again early next year,” the official said. So such a time limit is not a bad idea.” Play Video 6:17 Sources emphasised that no decision had been made and it would be the subject of intense debate among the leaders at a summit, likely to be held on 10 April in Brussels, should May come back again for extra time. We want to do other things and not have this dominate.” The source added: “It may be up to two years, but that is the span of the imagination of those who are talking about a long extension. It is not up to this October because we can’t do this all the time. The European parliament’s lead Brexit negotiator said he was very pleased MPs had voted to take control of Brexit from the government. This is the first time that there is a vote for something – cross-party cooperation. We have long called for that.

While a Brexit extension is a near-certainty, the official departure date is still 29 March. While British officials remain involved in discussions, the UK will hang back on strategic questions about how the EU should approach China. A government spokesperson said: “The UK will continue to take a full part in discussions at the [Foreign Affairs Council], focusing on those issues that matter most to the UK and EU.” Other day-to-day EU business provides a jarring contrast with the government’s Brexit strategy: one of Theresa May’s last acts as an EU leader will be to sign a routine communique on strengthening the single market – the one she insists Britain must leave. “A politician’s life is always uncertain, you never know if you are going to come back for the next mandate.” MEPs who back the government also acknowledge the uncertainty. He was speaking last month before May suffered a second humiliating defeat on her Brexit deal. British MEPs have been told to clear their offices by 29 March, as their passes will stop working soon after. “It’s uncertain, it’s unnerving that we still don’t have an answer,” one assistant said. I will be fighting this thing until the very end.” He was speaking last month, after voting on the future of the common agricultural policy – and dismissed the suggestion this is a waste of time for a British MEP. The UK continues to speak out on crises or short-term business, whether that is the war in Yemen, or the EU’s 2018 budget. Officials are now thinking hard about how to preserve British influence, when there is no British voice or vote in the room.

Downing Street has described the Brexit talks in Brussels as “deadlocked” after negotiations over the weekend failed to find a breakthrough on the Irish backstop. Theresa May and Jean-Claude Juncker, the European commission president, spoke on the telephone on Sunday evening to “take stock”, but plans for the prime minister to visit the Belgian capital to sign off on any compromise are on hold. “No further meetings at a political level are scheduled but both sides will remain in close contact this week”, a commission spokesman added on Monday. “The commission has made proposals on further assurances that the backstop, if used, will apply temporarily… It is now for the House of commons to make an important set of decisions this week”. They have advised May instead to replace the vote with a motion setting out the sort of Brexit deal that would be acceptable to Tory MPs, in the hope that this would trigger concessions from the EU. Could end with a no-deal Brexit, a second referendum, new ideas or ... MPs vote on May’s deal for a third time No Yes Brexit with May’s deal on 29 March No-deal Brexit on 29 March, or ... EU makes surprise last-minute concessions on the backstop. MPs pass May’s deal Brexit with May’s deal on or shortly after 29 March 12 March MPs vote again on May’s deal Brexit with May’s deal on 29 March Yes No 13 March MPs vote on whether to leave without a deal No-deal Brexit on 29 March Yes No 14 March MPs vote on whether to extend article 50 UK asks for a short extension Yes No 21 March summit EU leaders vote on allowing a short extension Brexit postponed No Yes No to short, but yes to longer extension Brexit postponed MPs vote on offer of a longer extension No Yes Deadlock. Could end with a no-deal Brexit, a second referendum, new ideas or ... Brexit with May’s deal on 29 March MPs vote on May’s deal for a third time Yes No No-deal Brexit on 29 March, or ... Brexit with May’s deal on or shortly after 29 March EU makes surprise last-minute concessions on the backstop. The uncompromising mood among Brexit-minded Conservatives was illustrated on Monday when the Yeovil MP Marcus Fysh suggested May should abandon the meaningful vote and instead have the Commons back a motion outlining support for a deal based on technology-based “alternative arrangements” for the Irish border. Writing in the Guardian, Sam Gyimah, a former Conservative minister who resigned as a minister to back a people’s vote, warned MPs against voting for the deal under government pressure, suggesting bad policy decisions such as the Iraq war were made under similar circumstances.

The cabinet minister in charge of Brexit has held detailed talks with Labour MPs who are championing plans for a second referendum – amid signs of mounting desperation inside Theresa May’s government about what to do if the prime minister’s deal suffers another crushing defeat on Tuesday. The Observer view on the case for a second Brexit vote remaining as strong as ever Read more Kyle told the Observer on Saturday that Barclay had “remained loyal to government policy”, which is to oppose any second referendum. Under the Kyle-Wilson plan, which could receive Labour’s official backing after Tuesday’s vote but before Brexit day on 29 March, an amendment would be put down in parliament allowing MPs to approve May’s deal, but on the condition that it is then put to the country in a second public vote. Read more Kyle said: “Clearly the Brexit secretary is fully engaged in the battle to deliver support for the vote on Tuesday. We didn’t enter the meeting with expectations of converting him to our cause but we hope that government now understands what our plan offers, should a new direction be demanded by parliament in the coming days.” A senior Downing Street source said May remained “100% opposed to a second referendum, with bells on” and insisted that she and all cabinet ministers were still determined to persuade enough Tory MPs and the 10 DUP members to rally behind her deal this week. “The PM, ministers and her negotiating team are intensely focused this weekend on making progress so that ultimately we can, in the country’s best interests, leave the EU with a deal.” If May loses on Tuesday, she has said she will call a vote on Wednesday on whether parliament should rule out a no-deal Brexit and then a further one, probably on Thursday, on delaying Brexit. It is understood that if she loses, the prime minister has not ruled out trying to bring back her deal to parliament a third time, nearer to Brexit day, when she would tell MPs that the only alternative to backing her would be a lengthy delay that could mean Brexit not happening at all. Labour will delay putting down an amendment in favour of a second referendum until nearer Brexit day. But the new Independent Group of MPs will table an amendment for a second referendum to take place after a series of indicative votes on alternatives to May’s deal had been held. Some two million young people who could not vote last time due to their age would now be able to do so.

Ministers will resume efforts later to secure legally-binding changes to Theresa May's Brexit deal that might get MPs' backing in a week's time. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay and Attorney General Geoffrey Cox will meet EU officials in Brussels in search of guarantees over the backstop plan to avoid border checks in Ireland. Mr Cox has dismissed reports he has given up on securing a firm end date to ensure the UK is not stuck. MPs will vote on the deal by 12 March. If MPs reject the withdrawal agreement for a second time, they will have the opportunity to vote on whether to go ahead in just over three weeks' time without any kind of negotiated deal. If they decide against, they will then have a vote on whether to extend negotiations and push the date of departure back by several months. Separately, Scottish and Welsh politicians are joining forces in an attempt to force the prime minister to change her position on Brexit. For the first time since devolution 20 years ago, they will debate the same motion, at the same time. Struggling towns to get post-Brexit funding Brexit: A really simple guide Macron urges reforms to protect EU Brexit: Your questions answered Leading Brexiteers are hoping Mr Cox will be able to change his legal advice to satisfy them that the backstop - a controversial plan which will see the UK aligned with EU customs rules until the two sides' future relationship is agreed or alternative arrangements worked out - will not endure indefinitely. Last week, Jeremy Corbyn said Labour will back another EU referendum, after his alternative Brexit plan was again defeated in the Commons.

"there's Conservatives as well, it's not just the Labour Party. I think as of now they are basically working with us to stop Brexit, to try and get a People's Vote. Liam Fox: To extend because we don't have an agreement is not acceptable Dr Fox said there should not be an extension to Article 50 simply because there wasn't a deal on the table with the EU. 'A no deal Brexit is an uncertainty that is completely unacceptable for all sorts of people' - Shadow Attorney General Shami Chakrabarti reacts to Nissan cancelling plans to build a new model in Sunderland.#Ridge For more, head here: https://t.co/KxKLJs9ljT pic.twitter.com/i4BpO9OPm8 — Ridge on Sunday (@RidgeOnSunday) February 3, 2019 Liam Fox: Ireland must negotiate Earlier in the show, Liam Fox spoke to Sophy Ridge about the ongoing discussions and the issue of the hard border on the island of Ireland. 'Agriculture and food is always the last chapter in any trade deal to be agreed' - National Farmers' Union president @Minette_Batters says agriculture has to be part of any free trade agreement with the EU. Minette Batters: No-deal is huge for every single person 'Post-Brexit we could have been producing much more of our fruit and veg at home' - National Farmers' Union president @Minette_Batters says farmers reliance on seasonal workers has been put in jeopardy by Brexit. "We would see a long term future of bringing cheap food in. Liam Fox: MPs might have a tough time keeping seats Dr Fox told Sophy Ridge: "Theresa May has negotiated not only with Brussels but her own party. Those who were elected on it and don't carry it through will have a difficult time in the next election and I think they deserve it." Vince Cable on the potential plot for a new party Liam Fox: Talks will continue He said: "We continue to talk to European partners to get an agreement, and as quickly as possible.

Aa Aa Faced with a climate of hatred that pervades Europe, MEPs in Brussels will discuss on Wednesday the increasing verbal and physical violence against politicians. This is a reality that Dutch MEP Judith Sargentini knows well. She denounced the violation of rule of law in Hungary and since then she has been targeted. Sargentini claims the Hungarian government is behind those attacks. “They went as far as to put advertisements in newspapers, commercials on TV and now lately the Hungarian government is actually paying for pushing their twitter comments on me into the Dutch and Belgian twitter space”, she says. On January 14, Pawe? Adamowicz the mayor of Gdansk, Poland was fatally stabbed But politicians themselves are responsible for fueling this kind of violence. By claiming freedom of expression, extremist forces have managed to bring hate speech into the political discourse in the last two decades, Jonas Lefevere expert of communication at the Vesalius College in Brussels explains. “It has to do with an increase of electoral volatility, where you see that parties and candidates now have to fight more intensively in order to maintain their electoral shares”. Fragmentation of traditional media and the competition with social media places politicians in a stronger position to set the rules of the political discourse “Social media platforms themselves carry a huge responsibility there: it is their platform where these messages are posted so in that sense they have a responsibility”. Facebook is starting to understand that: on Monday the company’s general affairs manager declared they will set up tools to tackle political misinformation in the view of EU elections.

Theresa May would go back to Brussels with “enormous firepower” to renegotiate her Brexit deal if the Commons backed an amendment watering down the Irish backstop provision, a senior Conservative backbencher has said before a crucial series of votes. Blow for May as Ireland stresses it will not yield on Brexit backstop Read more Graham Brady said he was hopeful of ministerial support for his amendment, which says the backstop should be replaced by “alternative arrangements to avoid a hard border”, even though Ireland has repeatedly stressed such a change cannot happen. There is speculation that the government could formally back Brady’s amendment, which is intended to bring back onboard the many Conservative and DUP MPs who voted against May’s Brexit plan when it was overwhelmingly defeated in the Commons earlier this month. The vote against May’s deal “didn’t necessarily indicate that the agreement is dead”, Brady, who chairs the 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers, told Today, just that MPs had “a very, very fundamental problem” with the backstop. Brady said his amendment was intended to break the impasse: “I’m hoping that the way in which the amendment is crafted can attract that very broad support. And if we can win the vote on my amendment, then I think it gives the prime minister enormous firepower when she goes back. Brady agreed that the change must be legally binding, adding: “I don’t think anybody’s going to accept something which is just warm words.” The Cooper and Boles plan seems set to get formal support from Labour, but the government is unlikely to allow ministers a free vote. This is probably the only opportunity parliament is going to have to intervene in this process, to take control.” He added: “29 March is an entirely arbitrary date, just two years on from when we sent the letter. And the truth is the prime minister has wasted time. She delayed the vote by a whole month over Christmas and New Year, as she thought she would lose it.

Theresa May is expected to reject calls to forge a cross-party consensus on Brexit when she lays out her plan B to parliament on Monday, choosing instead to back new diplomatic efforts in Brussels to renegotiate the Irish backstop. The prime minister held a conference call with her bitterly divided cabinet from the country retreat of Chequers on Sunday evening. Several senior Conservative MPs have suggested they could form a breakaway party if May opted to support a customs union – one of Labour’s central demands, which is also backed by Tory supporters of a Norway-style soft Brexit. Demonstrating the divide in public opinion, the next most popular option, supported by 24% of the public, is to start the process of holding a second referendum. Earlier on Sunday, Liam Fox said it was “the overwhelming view” among party colleagues that the prime minister’s deal was salvageable if she could get change on the backstop. “Now given that we’re in that same place that should be the area that we need to look to find some compromise.” However, a Downing Street source said the plan was “not one we recognise”. The Irish foreign minister, Simon Coveney, said: “I can assure you that the Irish government’s commitment to the entire withdrawal agreement is absolute, including the backstop to ensure, no matter what, an open border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, and the Good Friday agreement, are protected.” “The solidarity in the EU is complete there, as Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker made clear: they are waiting to see what Theresa May’s plan B is,” an Irish government source added. He said: “We have to negotiate and also agree a withdrawal agreement with Britain. “When parliament can’t pass laws, not just on Brexit but on other matters, and the government cannot govern through that, then that’s normally when you have a general election,” he told the BBC. NHS plans alternative transport routes to avoid no-deal medicine shortage Read more Tory chair Brandon Lewis emailed all Conservative members on Sunday asking for donations with the subject line “Corbyn wants an election,” though he later insisted the party was preparing for local elections in May.

Brussels is the seat of the European Union. And so to find out how politicians there are reacting, we've reached Jeremy Cliffe, Brussels bureau chief for The Economist. SHAPIRO: When British parliament overwhelmingly voted down this deal that Theresa May had worked out with the EU, how did EU leaders react? The two-year period in which Britain is supposed to be negotiating its exit from the EU is almost up. SHAPIRO: Another - a number of British lawmakers said, we can get a better deal from the EU. CLIFFE: It's not realistic within the U.K.'s existing red lines. There's a real gap between, I think, what many people in London think they can get and what the Europeans are willing to give. And many people here don't want Britain to stay in beyond the start of the new parliament session, which is in July, simply because then you'd have the question of what do you do with - do you give British politicians seats in that new parliament, or does Britain somehow sit in the EU without having representation in its legislature? It's not completely inconceivable that Britain could extend its membership and extend the negotiating period beyond the start of the new parliament, which might mean having British members of that European parliament sitting for the remaining period of the negotiation. SHAPIRO: Jeremy Cliffe, thanks so much for joining us.