EU’s Brexit offer met with scepticism and resistance
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POLITICO reports that Andrea Leadsom, the leader of the U.K.’s House of Commons, on Saturday dismissed efforts by the European Union’s Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier to offer a solution to the Brexit impasse and avoid a hard border in Ireland, calling his statement “disappointing.”
Leadsom added that U.K. politicians could be given additional opportunities to vote on a prospective Brexit agreement after next week if Brussels was willing to cede ground on the Northern Irish question and other Brexit-related impasses.
“Certainly, in the event that we can get the changes that parliament wants, then parliament will be given opportunities to support the deal,” she said.
In another story, we read that Britain cannot accept an EU proposal to break the deadlock in the Brexit talks because it would threaten the unity of the United Kingdom by treating Northern Ireland differently, the chairman of the ruling Conservative Party said according to Reuters.
Less than three weeks before Britain leaves the European Union, the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier said on Friday Britain could have the unilateral right to leave their customs union after Brexit.
However, Northern Ireland would have to remain in the EU’s trade orbit to prevent the need for any customs checks on the border with EU-member Ireland.
On the other hand the head of the European Parliament told a German media outlet that “It is crucial to prevent Britain crashing out of the European Union in a disorderly way without a deal.”
In an interview with the Funke group of newspapers, Antonio Tajani added the date of Brexit can be delayed past March 29 by only a few weeks at most.
