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Brexit talks deadlocked day before Commons vote on May's deal | Brexit talks deadlocked day before Commons vote on May's deal |
(32 minutes later) | |
Brexit talks between the UK and the EU remain deadlocked, Downing Street has said just a day before MPs are due to vote again on Theresa May's deal. | Brexit talks between the UK and the EU remain deadlocked, Downing Street has said just a day before MPs are due to vote again on Theresa May's deal. |
Mrs May spoke to European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker on Sunday night after a weekend of negotiations failed to find a breakthrough. | Mrs May spoke to European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker on Sunday night after a weekend of negotiations failed to find a breakthrough. |
Talks will resume on Monday morning with the aim of securing changes to the deal before Tuesday's vote. | Talks will resume on Monday morning with the aim of securing changes to the deal before Tuesday's vote. |
The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March. | The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March. |
BBC political correspondent Chris Mason said the deal had not been substantially changed and "the prospect of another big loss looms". | |
The government has been seeking changes to the Irish backstop, the safety net designed to maintain an open border on the island of Ireland, and only to be used as a last resort. | The government has been seeking changes to the Irish backstop, the safety net designed to maintain an open border on the island of Ireland, and only to be used as a last resort. |
But the details of it were a sticking point for many MPs when they voted her deal down in January. | But the details of it were a sticking point for many MPs when they voted her deal down in January. |
They worry that - in its current form - the backstop may leave the UK tied to the EU indefinitely. | They worry that - in its current form - the backstop may leave the UK tied to the EU indefinitely. |
'Appeal for unity' | 'Appeal for unity' |
Writing in the Daily Mail, pro-Brexit Environment Secretary Michael Gove said while the prime minister's deal was a compromise, it should not be rejected "for that reason alone". | Writing in the Daily Mail, pro-Brexit Environment Secretary Michael Gove said while the prime minister's deal was a compromise, it should not be rejected "for that reason alone". |
Mr Gove also defended the backstop, saying that if it were to be used he could not imagine EU politicians "tolerating" it for long. | Mr Gove also defended the backstop, saying that if it were to be used he could not imagine EU politicians "tolerating" it for long. |
He appealed for unity among MPs and the country, and rejected the notion of a no-deal Brexit: "We didn't vote to leave without a deal. That wasn't the message of the campaign I helped lead." | He appealed for unity among MPs and the country, and rejected the notion of a no-deal Brexit: "We didn't vote to leave without a deal. That wasn't the message of the campaign I helped lead." |
But former cabinet minister Boris Johnson, who campaigned alongside Mr Gove to leave the EU, said there was "no way" he would vote for the backstop in its current form. | But former cabinet minister Boris Johnson, who campaigned alongside Mr Gove to leave the EU, said there was "no way" he would vote for the backstop in its current form. |
"The UK will have less sovereign power to withdraw from the backstop than it has to leave the EU itself," he wrote in the Daily Telegraph. "It is quite a bewildering state of affairs." | "The UK will have less sovereign power to withdraw from the backstop than it has to leave the EU itself," he wrote in the Daily Telegraph. "It is quite a bewildering state of affairs." |
'Kill the deal' | 'Kill the deal' |
Mr Johnson also accused the EU of treating the UK with contempt: "Our negotiators have done their best to explain the UK democratic and constitutional objections to the Irish backstop. | Mr Johnson also accused the EU of treating the UK with contempt: "Our negotiators have done their best to explain the UK democratic and constitutional objections to the Irish backstop. |
"They might as well have been talking to the wall." | "They might as well have been talking to the wall." |
On Sunday, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt urged MPs to back the deal or risk losing Brexit altogether. | On Sunday, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt urged MPs to back the deal or risk losing Brexit altogether. |
He said some MPs wanted to "kill" the deal in order to delay Brexit, and ultimately get another referendum on the issue. | He said some MPs wanted to "kill" the deal in order to delay Brexit, and ultimately get another referendum on the issue. |
"Within three weeks, those people could have two of those three things," he said. | "Within three weeks, those people could have two of those three things," he said. |
What could happen this week? | What could happen this week? |
If Mrs May's deal passes on Tuesday, the UK will leave the EU under the terms of the deal on 29 March. | If Mrs May's deal passes on Tuesday, the UK will leave the EU under the terms of the deal on 29 March. |
If it is rejected, MPs have been promised a vote on Wednesday on whether the UK should leave without a deal. | If it is rejected, MPs have been promised a vote on Wednesday on whether the UK should leave without a deal. |
If they then reject a no-deal Brexit they could get a vote on Thursday on whether to request a delay to Brexit from the EU. | If they then reject a no-deal Brexit they could get a vote on Thursday on whether to request a delay to Brexit from the EU. |
If it reaches that point, public health minister Steve Brine said he would resign unless Tory MPs are given a free vote on the issue. | If it reaches that point, public health minister Steve Brine said he would resign unless Tory MPs are given a free vote on the issue. |
"I would find it very difficult, actually impossible to be part of a policy that was pursuing actively no-deal," he told BBC Radio 4's The Westminster Hour. | "I would find it very difficult, actually impossible to be part of a policy that was pursuing actively no-deal," he told BBC Radio 4's The Westminster Hour. |