Brexit chaos
A chaotic no-deal Brexit has moved closer after the defeat of British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal in parliament, the European Union’s most senior officials have warned.
Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, has appealed to the House of Commons to come up with some answers, and strongly hinted at the need for a second referendum or parliamentary vote to cancel the decision to leave the EU.
‘‘If a deal is impossible and no one wants no deal, then who will finally have the courage to say what the only positive solution is?" he said after the deal was defeated yesterday by 432 votes against and 202 in support – the biggest defeat for a government in the House of Commons in modern history.
Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, warned that chaos was looming as the deadline for Britain to crash out of the EU without a deal approaches in the next two months.
‘‘The risk of a disorderly withdrawal of the UK has increased with this evening’s vote. I urge the United Kingdom to clarify its intentions as soon as possible. Time is almost up.’’
Tusk’s spokesman said the EU would step up no-deal planning and expected May’s government to present a Plan B in the coming days.
‘‘We regret the outcome of the vote, and urge the UK government to clarify its intentions with respect to its next steps as soon as possible.
‘‘We will continue our preparations for all outcomes, including a no-deal scenario. The risk of a disorderly exit has increased with this vote, and while we do not want this to happen, we will be prepared for it.’
May is expected to travel to Brussels soon to begin new negotiations to save the deal.
EU negotiators are already working on the assumption that Britain is ‘‘in Article 50 extension territory’’, and are expecting May to ask for a delay of up to three months until Brexit day, presently scheduled for March 29.
Juncker travelled back early to Brussels yesterday from a European parliament sitting in Strasbourg to be ready for ‘‘emergency’’ Brexit talks. Michel Barnier, the EU’s lead negotiator, will hold discussions with senior MEPs to consider the way forward as the European parliament begins its plans to ratify the withdrawal deal.
Before yesterday’s vote, Heiko Maas, the German foreign minister, hinted at reopening the Brexit deal as long as Britain did not seek fundamental changes to the draft treaty.
France, meanwhile, is resisting changes. Nathalie Loiseau, the French Europe minister, said Britain needed a Plan B. ‘‘It’s not up to us, we have given everything we can give.’’
Senior EU officials and diplomats have suggested that new legally binding assurances could be given on the temporary nature of the Irish backstop, should a consensus emerge among MPs and the government over the United Kingdom’s future relationship with Europe.
New wording could be added to the withdrawal agreement to reassure MPs about the backstop of a partial UK-wide customs union. It could say that the plan, designed to prevent a hard border in Ireland should future trade talks break down, would be in place for only a ‘‘short period’’.
– The Times