Brexit is like the Shawshank Redemption... ...but now we can see the light
➜ Tusk says foundations are ready ➜ EU summit may be extended for leaders to see text ➜ DUP digs in for ‘consent’ clarification
BORIS JOHNSON’S hopes of leaving the EU with a Brexit deal appeared to be in the hands of Parliament last night after Brussels said an agreement was effectively in place.
Donald Tusk, the European Council president, said the “basic foundations of an agreement are ready” and could “theoretically” be agreed with Britain today. Talks in Brussels continued into the night as Mr Johnson likened the negotiations to the prison-break drama
The Shawshank Redemption, in which an escapee has to crawl through a sewer to reach freedom.
But Mr Johnson must first convince the DUP to back his newly crafted deal, before putting it to an all-important vote in Parliament on Saturday. Arlene Foster, the DUP leader, was last night given a briefing at Downing Street for the third day running, following a day in which her party had become the main obstacle to a deal.
The DUP dug in over the nature of a “consent” mechanism for Northern Irish parties that would replace the “veto” on a deal they had in the original proposal tabled by the British side.
Meanwhile, France and Spain demanded access to UK fishing waters in return for a zero-tariff free trade deal.
Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron held a pre-summit meeting in Toulouse. The German chancellor said she believed it was the “final sprint” for negotiations and she was “increasingly of the belief ” that an agreement would be reached with the UK.
The French president added: “I want to believe that a deal is being finalised that we will be able to see tomorrow.”
Officials still hope to be able to put the text of a deal to the 28 EU leaders when they meet today, but the Brexit section of the three-day summit could be pushed back to tomorrow to enable further talks this morning.
Downing Street said “hurdles” remained, mainly over consent and the nature of Northern Ireland’s customs relationship with the EU and the UK.
Mr Johnson told a meeting of the 1922 Committee of Tory back-bench MPS last night that there was “good progress but still two or three outstanding issues” and that he was “taking nothing for granted”.
He also compared the final push for a deal to being at the Hillary Step of Everest – famed as the last big obstacle climbers face before the summit of the world’s highest mountain.
If a deal is agreed in Brussels by tomorrow night, attention will shift to Saturday’s sitting of Parliament, where MPS will vote on whether to accept it.
If Parliament does not back a deal by Saturday afternoon, Mr Johnson will be forced by law to write to the EU asking for a three-month Brexit extension.
Stephen Barclay, the Brexit Secretary, told a committee of MPS that Mr Johnson will make the request if no deal is in place, despite the Prime Minister repeatedly saying he would not.
The Northern Ireland Assembly would also need to give its consent to the province’s new arrangements, with another vote to follow after four years. If Stormont decided to end the arrangement there would be a two-year “cooling off period” during which alternative arrangements to preserve the Good Friday Agreement would have to be agreed by the EU, Britain and Northern Ireland.
Mr Johnson appeared to have won over almost all of the so-called “Spartans” in his party – the hardline Brexiteers who refused three times to back Theresa May’s deal.
Steve Baker, the chairman of the probrexit European Research Group (ERG), said “great progress” had been made in talks with No10.
Speaking to Sky News after a meeting in Downing Street, he said: “Really at this point, it just remains to wish the Prime Minister every possible success as he goes to negotiate for our country.”
The Daily Telegraph understands that the legal text of the withdrawal agreement has been agreed between Britain and the EU, but that arguments continued last night over the content of the attached political declaration, which deals with the UK’S future relationship with the bloc.
Mr Tusk said: “Yesterday evening, I was ready to bet that it’s all set and agreed. Today, there are certain doubts on the British side. The basic foundations of an agreement are ready and theoretically tomorrow we could accept this deal with Great Britain.”
Sources in Brussels suggested that the deal could be agreed in principle this week, before being ratified at a second European Council meeting at the end of this month.
If the deal has not yet been ratified, it would mean Saturday’s vote in Parliament would be “indicative” only, with another vote to come at the end of the month on the final legal text.
EU leaders, having seen Mrs May’s deal fail three times in Parliament, will want Mr Johnson to prove that he can deliver an agreement in Westminster before signing off on the final deal at an extraordinary summit.
Mr Johnson will arrive in Brussels this afternoon for the start of the threeday summit, but could be made to wait for the all-important Brexit section of the meeting, as leaders also have to discuss climate change and the next EU budget among other things.
Michel Barnier, the EU’S chief Brexit negotiator, last night updated EU ambassadors on the latest details of the proposed deal. He left the meeting saying “we are working, we are working”.
EU sources said the main outstanding issue was which VAT regime Northern Ireland would follow after Brexit.
Diplomatic sources said the delays in producing the final text meant there was no prospect of EU leaders legally signing off on a deal today even if a final text was agreed this morning.
The Telegraph understands that Northern Ireland will enter into a separate trade arrangement with the EU
BORIS JOHNSON is more popular than Jeremy Corbyn among young people, a poll has found, as the Tory lead over Labour continues to grow.
A Yougov survey published yesterday suggested that Mr Johnson was beating the Labour leader among voters aged 18-24 for the first time, with 32 per cent backing him as the best man for the job of Prime Minister.
The poll of 1,625 adults showed Mr Corbyn trailing in every age demographic, as more than two thirds of voters aged 65 backed the Prime Minister.
Mr Johnson, the former mayor of London, also appears to be recovering support in the capital, leading Mr Corbyn by three percentage points.
The trend is replicated for the Conservative Party, which tops London on 31 per cent, with Labour’s support falling by 4 per cent in the city compared with Yougov’s findings from last week. The poll puts the Tories on 37 per cent nationally, extending the party’s lead over Labour to 15 points.
It comes amid growing splits at the top of Labour over Brexit and its election strategy, while backbenchers are increasingly opposed to a snap poll, fearing being punished by voters.
Mr Corbyn and his inner circle remain determined to force an election once a no-deal Brexit is ruled out, and discussed the prospect of a poll in late November or early December.
However, a growing number of his frontbench MPS are now shifting towards delay in order to try and hold a second referendum first.
Labour MPS have also raised concerns over the party’s readiness to fight an election and the way that funding is being spent, culminating in a stormy meeting in Parliament on Monday.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph last night, one backbench MP said: “At what point does Jeremy Corbyn get the message that the biggest barrier to a Labour government is Jeremy Corbyn?
“He has an unrivalled grip on the Labour Party. When the Tories win, and they will win, he will share the responsibility for every policy of Boris Johnson’s Tory Government.”
It came as Mr Corbyn reportedly lost his temper over the criticism of changes of personnel in his office during a meeting of the shadow cabinet.
According to Huffpost, he hit out at Ian Lavery, the Labour Party chairman, after he raised concerns over the shake-up, which saw his chief of staff moved to the party’s headquarters. Insiders told the website Mr Corbyn said he was “fed up” with the row, with one adding: “Jeremy almost never loses his temper, but he was furious.”