Lochaber MP Blackford welcomes agreement on Brexit extension

Ross, Skye and Lochaber MP Ian Blackford has welcomed EU President Donald Tusk’s agreement to allow an extension to the Brexit deadline – meaning the UK will not leave Europe today (Thursday October 31).

EU leaders have agreed in principle to extend Brexit until January 31, 2020, so parties can work to secure an early general election to end the Brexit impasse.

The move follows a joint approach to the European Council by Mr Blackford, Westminster leader of the SNP, and Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson, who wrote to Mr Tusk urging the EU to back an extension until January 31, saying this would give opposition parties the opportunity to ‘unlock what has become a deadlocked parliament’ by giving people a say in an election.

Mr Blackford said: ‘There is a responsibility on all of us to make sure we use this time to get out of the Brexit mess we are in and to get out of the impasse everybody is fed up being in.’

SNP and Lib Dem MPs have refused to support Boris Johnson’s motion to hold an election on December 12 while the threat of a no-deal Brexit remains on the table.

Under the Fixed-Term Parliaments Act (FTPA), he would require a two-thirds majority – the backing of 434 MPs – to hold a pre-Christmas election.

Instead, the Lib Dems and the SNP have proposed a one-line Bill to bypass the FTPA, which would grant an election on December 9.

If passed – by a majority of just one third of MPs – this Bill would set the election date in stone and rule out any chance of the Prime Minister altering the date after MPs had voted, which he could theoretically do under the current legislation.

Mr Blackford added: ‘Opposition parties will not be bullied by a prime minister...who has attempted to railroad through his damaging deal without a shred of scrutiny or due process.

‘On top of that, he is now asking Parliament to back an election without knowing the terms of an extension to the Article 50 process. For these reasons we will not support Boris Johnson’s election motion. A general election is now the best way to end the current Brexit impasse.’