PM May pushes against exit delay
LONDON: Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday plodded on with her belief that Brexit will happen on March 29, while her ministers, MPS across parties, and even the European Union believe an extension to Article 50 is a “rational decision”.
Speaking in Egypt after talks with EU leaders, May said there is still more work to do on seeking changes to the withdrawal agreement to ensure its passage in Parliament, but insisted there is “real determination” to find a way through the impasse. Under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, the UK is due to leave the EU on March 29.
May, who is under pressure to delay Brexit politically as well in terms of parliamentary procedure, will make a statement in the House of Commons on Tuesday, before a debate and voting takes place on Wednesday. Her comments on Monday raised the level of frustration in London and elsewhere. European Commission president Jean-claude Juncker called it ‘Brexit fatigue’ while Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte warned May the UK was “sleepwalking into a no-deal scenario” and needed to “wake up”.
Donald Tusk, European Council president, said after meeting May: “It is absolutely clear that there is no majority in the House of Commons to approve a deal. We will face an alternative: a chaotic Brexit, or extension”.
“The less time there is until the 29 March, the greater is the likelihood of an extension. And this is an objective fact; not our intention, not our plan, but an objective fact. I believe in the situation we are in, an extension would be a rational solution. But Prime Minister May still believes that she is able to avoid this scenario.”
Ministers, MPS and others have expressed ennui at the binary choice May has offered: support her agreement or leave the EU without a deal – the worstcase scenario due to its debilitating impact on the UK’S economy and everyday life. May’s cabinet remains divided on the way ahead. After three ministers broke ranks to suggest they favoured delaying Brexit, Damian Hinds, education secretary, insisted Brexit it would not be delayed. “It is going to happen on 29 March,” he said on Monday.
Asked if he was 100% confident about that, he said: “Yes I am. Myself and my colleagues in government are working very hard, no one harder of course than the prime minister, to make sure we can get that deal over the time.
“There is a very good deal on the table. There are some legitimate concerns about the backstop in terms of the timing and so on. And it is important to get those resolved.”