TOP EU COURT: UK CAN UNILATERALLY STOP BREXIT
LUXEMBOURG/LONDON— The European Union’s top court ruled on Monday that the United Kingdom could unilaterally revoke its divorce notice, raising the hopes of pro-Europeans ahead of a crucial vote in the British Parliament on Prime Minister Theresa May’s divorce deal.
Just 36 hours before British lawmakers vote on May’s deal, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) said in an emergency judgment that London could revoke its Article 50 formal divorce notice with no penalty.
May’s government says the ruling means nothing because it has no intention of reversing its decision to leave the European Union on March 29.
But critics of her deal say it provides options—either to delay Brexit and renegotiate terms of withdrawal, or cancel it altogether if British voters change their minds.
“The United Kingdom is free to revoke unilaterally the notification of its intention to withdraw from the European Union,” the court said.
Brexit future uncertain
“Such a revocation, decided in accordance with its own national constitutional requirements, would have the effect that the United Kingdom remains in the Eropean Union under terms that are unchanged.”
The future of Brexit remains deeply uncertain as dozens of lawmakers have publicly promised to vote down May’s divorce deal, a compromise that allowed the UK to exit while staying within EU’s orbit.
Far-reaching consequences
The ultimate Brexit outcome will shape Britain’s $2.8-trillion economy, have far-reaching consequences for the unity of the United Kingdom and determine whether London can keep its place as one of the top two global financial centers.
In the June 2016 referendum, 17.4 million voters, or 52 percent, backed Brexit while 16.1 million, or 48 percent, backed staying in the bloc.
Opponents of Brexit fear it will divide the West as it grapples with the unconventional presidency of Donald Trump and growing assertiveness from Russia and China.
Campaigners hoping to stop Brexit have been buoyed in recent weeks as May herself warned that if her deal was defeated then the United Kingdom could face either a no deal Brexit or no Brexit at all.
When asked about the ECJ’s ruling, Michael Gove, the most prominent Brexit campaigner in the British government, said the United Kingdom did not want to remain a member of the bloc it first joined in 1973.