Government must accept we will not get an EU deal

THERE is no shame in being reasonable. There is no shame in trying to negotiate and find common ground. That is why it is unfair to criticise Theresa May for trying to come to a sensible compromise with the European Union over these tortuous months of negotiations.

But there is a point that we have to recognise that the other parties are not reasonable people and have no interest in finding common ground.

That is where we are now with the Brexit negotiations and the Government needs to recognise this.

As our Prime Minister does yet another shuttle tour of European capitals to find a last-minute compromise it is obvious that the dogmatic ideologues in Brussels have no interest in listening let alone talking.

There is a reason why MPs were willing overwhelmingly to reject the deal and that is because the EU’s demand for a backstop is unreasonable.

The backstop would potentially trap Britain permanently under Brussels rule and take away democratic accountability in this country. There is one word for that: unacceptable.

We have come to the point after these long days of talks. The EU must either drop the backstop demand or Britain needs to walk away with no deal.

Jean-Claude Juncker’s usual unhelpful intervention has suggested there is no flexibility on the EU side. If this is true we must not bow to Remainers and Labour who have strived to undermine Brexit and the democratic will of the British people.

Instead Brexit must be delivered as promised deal or no deal. We are a great and proud country with tremendous resources and have nothing to fear.