Brexit revisions met with resistance from Ireland as crunch time nears
Explosive court documents reveal Boris Johnson will ask the EU for a Brexit delay if a divorce deal is not reached by October 19, as Ireland rejects his 11th hour Brexit revisions.
World
Don't miss out on the headlines from World. Followed categories will be added to My News.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will send a letter to the EU asking for a Brexit delay if no divorce deal has been reached by October 19, government papers submitted to a Scottish court say.
The news comes as Boris Johnson’s 11th hour Brexit revisions have been met with resistance from Ireland, increasing the UK’s chances of a no-deal departure from the European Union.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has rejected Mr Johnson’s compromise proposal to avert the controversial Irish backstop, which could potentially tie the UK to the EU permanently.
Mr Varadkar, whose opinion will be key to any deal, appeared to be preparing for a no-deal Brexit, which would hurt his economy as well as the UK’s.
But he also meddled in UK politics on Thursday, as tactics ramped up between negotiating parties.
When asked if he thought the UK should stay in the EU, Mr Varadkar said: “All the polls since Prime Minister Johnson became prime minister suggest that’s what the British people actually want, but their political system isn’t able to give them that choice.”
MORE NEWS
MPs infuriated over Boris’s latest move
Boris unveils five-point Brexit plan
Boris delivers bold new Brexit plan to EU
Mr Johnson’s office rejected Mr Varadkar’s claims that British voters wanted to remain in the EU after voting to Leave in a 2016 referendum.
“The UK voted to leave the EU and the Prime Minister believes it is vital we deliver upon that decision,” a spokeswoman for Mr Johnson said.
“The Prime Minister laid out in a statement earlier today that it is vital we deliver on the referendum result and that is what we are going to do.”
Mr Johnson was racing against time last night. He only has until October 19 before a new law requires him to seek an extension to Brexit.
He has staked his reputation on delivering Brexit by October 31.
Mr Johnson is due to sell his revamped five point Brexit plan to European leaders, including Germany’s Angela Merkel, in the coming days.
Mr Johnson has also been speaking with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, another key player.
“President Juncker confirmed that while the UK has made some progress, a number of problematic points remain in the proposal, on which further work is needed by the UK,” an EU Commission statement said.
“President Juncker emphasised that the governance of the backstop should be stable and predictable.”
The Northern Ireland based Democratic Unionist Party has backed Mr Johnson’s plans and so have some hard line groups in the UK parliament.
However, Mr Johnson will still face the hurdle of getting the deal through parliament because he no longer has a majority.
Mr Johnson told the Commons on Thursday that while his proposals do not deliver all his Brexit goals they are better options than to “remain a prisoner” of the current situation.
But he accepted that they are “some way from a resolution” on the situation.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said no Labour MP could support the “reckless deal”, which he said would jeopardise the Good Friday Agreement that ensured peace on the Northern Ireland border.