The UK parliament was due in the evening of Monday 13 March to discuss the bill authorising the country’s withdrawal from the EU and allowing UK Prime Minister Theresa May to trigger Article 50 of the Treaty. Although the British media have been saying in recent days that activation is imminent, the government let it be known in the afternoon of Monday 13 March that there would be no notification this week. Perhaps “next week at the earliest”, Downing Street said.
At last week’s European summit, European Council President Donald Tusk stated that the EU27 would be in a position to respond to the notification “within 48 hours” (see EUROPE 11743). The agreed timetable would see a special summit called for 6 April that would allow leaders to adopt their guidelines, if notification was sent this week. If notification were to be later, the summit would take place at the start of May
Whatever happens, once the European summit has been convened, the European Commission will thereafter have to publish a recommendation to the Council that negotiations be opened, Commission spokesperson Margaritis Schinas said on Monday 13 March. It is the General Affairs Council that will be tasked with adopting the recommendation. There could be a period of six to eight weeks between notification and the start of talks.
On Sunday, UK Brexit Minister David Davis urged MPs not to tie May’s hands before the start of the negotiations and called on them to reject the two amendments put down by the House of Lords, AFP reports. The UK parliament’s upper chamber called for the rights of the 3 million EU nationals residing in the UK to be protected and for parliament to vote on the final agreement with Brussels.
Second referendum on Scottish independence? Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced on Monday morning that she would ask the Scottish parliament, next week, to request authorisation for a second referendum on Scottish independence in 2018 or 2019. According to recent opinion polls, 48% of voters' support independence. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)