British leader Theresa May proposed three options to the British Parliament on Tuesday 26 February to find a solution for an orderly exit of her country from the European Union, including a “short” extension - until the “end of June” - of the negotiation deadline set out in Article 50 of the Treaty.
This option, first raised by Ms May in front of British MPs, is one of the “three commitments” made in the British Parliament, which will vote on Wednesday 27 February on a new amended resolution on Brexit.
Following a meeting of her cabinet, the British leader made a concrete commitment to hold another decisive vote on Tuesday 12 March on the British withdrawal agreement negotiated with the Twenty-Seven.
In the event of a second rejection of the agreement, Ms May will submit a resolution on 13 March asking the British Parliament if it wants the United Kingdom to leave the EU on 29 March, as provided for in the timetable in Article 50, even without an agreement with the EU. The British Parliament would thus have to give its explicit consent to a no-deal Brexit.
If this option is rejected again, the UK Government would then table another resolution on 14 March asking Parliament if it would like the Government to request a “short extension” of Article 50, which is not renewable.
For Ms May, any extension of the negotiation deadline could not extend beyond the end of June 2019. Otherwise, she warned, the country would be forced to participate in the European elections, with the European Parliament coming out from the polls at the end of May, due to hold its constituent session on 2 July.
What signal would the call for European elections in the United Kingdom send to the 17 million British people who voted in 2016 to leave the EU?, she questioned.
Ms May also reiterated on Tuesday her preference for a British withdrawal on 29 March on the basis of the agreement that she is working to clarify more clearly with her European partners, particularly on the issue of the Irish border. Because an extension of the time limit in Article 50 does not, according to her, exclude the risk of a no-deal Brexit.
The day before, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, had considered that an extension of the negotiation deadline was the most “rational” solution (see EUROPE 12201). For the Twenty-Seven, this extension must be justified by the UK authorities and lead to a result acceptable to the EU.
For his part, Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn announced on Monday evening that they would submit an amendment on Wednesday calling for a second popular referendum “to prevent a harmful exit” of the UK from the EU. A move that Ms May mocked on Tuesday, accusing Mr Corbyn of withdrawing and not respecting the will of the people expressed in June 2016. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)