LONDON — Prime Minister Theresa May formally asked the European Union on Wednesday to postpone Britain’s departure from the bloc — due in nine days — until June 30. But a frustrated EU has warned it could keep Britain waiting for an answer.

In a letter to European Council President Donald Tusk, May said the Brexit process “clearly will not be completed before 29 March, 2019” — the date fixed in law two years ago for Britain’s departure.

She asked for a delay until June 30, and said she wanted to set out her reasons to EU leaders at a summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Opposition politicians, and pro-EU members of May’s Conservative government, had urged a longer extension, saying a delay of just a few months could leave Britain once again facing a cliff-edge “no-deal” Brexit this summer. Withdrawing without a deal could mean huge disruption for businesses and people in the U.K. and the 27 remaining EU countries.

But a long extension would infuriate the pro-Brexit wing of May’s divided party, and would require Britain to participate in May 23-26 elections for the European Parliament.

May said that would be unacceptable.

“As prime minister I am not prepared to delay Brexit any further than June 30,” she said in the House of Commons.

May said a longer delay would result in Parliament spending “endless hours contemplating its navel on Brexit.”

Britain voted in June 2016 to quit the EU, but almost three years later, its politicians are deadlocked over how — and even whether — to leave.

“Today marks 1,000 days since the referendum and this government has led the country and themselves into crisis, chaos and division,” said opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn.

British lawmakers have twice rejected the Brexit deal May has struck with the bloc. Her troubles deepened when the speaker of the House of Commons ruled earlier this week that she can’t ask Parliament to vote on the deal again unless it is substantially changed. That scuttled May’s plan to try a third time this week to get the agreement approved.

May told Tusk that despite the ruling “it remains my intention to bring the deal back to the House.”

If it is approved, she plans to use the extension until June 30 in order for Parliament to pass the necessary legislation for Britain’s departure.

A delay to Britain’s withdrawal requires the approval of all 27 remaining EU countries — and that’s not guaranteed. Any delay that required Britain to take part in European parliamentary elections would be a major headache for the bloc, and some EU leaders want a short extension to end by May 23, when voting begins.

The head of the bloc’s executive branch said EU leaders are unlikely to agree to a delay at a summit this week.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said if May wanted a delay, “she must bring approval of the negotiated deal and she must bring clear ideas on timing.”

“My impression is … that this week at the European Council there will be no decision, but that we will probably have to meet again next week, because Mrs. May doesn’t have agreement to anything, either in her Cabinet or in Parliament,” Juncker told Germany’s Deutschlandfunk radio.

“As long as we don’t know what Britain could say yes to, we can’t reach a decision.”

Britain’s political chaos has drawn reactions ranging from sympathy to scorn at home and around the world. On its front page Wednesday, the Brexit-backing Daily Mail newspaper bemoaned the time since the referendum as”1,000 lost days.”

From Washington, Donald Trump Jr. said May should have listened to his father, who urged her last year to sue the EU in order to secure better departure terms. The U.S. president has criticized May for not taking his advice.

The president’s multimillionaire son blamed “elites” in London and Brussels for scuttling Brexit. Writing in the Daily Telegraph, Trump Jr. said “democracy in the U.K. is all but dead.”

The gridlock is also causing increasing exasperation among EU leaders.

Juncker said that “in all probability” Britain won’t leave on March 29, but he underlined the EU’s insistence that it will not reopen the painstakingly negotiated withdrawal agreement that British lawmakers have snubbed.

“There will be no renegotiations, no new negotiations and no additional assurances on top of the additional assurances we have already given,” he said.

Juncker said Britain’s Parliament needed to decide whether it would approve the deal that is on the table.

“If that doesn’t happen, and if Great Britain does not leave at the end of March, then we are, I am sorry to say, in the hands of God,” he said. “And I think even God sometimes reaches a limit to his patience.”

Geir Moulson in Berlin and Lorne Cook in Brussels contributed to this story. </s> LONDON, UK — British lawmakers have voted to delay Brexit, just 15 days before the country is scheduled to leave the European Union.

The House of Commons voted by 412-202 in favor of seeking to postpone the U.K.'s departure for at least three months beyond the scheduled March 29 departure from the EU.

The motion commits Prime Minister Theresa May's Conservative government to seek an extension until June 30 if Parliament approves a U.K.-EU withdrawal deal next week.

British lawmakers have already rejected May's EU divorce deal twice and if it fails a third time, the government says the U.K. is looking at a much longer delay to Brexit.

Any extension to Brexit has to be approved by all 27 remaining EU countries. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May's government remained defiant after Parliament took partial control of the stalled process of leaving the European Union, arguing Tuesday that the maneuvering simply underscores the need for lawmakers to approve her twice-defeated deal.

The House of Commons voted late Monday to wrest the parliamentary timetable away from the government temporarily so that lawmakers can vote on alternatives to the withdrawal agreement May negotiated with the

The government, which usually controls the scheduling of votes in Parliament, said the lawmakers' move "upends the balance between our democratic institutions and sets a dangerous, unpredictable precedent for the future."

 

 But Health Secretary Matt Hancock told the BBC that the government won't "pre-commit" to accepting the option backed by lawmakers because they may come up with a plan that is impractical.

"If the Commons voted for the sun to rise in the west, the government would not be able to implement that," he said.

"The best way through this impasse is the one deal that has been negotiated with the that can be delivered quickly now," Hancock said, referring to the prime minister's agreement.

May's authority is hanging by a thread after 30 members of her defied her instructions and voted for Parliament to take control of the process. Three government ministers resigned rather than vote with the government.

Almost three years after Britons voted to leave the EU, the date and terms of its departure are up in the air.

Last week the granted Britain a delay to the scheduled March 29 exit date, saying that if Parliament approved the proposed divorce deal, the UK would leave the EU on May 22.

If not, the government has until April 12 to tell the 27 remaining EU countries what it plans to do leave without a deal, cancel Brexit or chart a path to a new option.

May is continuing to push for approval of her deal with the EU even though the House of Commons overwhelmingly rejected it during votes in January and March.

She has warned pro-Brexit legislators that continuing to reject the deal could lead to a "slow Brexit" that postpones the country's departure indefinitely.

Richard Harrington, who resigned as a business minister to vote in favor of Monday's motion, accused the government of "playing roulette" with people and businesses lives by failing to resolve Britain's Brexit impasse.

Lawmakers who backed Monday's motion, which passed 329-302, hope to find an alternative that can command a majority in Parliament by holding a series of "indicative votes" on other options.

Those alternatives could include a "soft Brexit" that maintains close economic ties with the EU or scrapping Brexit entirely.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, a leading pro-Brexit Conservative, acknowledged that "the choice seems to be Mrs. May's deal or no Brexit."



"I have always thought that 'no deal' is better than May's deal, but May's deal is better than not leaving at all," he said on the Conservative Home podcast.

Cabinet ministers gathering Tuesday for their regular meeting were expected to demand that lawmakers be allowed to follow their consciences, rather than vote the party line, during the debate Wednesday on alternatives to the prime minister's deal.

"Parliament should seek urgently to resolve the situation by considering alternatives freely, without the instruction of party whips, and government should adopt any feasible outcome as its own in order to progress matters," said Alistair Burt, who quit his role in the Foreign Office after defying May on Monday.

"I did not believe the government was prepared to do that, so had to vote to ensure this happens. </s> Image copyright UKParliament/Mark Duffy

MPs have voted by 413 to 202 - a majority of 211 - for Prime Minister Theresa May to ask the EU for a delay to Brexit.

It means the UK may not now leave on 29 March as previously planned.

Mrs May says Brexit could be delayed by three months, to 30 June, if MPs back her deal in a vote next week.

If they reject her deal again then she says she will seek a longer extension - but any delay has to be agreed by the 27 other EU member states.

Most Conservative MPs voted against delaying Brexit - including seven cabinet members - meaning Mrs May had to rely on Labour and other opposition votes to get it through.

But some Labour frontbenchers resigned to defy party orders to abstain on a vote on holding another referendum.

Shadow housing minister Yvonne Fovargue, shadow education minister Emma Lewell-Buck, shadow business minister Justin Madders, Ruth Smeeth, a shadow ministerial aide, and Labour whip Stephanie Peacock, all quit their roles to oppose one.

Theresa May, who has long insisted that the UK will leave the EU on 29 March with or without a withdrawal deal, voted to delay Brexit.

She had been forced to offer MPs a vote on delaying Brexit after they rejected her withdrawal agreement by a large margin, for a second time, and then voted to reject a no-deal Brexit.

She has warned that extending the departure date beyond three months could harm trust in democracy - and mean that the UK would have to take part in May's European Parliament elections.

Please upgrade your browser to view this interactive How did my MP vote on 14 March? Enter a postcode, or the name or constituency of your MP Seat vacant

Downing Street said the government was still preparing for a no-deal Brexit.

Theresa May is planning to hold another "meaningful vote" on her withdrawal deal by Wednesday - after it was overwhelmingly rejected on two previous occasions.

If she wins that vote, she will ask for a one-off extension to Brexit get the necessary legislation through Parliament at an EU summit on Thursday - if not she could ask for a longer extension.

A spokesman for the European Commission said extending Article 50, the mechanism taking the UK out of the EU on 29 March, would need the "unanimous agreement" of all EU member states.

And it would be for the leaders of those states "to consider such a request, giving priority to the need to ensure the functioning of the EU institutions and taking into account the reasons for and duration of a possible extension".

It is still technically possible that we could leave the EU at the end of this month - the law has not changed.

But politically it is now almost entirely out of reach.

The prime minister is accepting she will miss one of the biggest targets she has ever set herself.

Tonight's vote is awkward for another reason, as it again displays the Conservatives' fundamental divisions.

This is more than a quarrel among friends, but a party that is split down the middle on one of the most vital questions this administration has posed, with cabinet ministers, as well as backbench Brexiteers, lining up to disagree with Theresa May.

Read more from Laura

Downing Street said this was a "natural consequence" of Mrs May's decision to offer a free vote on an issue where there are "strong views on all sides of the debate".

Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss tweeted: "I voted against a delay to Brexit. As a delay was passed by Parliament, I want to see deal agreed ASAP so we can minimise to short, technical, extension."

Seven cabinet ministers - Ms Truss, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay, International Trade Secretary Liam Fox, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt, Commons leader Andrea Leadsom, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling and Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson - voted against the government motion.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Health Secretary Matthew Hancock said "it is still possible to deliver Brexit on the 29 March"

Health Secretary Matthew Hancock said it would be "extremely difficult" but "still possible to deliver Brexit on 29 March with a deal".

He said there were now two options: "To vote for the deal and leave in orderly way or a long delay and I think that would be a disaster."

MPs earlier rejected an attempt to secure another Brexit referendum by 334 votes to 85.

And they also rejected a cross-party plan to allow MPs to take control of the Brexit process to hold a series of votes on the next steps, by the narrow margin of two votes.

Following the votes, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn reiterated his support for a further referendum after earlier ordering his MPs not to vote for one.

Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Jeremy Corbyn: Public vote an "option to break deadlock"

He said: "Today I reiterate my conviction that a deal can be agreed based on our alternative plan that can command support across the House.

"I also reiterate our support for a People's Vote - not as a political point-scoring exercise but as a realistic option to break the deadlock."

Labour abstained when MPs voted on the referendum proposal, tabled by Independent Group MP Sarah Wollaston, arguing that now was not the right time to push for a public vote.

But 17 Labour MPs defied party orders and voted to oppose another referendum - while 24 Labour MPs rebelled to vote in favour of one.

Among frontbenchers to quit over the issue, Ms Peacock said: "It is with deep regret I tonight resigned from Labour's front bench, because I believe we should respect the result of the 2016 vote to leave the European Union."

Labour's plan to delay Brexit to allow Parliamentary time for MPs to "find a majority for a different approach" was defeated by 318 to 302 votes. </s> Britain’s Parliament voted to avoid an economically disastrous no-deal split from the European Union, opening the door to delaying Brexit and radically re-writing the terms of the divorce.

The House of Commons voted 321 to 278 to reject leaving the EU with no deal and is now expected to seek to delay Brexit in the hope of securing a better deal, which markets would welcome.

Speaking in the Commons, May said Parliament must now face up to the consequences of its decisions. She announced that if a deal can be agreed to in the coming days, she would ask the EU for a short “technical” extension to the March 29 exit day deadline. If there’s no deal, the delay will be much longer, she said.

It is almost three years since Britain voted to cancel its 40-year membership of the EU and with just 16 days to go until exit day, Theresa May’s government has failed to get an agreement that can win the support of Parliament.

The prime minister’s preferred deal, which took two years to negotiate, was resoundingly rejected by the Commons for the second time in a vote on Tuesday night. Now, MPs have decided to avoid leaving the bloc without a deal.

The question is, what kind of deal will Parliament vote for, and how much longer do Britain’s politicians need to make up their minds?

On Wednesday, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, warned that postponing Brexit won’t be straightforward.

“It could be a tactical, a political prolongation,” Barnier told Euronews TV. “In that case, I know the answers and the reaction of the EU side, the EU leaders, the EU Parliament: ‘What for? Why do you need a prolongation? Is it for organizing a new referendum, new elections or not?”’ </s> MPs have again rejected a series of alternatives to Theresa May’s Brexit deal.

A call for a customs union after Brexit was defeated by just three votes, a referendum on any deal was rejected by 12 votes, the Common Market 2.0 plan lost by 21 votes and cancelling Brexit to prevent a no-deal scenario was defeated by 101.

So what happens next?

– Tuesday April 2



 Theresa May has scheduled a five-hour Cabinet meeting instead of the usual 90 minutes. The first three hours will be a political Cabinet in the absence of civil servants – fuelling speculation the senior Tories will consider the prospect of a snap election, the timing of the Prime Minister’s departure or the potential for ministerial resignations if there is a change in Brexit strategy.

Backbench MPs will again take charge of the Commons timetable to consider Brexit plans under Tory MP Sir Oliver Letwin’s scheme to break the Parliamentary deadlock.

After the latest round of indicative votes failed to produce a clear winner, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said: “If the House were to agree a deal this week it may still be possible to avoid holding European parliamentary elections.”

That could be an indication the Prime Minister might risk a fourth showdown on her Withdrawal Agreement in the hope that more Tory Eurosceptics will accept the choice is between her plan and a softer Brexit.

– Wednesday April 10



 An emergency summit of European Union leaders will consider any request by the UK for a longer delay to Brexit. To be granted a further postponement the Government will have to set out what purpose it would achieve and it will almost certainly involve taking part in the European elections.

The UK is scheduled to leave the EU on April 12 after MPs rejected the Prime Minister’s deal last week.

If Europe’s leaders have agreed an extension to the Article 50 process, the UK will elect MEPs to the European Parliament.

The breakaway Independent Group of MPs has announced it intends to set up a fully fledged political party – Change UK – to fight the elections on a pro-EU platform.

Nigel Farage will seek to continue as an MEP, this time for the newly formed Brexit Party.

Mrs May warned MPs before they rejected her deal that a long extension would “at least delay and could destroy Brexit”.

Three years after the referendum, it is possible the UK will still be in the European Union, have newly elected MEPs and will be contributing to the Brussels budget.

The current make-up of the House of Commons has so far proved unable to agree on any Brexit plan so the Prime Minister could be tempted to call a snap election to break the deadlock.

But having promised not to lead the Tories into the scheduled 2022 election and then said she would quit before the next phase of the Brexit process, would her MPs allow her to fight another contest as leader?

And would a new election produce a decisive result to give whoever occupies Number 10 a majority to steer such a divisive issue through Parliament?

The call for another referendum was defeated by just 12 votes and campaigners seized on the fact it had more MPs voting in favour than any other option.

The narrow defeat for a customs union will increase pressure on Mrs May to move in favour of the measure.

But that would tear the Tory party apart and would be likely to result in Cabinet resignations as critics of the customs union believe it robs the UK of one of the major Brexit prizes – the ability to strike trade deals with countries such as the US. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May has bowed to intense political pressure and handed control of Brexit to parliament, telling politicians they will get to choose between leaving the European Union on schedule — with or without a divorce deal — and asking the EU to postpone departure day.

Mrs May said that if parliament rejects her deal with the EU in a vote due by March 12, politicians will vote the next day on whether to leave the bloc without an agreement.

If that is defeated, as seems likely, they will vote on whether to ask the EU to delay Brexit by up to three months.

Mrs May said the promises were “commitments I am making as prime minister and I will stick by them.”

Britain is due to leave the EU on March 29, but so far the government has not been able to win Parliament’s backing for its divorce deal with the bloc.

That leaves the UK facing a chaotic “no-deal” Brexit that could cause disruption for businesses and people in both Britain and the EU.

Mrs May shifted position after members of her own government joined calls for her to rule out a “no-deal” departure.

Three government ministers said that they would vote with opposition MPs to stop a no-deal departure unless Mrs May agreed to delay Brexit and guarantee “we are not swept over the precipice on March 29.”

Mrs May said her goal remains to lead Britain out of the EU on schedule and with a deal.

“I don’t want to see an extension,” she said, adding that any delay to Brexit should be “as short as possible.”

Delaying Brexit would require approval from all 27 other EU countries. The bloc has said it is likely to agree, but only if Britain has a good reason for the pause.

Businesses warn that without a deal Britain risks a chaotic departure that could disrupt trade between the UK and the EU, its biggest trading partner.

The uncertainty has already led many British firms to shift some operations abroad, stockpile goods or defer investment decisions.

Businesses and the markets breathed a sigh of relief at Mrs May’s statement, which did not rule out “no deal” but at least pushed it a bit further away. The pound rose to its highest level for a month.

“Today, we have seen real movement towards ruling out a chaotic and damaging no-deal on March 29,” said Mike Cherry, national chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses.

But many politicians pointed out that British politics remains deadlocked over Brexit, with both Mrs May’s governing Conservatives and the main opposition Labour Party deeply split on the issue.

Pro-EU Conservative legislator Ken Clarke said delaying Brexit would not break the logjam, but only see the “present pantomime” continue, with “similar chaos about where we are going.”

The House of Commons rejected Mrs May’s deal with the EU last month — largely over concerns about a provision to guarantee an open border between the UK’s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland — and sent Mrs May back to Brussels to get changes.

The EU is adamant that the legally binding withdrawal agreement can’t be changed, though the bloc’s negotiators are holding talks with UK Attorney-General Geoffrey Cox about potential tweaks or additions around the margins.

Mrs May’s concession to parliament came ahead of a series of votes in which pro-EU politicians planned to try to force the government to rule out a “no-deal” Brexit.

Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn accused May of “continuing to run down the clock.”

“Every delay, every bit of badly made fudge just intensifies the uncertainty for industry, business, investment being held back, jobs being lost and more jobs being putting at risk,” he said.

Labour, which has its own internal schism over Brexit, took a step on Monday toward campaigning for a new EU membership referendum as a way to break the deadlock.

The left-of-centre party said it would back a second public vote if the House of Commons rejects its alternative Brexit plan, which calls for Britain to retain close economic ties with the EU. </s> London, United Kingdom - With the clock counting down to Britain's scheduled departure from the European Union, UK legislators have voted down embattled Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal for a second time this year.

A second so-called "meaningful vote" on Tuesday ended with another heavy defeat for the prime minister, with 391 MPs voting against and 242 supporting the deal.

The last time May put the agreement to parliament, in January, she again suffered a major defeat as the deal agreed with the EU over 18 months of painstaking negotiations was defeated by a margin of 230.

This time it was 149.

Tuesday's vote came just 24 hours after May made a last-minute dash to Strasbourg for a meeting with Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission. Two documents were published as a result of the meeting, which May said would deliver the legally-binding changes to the withdrawal agreement MPs had asked for.

But it soon became clear that those changes would not be enough to win the vote.

"We recognise that the prime minister has made limited progress in her discussions with the European Union. However in our view sufficient progress has not been achieved at this time," said a spokesperson for the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), May's ally in Northern Ireland.

May had been tasked with securing changes to the so-called "backstop" protocol of the withdrawal agreement, which critics in the hardline wing of her ruling Conservative Party and the DUP say would trap the UK within the EU's trade rules indefinitely, or see Northern Ireland being treated differently from the rest of the country.

They asked for either a time limit on the backstop, or a unilateral exit clause for the UK.

The attorney general, Geoffrey Cox, published his legal opinion on the new documents saying that they did not fully eliminate the risk of the UK getting stuck in the backstop. When questioned by MPs on his statement, he did say, however, that the documents contain provisions to ensure a "significant reduction in that risk".

What happens now?

May promised to hold two more votes in the coming days. The first, on Wednesday, will see MPs decide on whether to rule out a no-deal Brexit, 16 days before the UK's scheduled departure from the bloc on March 29.

If legislators opt against departing without an agreement on future relations, the government will hold another vote the following day on whether to request an extension to Article 50 - the exit clause in the EU's constitution - from Brussels in a bid to buy more time as it seeks to strike a different divorce deal.

Such an extension could be short-term or long-term. The latter however, would mean the UK taking part in the European Parliament elections on May 23-26, a scenario the prime minister wants to avoid.

A longer extension could also create the momentum for a second referendum campaign, particularly now that the main opposition Labour party supports it.

"I profoundly regret the decision this house has taken tonight," May said in a speech after Tuesday's vote, adding that extending a departure from the EU would not solve the UK's current political impasse.

"The EU will want to know what the house wishes to do with an extension. Does it wish to revoke Article 50? Does it wish to hold a second referendum? Or does it want to leave with a deal but not this deal? These are unenviable choices, but thanks to the decision that the house has made this evening, they are choices that must now be faced."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the result meant May's plan for leaving the EU was "dead" and called on the government to adopt his proposals for an alternative departure from the bloc.

The EU has said no other terms of withdrawal are available to the UK other than the deal brokered with May during months of fractious back-and-forth negotiations, however.

A spokesperson for European Council President Donald Tusk said the second rejection of the agreed withdrawal plan "significantly increased" the risk of a "no-deal" divorce.

"Should there be a UK reasoned request for an extension, the EU27 will consider it and decide by unanimity," the spokesperson added, citing the 27 members of the bloc minus the UK.

The EU's Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, meanwhile, said the bloc had done "everything it can to help get the Withdrawal Agreement over the line".

"The impasse can only be solved in the UK. Our 'no-deal' preparations are now more important than ever before," Barnier said in a tweet.

The EU would have to sign off any decision made this week at the next EU council summit on March 21-22. </s> LONDON, March 15 — British lawmakers voted overwhelmingly yesterday to seek a delay in Britain's exit from the European Union, setting the stage for Prime Minister Theresa May to renew efforts to get her divorce deal approved by parliament next week.

Lawmakers approved by 412 votes to 202 a motion setting out the option to ask the EU for a short delay if parliament can agree on a Brexit deal by March 20 — or a longer delay if no deal can be agreed in time.

The vote makes it likely that the March 29 departure date set down in law, which May has repeatedly emphasised, is likely to be missed, although it is unclear by how long.

The short delay envisaged in the motion could last until June 30, but the longer extension is not currently time-limited. Either would require unanimous approval from the other 27 EU members, whose leaders meet in a summit next Thursday.

May hopes the threat of a long delay will push Brexit supporters in her Conservative Party and members of the Democratic Unionists, the small Northern Irish party that props up her minority government in parliament, to back her deal at the third attempt.

A new vote on May's deal is likely next week, when those lawmakers must decide whether to back a deal they feel does not offer a clean break from the EU, or reject it and accept that Brexit could be watered down or even thwarted by a long delay.

Her spokesman said ministers had agreed to “redouble their resolve” to secure a deal.

Earlier yesterday, lawmakers voted by 334 to 85 against a second referendum on EU membership. Few opposition lawmakers backed the measure and even campaigners for a “People's Vote” said the time was not yet right for parliament to vote on it.

The government narrowly averted an attempt by lawmakers to seize the agenda on March 20 with the aim of forcing a discussion of alternative Brexit options — possibly limiting May's options when she takes her case for delay to the EU.

Yesterday's vote does not mean a delay is guaranteed; EU consent is needed, and the default date for Britain to leave if there is no agreement is still March 29. May's spokesman said the government was still making preparations for a no-deal exit.

Her authority hit an all-time low this week after a series of parliamentary defeats and rebellions. But she has made clear her deal remains her priority, despite twice being overwhelmingly rejected, in January and again on Tuesday.

May's spokesman said earlier yesterday that she would put that deal, struck after two-and-a-half years of talks with the EU, to another vote “if it was felt that it were worthwhile.”

Britons voted by 52-48 per cent in a 2016 referendum to leave the EU, a decision that has not only divided the main political parties but also exposed deep rifts in British society.

Sterling, which swung more wildly this week than at any point since 2017, fell yesterday from nine-month highs as investors turned cautious about May's chances of getting her Brexit deal approved next week.

US President Donald Trump, who had earlier said he looked forward to negotiating a “large scale” trade deal with Britain after Brexit, added to May's headaches by criticising her handling of the crisis.

“I will tell you, I'm surprised at how badly it's all gone from the standpoint of a negotiation,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office as he met Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar.

“But I gave the prime minister my ideas on how to negotiate it and I think you would have been successful. She didn't listen to that, and that's fine. But I think it could have been negotiated in a different manner, frankly.”

Business leaders warn that tearing up 40 years of agreements with the EU and its market of 500 million people without a transition deal would cause chaos. Brexit supporters say that, in the longer term, it would let Britain forge trade deals across the world and thrive.

EU leaders meeting next Thursday will consider pressing Britain to delay Brexit by at least a year, European Council President Donald Tusk said.

“I will appeal to the EU27 (remaining members) to be open to a long extension if the UK finds it necessary to rethink its Brexit strategy and build consensus around it,” he said.

France said that a short Brexit delay merely to discuss May's existing deal was "out of the question".

But there was no immediate sign of any major shift in the views of Conservative hardline eurosceptics who have so far thwarted the prime minister.

Lawmaker Andrew Bridgen accused her of pursuing a "scorched earth" policy of destroying all other Brexit options to leave lawmakers with a choice between her deal and a long delay.

May also needs to win over the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which has so far refused to back her plan.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said the party was working with the government to try to find a way of leaving the EU with a deal. — Reuters
The House of Commons of the United Kingdom votes 412 to 202 to seek a delay to Brexit of three months if UK Prime Minister Theresa May's deal can be passed at a third attempt next week, else significantly longer. The delay, which means the UK will no longer leave the European Union on March 29, will have to be unanimously approved by all other 27 EU member states.