May hopes to find softer way forward

British PM seeks talks with opposition leader Corbyn on Brexit deadlock

British Prime Minister Theresa May appeared to finally concede she had run into a Brexit brick wall on Tuesday when she announced her intention to sit down with the leader of the United Kingdom's official opposition in search of a way forward.

May hopes a consensus with Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the Labour Party, will allow her to honor the 2016 decision of the British electorate to leave the European Union.

She made her offer of face-to-face talks after emerging from a marathon, seven-hour Cabinet meeting held to discuss her lack of success in winning support from members of Parliament for the divorce deal she negotiated with the EU and which the bloc's other 27 heads of state agreed to in November.

But the British Parliament has been bitterly divided on the proposed withdrawal deal, with some MPs favoring a more distant future relationship with the EU and others wanting a much closer one, or even no separation at all.

After holding votes on her proposed deal on three occasions, and losing heavily each time, May now hopes to find a deal that both she and Corbyn can live with, and then get support for that deal from the House of Commons.

The European Parliament's Brexit coordinator, Guy Verhofstadt, implied she should have taken the step a long time ago when he said via Twitter: "Good that PM Theresa May is looking for a cross-party compromise. Better late than never."

May has said the proposed withdrawal agreement she negotiated with the EU must remain part of any new deal she works out with Corbyn.

Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay told BBC Radio 4's Today program the attempt at consensus-building means the UK is almost certainly now heading for a softer Brexit.

He said the failure of hardline Brexiteers to get behind May's proposed deal opened the door to the softer Brexit he now expects.

"It's regrettable that what we have been saying for several months now is coming to pass," he said. "The alternative then is to have to seek votes from the opposition benches, because 35 of my own colleagues would not support the prime minister's deal."

Hardline Brexiteers from within May's Conservative Party reacted with anger to the news that May is seeking a compromise with Corbyn.

UK former foreign secretary Boris Johnson said May was "entrusting the final handling of Brexit to Labour".

The withdrawal agreement that May and Corbyn will try to thrash out is expected to include details of how much money the UK will pay the EU to settle its accounts, details of the transition period that will follow the UK's departure, and commitments on people's rights, and the way in which the UK and EU can avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.

Corbyn said he would be "very happy" to try to break the deadlock.

Suitable deal

The EU, meanwhile, in a bid to buy time so a suitable deal can be found, is reportedly prepared to offer the UK a long extension of its current exit deadline of April 12.

The Financial Times reported on Wednesday that the bloc would attach strict conditions to any such extension, including a requirement that the UK participate in EU elections in May.

The extension could, it said, be offered when EU leaders gather for an emergency Brexit summit next Wednesday, two days ahead of Britain's scheduled exit. The paper said the extension could run until the first quarter of 2020.

But while a long extension might be offered, it is not a certainty. German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she is open to the idea but French President Emmanuel Macron has noted it cannot be "taken for granted" and Michel Barnier, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator, has said a lengthy deferral "would carry significant risks for the EU" and therefore require a "strong justification".

earle@mail.chinadailyuk.com

(China Daily 04/04/2019 page11)