Boris Johnson is set to be closing in on a potential majority in Parliament days before a crucial EU summit, and before the much anticipated ‘Super Saturday’ where a potential deal could be put to a vote.
Since the weekend, the EU and the UK have been in intensive talks following positive developments after Boris Johnson met Leo Varadkar last week. With the prime minister making a concession regarding the backstop, there was optimism from the Irish side that a deal could be potentially secured in the coming days.
Boris Johnson will need the support of MPs to pass any new Brexit deal with the EU, however there are signs that he could be edging closer with Labour MPs and Tory Eurosceptics indicating they could back a renewed, improved deal.
Following the Queen’s Speech earlier today, there has been speculation that there isn’t enough time to squeeze through a deal at the technical level before a crucial EU summit that starts on October 17th. With so little time left in the negotiations, it seems likely that an extension would be needed, however this has been ruled out by the prime minister who has insisted that the UK will leave the EU on October 31st without delay.
If a Brexit deal does materialise this week, Parliament will be sitting on Saturday for the first time since the Falklands war, however if talks fail, this may not happen and there could be further political manoeuvring by the government to get the deal over the line in just 2 weeks time. It would seem after today’s events, that the EU want more concessions from the UK and are indicating that a deal will be almost impossible before the deadline, echoing similar standpoints as Donald Tusk. But this could all change in 24-48 hours. Can a deal be reached?
