May Journeys to Brussels, Facing Unhappy EU Leaders over UK’s Commitments to the Deal
MPs had chosen on Tuesday to send May to Brussel in hopes of renegotiation with EU leaders over Irish backstop.
The British Prime Minister Theresa May was sent to Brussel after a series of votes on Tuesday in parliament chose her to face a steadfast European Union and find a solution for the so-called Irish backstop section in the divorce.
May has two weeks to make progress and placate enough of her divided Conservative Party before facing Parliament again. However, speaking immediately after the vote in parliament, Brussels said it does not want to reopen a treaty signed off by the other 27 EU leaders.
“This is a deal which was negotiated with the UK, by the UK, signed off by the UK and the prime minister – and now it looks as though this evening, essentially, there is a row-back and a reneging on the commitments that were made,” said Irish European Affairs minister Helen McEntee.
French President Emmanuel Macron’s office said there could be no renegotiation and demanded a “credible” British proposal.
If the British parliament cannot find a majority for a way forward, the United Kingdom will leave the largest global trading bloc without any deal, a scenario that businesses fear will bring chaos to the world’s fifth biggest economy.
