Angela Merkelhas told EU leaders a Brexit extension would be unavoidable if British MPs vote down the deal agreed with Boris Johnson.
During private talks at the EU summit, the German chancellor told her fellow leaders they could not pretend an extension would not be offered to the UK if it was requested, according to a source familiar with the discussions.
Merkel framedBrexitas a historic issue weighing on the EU and said leaders had a responsibility not to push the UK out without a deal if there was a request for further delay.
Her remarks contrast with the public statement of Jean-Claude Juncker, the European commission president, who said he was“ruling out” an extension. Although he has no power to veto any delay, he said: “If we have a deal, we have a deal, and there is no need for prolongation.”
In reality, the positions of Juncker and Merkel are much closer. Juncker, who has previously favorite long Brexit extensions, told EU leaders that talk of an extension was not helpful.
The conversation took place on Thursday, shortly before EU leaders announced theirunanimous backingfor the new deal with Johnson.
Merkel told Johnson not to tell the British public that EU leaders had ruled out an extension. While EU leaders are anxious for the Brexit deal to pass, they do not wish to be drawn into the vortex of British politics.
The new Brexit deal is essentially the oldBrexitdeal with a new chapter on the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland and a few key tweaks to the political declaration. Here is alink to the full text.
The backstop is replaced
The backstop has essentially been replaced by a full stop whereby Northern Ireland remains aligned to the EU from the end of the transition period for at least four years. A change can only happen if it is voted on by the Stormont assembly.
Consent
Stormont will have a key role in future Brexit arrangements. And if there is cross-community support to remain aligned to the EU rather than the UK the consent will hold for eight years.
The arrangements in this deal will automatically kick in for a mandated four years if there is a breakdown in trade talks, so it remains a “backstop” but with a permanent tinge.
That four-year period will start at the end of December 2020.
Two months before the end of the four-year period, that is October 2024, Stormont will be asked to vote on whether to remain aligned to the EU in ways outlined by this deal or not.
Checks on border, ports and airports
Under the deal, the UK and the EU are “underlining their firm commitment to no customs and regulatory checks or controls and related physical infrastructure at the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland”.
Future trade deals
The EU and the UK will aim for a zero-tariff deal with unlimited quotas. The entire UK, including Northern Ireland, will be free to sign trade deals. The line in the political declaration that “the United Kingdom will consider aligning with union rules in relevant areas” in any future trade talks has been ditched.
Customs
Northern Ireland will remain legally in the UK customs territory but practically in the EU customs unions. There will therefore be no customs checks on the border but tariffs will be payable on certain commercial goods.
No customs duties will be payable on “personal property” being transited from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. That protects online shopping and all items bought for personal rather than commercial use.
Customs duties will be payable on goods imported from the UK for commercial use unless it can be demonstrated that the goods remain in Northern Ireland or are for personal use, as above.
A system of rebates will allow importers to be reimbursed.
West / east trade
The commitment to frictionless trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain is restated.
VAT
EU law on VAT will apply in Northern Ireland.
Single electricity market
The island of Ireland is considering a single market for electricity so homes in Northern Ireland can get their energy from a supplier in Northern Ireland or the republic. There were fears this could be disrupted by Brexit. Under the Johnson deal, the provisions of union law remain so nothing will change.
Level playing field
This guarantees that the UK will remain in line with EU conventions on climate, environment and workers rights in a future trade agreement.
Lisa O’CarrollBrexit correspondent
During a25 – minute meetingwith EU leaders, Johnson expressed confidence he could get a majority for his Brexit deal in a rare Saturday sitting of the Commons.
Thanking the EU for the deal, the prime minister made a short, upbeat statement in which he referred to his school days in Brussels. Johnson attended the European school in Uccle, which educates the children of EU officials.
Johnson also touched on the UK’s long relationship withEurope, suggesting Britain had never been truly European but always half in, half out. It was a businesslike meeting that made some think of the unemotional signing of divorce papers.
Once he had left the room, EU leaders discussed how to respond to any rejection of the deal by the Commons. Some EU leaders, such as Luxembourg’s Xavier Bettel and Malta’s Joseph Muscat, voiced frustration at the idea of another extension.
Donald Tusk, the president of the European council, agreed with Merkel. He later told journalists he would consult EU leaders if there was a request for an extension. But he did not organize a detailed discussion on extension.
“We have not been focusing on the question today, if or when,” Merkel later told journalists. “It’s a free decision to be taken by the British parliament.”
With the vote in the Commons on a knife-edge, EU leaders are also thinking about the future relationship with the UK. Merkel said the EU now had a clearer idea of the kind of future relationship the UK was seeking, in contrast to the picture sketched out by Theresa May.
“At the time [under May] it wasn’t clear what the future relationship should look like, whether there would be a membership in the single market or not,” she said.
Merkel, who has recently described the UK as a “potential competitor”, said it was clear the UK would be a “third country”, ie completely outside the EU’s economic system, “and we will quickly begin negotiating a free-trade agreement with that third country, Great Britain. ”
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