The European Commission is continuing "intensive" talks on Brexit with Ireland through "very good" communication channels, the deputy chief spokesperson for the commission said Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st April, 2019) The European Commission is continuing "intensive" talks on Brexit with Ireland through "very good" communication channels, the deputy chief spokesperson for the commission said Monday.
After the UK House of Commons on Friday rejected the withdrawal deal for the third time, the European Commission said a no-deal Brexit on April 12 was a likely scenario.
"We are in intensive discussions, we have very good and open communication channels with our Irish fiends, so everything is on the right track," Alexander Winterstein told reporters, when asked if the commission knew of Ireland's plan for a potential no-deal Brexit.
The border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland has been one of the contentious points in the Brexit talks. Both sides say they want to avoid hard border. However, some of the UK lawmakers fear that the United Kingdom would be unable to leave the backstop arrangement urged by the European Union. The bloc, in turn, has indicated it would not renegotiate the deal, including the Irish border backstop.
Back in March, the United Kingdom said it would waive checks at the Irish border in case of a no-deal Breixt.
UK lawmakers are set to continue discussing alternative Brexit options on Monday after holding a series of indicative votes on Wednesday. None of the plans were approved by the parliament, but the motion in favor of a customs union with the European Union came the closest to passing as it lacked only six votes. A UK-wide customs union could help keep the Irish border "soft."
The European Council gave the United Kingdom an extension beyond the original Brexit deadline of March 29. If the deal had been passed last week, the United Kingdom would have been able to leave on May 22. However, it now has to come up with a new proposal by April 12 or risk leaving the bloc without a deal.
