British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday told the European Union that the bloc should urgently discuss his proposal for breaking the Brexit deadlock, ahead of the United Kingdom’s scheduled departure from the union on October 31, Reuters reported. “What we’re saying to our friends is this is a very generous, fair and reasonable offer we’ve made,” Johnson told reporters. “What we’d like to hear from you now is what your thoughts are.”
“If you have issues with any of the proposals that we’ve come up with, then let’s get into the detail and discuss them,” Johnson added, reiterating his stand that the UK would leave the European Union on October 31.
Johnson had presented his proposal to the European Union on October 2, adding that Britain was ready to leave the bloc “with or without a deal” on October 31. The British prime minister said in a message to the European Union that there can be no checks at or near the Northern Ireland border, a compromise both sides should make. However, the proposal added that Northern Ireland would leave the EU’s customs area along with the rest of the UK, a step that could be unacceptable to the bloc and to Ireland.
On Sunday, Johnson met French President Emmanuel Macron, who told him that the European Union will decide at the end of the week whether a Brexit deal is still possible, BBC reported. The British prime minister is scheduled to hold further talks with leaders of Sweden, Denmark and Poland, on the Irish border problem.
Meanwhile, a court in Scotland on Monday rejected a plea by anti-Brexit campaigners to force Johnson to ask for an extension to Brexit if he is unable to get a deal passed in Parliament, The Guardian reported. Lord Pentland, sitting in the court of session in Edinburgh, said he had to believe pledges made by Parliament that Johnson would write a letter seeking an extension on October 19, as required under the Benn Act.
On September 9, the Parliament had rejected Johnson’s second call to hold a snap election in the UK on October 15, two weeks before Britain is scheduled to leave the European Union. A bill stopping a no-deal Brexit became law on the same day. It mandated Johnson to seek a three-month extension to the Brexit deadline of October 31, unless Parliament approves a Brexit deal or agrees to leave the European Union without one by October 19.
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