The United Kingdom declared a deadlock in Brexit talks as ministers called on the European Union (EU) to offer an eleventh hour concession to stop the deal from being thrown out by Parliament today. Prime Minister Theresa May met European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at Strasbourg last evening and secured ‘legally binding’ changes to the deal.

May said the changes meant the Irish backstop, the insurance policy designed to avoid a hard border in Ireland, could not ‘become permanent’.

MPs will again vote on the Brexit deal this evening. And without substantive changes to the controversial Irish backstop, British media reports indicate the deal may receive a blow.

Earlier, British cabinet minister Andrea Leadsom, a leading Brexit supporter, appealed for ‘one last heave’ by British and EU negotiators to help win a crucial vote on the exit deal in Parliament. She also appealed to Labour Party, Conservative Party and Scottish Nationalist Party members to back the deal and defer seeking changes until they debate legislation in the weeks ahead.

An offer from the EU side on March 8 was instantly rejected by the British side.

Some MPs have told May to pull the vote as they expect a defeat on a scale similar to the historic defeat she suffered in January, according to a prominent British newspaper.

If the prime minister loses the vote again in Parliament, her position could become untenable, cautioned senior Conservative MP Nicky Morgan.

The British Government has been seeking changes to the Irish backstop, the safety net designed to maintain an open border on the island of Ireland, and only to be used as a last resort.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India

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