The Official Deadline For The United Kingdom's Exit From The European Union Has Been Set For March

The official deadline for the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union has been set for March 29, 2019, but after nearly two years of talks, Brexit can yet be postponed

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 20th March, 2019) The official deadline for the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union has been set for March 29, 2019, but after nearly two years of talks, Brexit can yet be postponed.

With only 10 days left before the deadline, there is still no certainty on whether Brexit will be extended or not, and if yes, then by how long.

In 2013, then-UK Prime Minister David Cameron promised a referendum on EU membership if his Conservative Party won the election. The referendum was held on July 23, 2016, with Cameron leading the Remain campaign.

The Leave campaign won with 51.9 percent of the vote across the country. However, in Scotland and Northern Ireland, Remain won with 62 and 55.8 percent of the vote, respectively.

Cameron resigned in July 2016, weeks after the referendum. Theresa May, who had just been elected as the leader of the Conservative Party, was appointed prime minister in his place.

May signed the letter invoking Article 50 and thus triggering the exit procedure. The letter was delivered to European Council President Donald Tusk on March 29, 2019. From that moment on, the countdown to the UK exit began.

In June 2017, the two sides launched talks on the terms of the withdrawal and future EU-UK relations. A great number of issues have arisen, including the rights of UK citizens residing in the European Union and vice versa, the divorce bill, and Northern Irish border, to name a few.

The land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has emerged as one of the key issues. The European Union insisted on a safety net that would prevent a hard border, but the United Kingdom has been wary of it.

In November 2018, the United Kingdom and the European Union said they had agreed a withdrawal deal and a political declaration on a future relationship. The deal included a Northern Irish backstop, which would be used only if the United Kingdom and the European Union failed to agree on all aspects of their partnership by the end of the transition period.

The deal was approved by the European Council, but saw frosty welcome in the House of Commons. Under the backstop, the United Kingdom would remain part of a customs union with the bloc, while Northern Ireland would be aligned with some EU single market rules as well. This could lead to additional checks between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom.

In early December, the government was forced by the parliament to publish legal advice by Attorney General Geoffrey Cox, which suggested that the United Kingdom might be trapped in the backstop without a possibility to quit unilaterally.

The vote in the UK Parliament, initially scheduled for December 11, was postponed until January as it became clear that the deal would not pass. However, the European Union has refused to reopen negotiations, conceding only to give further clarifications and confirmations that the backstop was meant to be temporary.

The vote was held in January, and the deal was rejected by 432 votes against 202. Talk of a no-deal Brexit and a deadline extension intensified.

In March, the House of Commons voted on the deal once again. May was able to secure several last-minute additions to it, providing legal guarantees that the backstop was only temporary. However, the new legal advice on Brexit said that, despite some improvement, the risk of a backstop trap remained.

The deal was defeated, on March 12, by 149 votes despite these additions. On the next day, the UK parliament voted to rule out a no-deal scenario. On March 14, the House of Commons voted to delay Brexit.

The government said on Monday it would ask Brussels for a short extension if the deal was passed this week. In a surprise twist, Speaker John Bercow ruled on Monday that the government could not bring its deal to vote for the third time unless it has been substantially changed.

The United Kingdom is set to leave the bloc at 23:00 GMT on March 29, 2019. If the extension has not been requested or granted by then, the United Kingdom risks leaving without any deal. With the World Trade Organization rules in place, there would be new procedures at the border, which would interfere with established supply chains of many businesses.

On Thursday and Friday, EU leaders will meet for a summit, and an extension is likely to be discussed then. A short delay could not be longer than June 30, the UK prime minister has warned, as otherwise the United Kingdom would have to take part in the European Parliament elections, scheduled for late May. The European Parliament's new term will begin on July 2.

If the United Kingdom intends to have a longer extension and to vote in the European elections, the necessary legislation should be in place by April 12.