The British foreign secretary has warned that the Brexit process may need to be extended – even if a deal is agreed in late March.
Jeremy Hunt told the BBC this morning that it is now “clearly” possible for the UK to reach a deal with the EU.
He admitted however that, if the talks end up going down to the wire, a technical extension may be required in order to pass the legislation.
"I think it is true that if we ended up approving a deal in the days before the 29th March then we might need some extra time to pass critical legislation,” he said. “But if we are able to make progress sooner, then that might not be necessary.”
"We can't know at this stage exactly which of those scenarios would happen."
Brexit talks
He said it was "difficult to know" if negotiations would run right to the end of March.
"What I would say is, whereas a week ago none of us really knew whether this was going to be possible, we are now in a situation where it clearly is possible,” he said.
"There are lots and lots of hurdles, no-one is saying this isn't going to be very challenging, but we do now have a consensus in Parliament.
"We can use that consensus, providing we can meet these concerns – very reasonable concerns – from our friends in Ireland about not having a hard border, concerns in the EU about access to the single market.
"Providing we can do that, which I think we can, then I think there is a way through."
New legislation may need to be passed to extend the EU leaving date if a Brexit deal is reached in the days before 29 March, Foreign Sec @Jeremy_Hunt tells #r4today@justinonweb | https://t.co/N7l1DbOnhA pic.twitter.com/ib4u0hFLsn
— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) January 31, 2019
Mr Hunt was speaking after the House of Commons passed an amendment calling for the border backstop to be replaced with “alternative arrangements.”
The EU has already warned that the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement – including the backstop – is not open for re-negotiation.
In a phone call yesterday, the Taoiseach again warned that UK Prime Minister Theresa May that that position remains unchanged.
He noted that the latest developments in London had "reinforced the need for a backstop which is legally robust and workable in practice."
Mrs May said that further consultations are taking place in London.
