EU has agreed Brexit delay until January 2020 – Donald Tusk

The EU has agreed to delay Brexit until 31 January 2020 at the latest, Donald Tusk has announced.

A “flextension” will be granted and “formalised through a written procedure”, the bloc’s Council president tweeted, with an EU source adding confirmation would come on Tuesday or Wednesday.

That means if Boris Johnson manages to get his divorce deal through parliament in less than three months, Brexit will happen earlier.

The prime minister asked for the delay after MPs forced him to in a bid to avoid no-deal in just three days’ time.

He promised in his first speech on the steps of Downing Street back in July “there are no circumstances in which I will ask Brussels to delay – we’re leaving on 31 October no ifs, no buts”.

The delay decision came after a meeting of EU27 ambassadors, and days of speculation over whether French President Emmanuel Macon would veto the idea.

But that opposition appears to have been dropped because of the growing chance of a general election being held before Christmas.

MPs are due to vote tonight on Mr Johnson’s third push for a snap poll on Thursday 12 December, which he needs two-thirds of their support to get.

Opposition parties said they were withholding their support until a Brexit delay was granted because of their fears over a no-deal divorce.

But the Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party are backing a plan to hold an election on Monday 9 December.

The few days’ difference means Mr Johnson would not be able to try and get his Brexit deal through parliament before voters head to the polls – and would only need the support of just over half of MPs.

A Downing Street source seemingly accepted they would not win tonight’s election vote, so would propose an “almost identical” motion to the Lib Dem-SNP one tomorrow.

Labour are still opposed to a pre-Christmas election, with shadow chancellor John McDonnell accusing some opposition parties of “selling out the People’s Vote campaign and the cross party campaign to prevent a no-deal”.

Brexit Party Chair and MEP Richard Tice told Sky News’ All Out Politics he hoped the delay decision would give confidence to parliament to back an election.

“The Conservatives have tried and tried and tried – they cannot deliver Brexit on their own in this parliament,” he said.

“They need help, we in the Brexit Party are there to give them that help.”

Brexit deadlines so far

• 29 March – delay requested after Theresa May’s Brexit deal failed three times to pass parliament
• 12 April – delay requested after MPs fail to back any compromise solution in indicative votes
• 31 October- delay requested after Boris Johnson’s timetable for new deal defeated in parliament

Analysis: The time for concessions isn’t over

By Michelle Clifford, Europe correspondent

“I am always happy when decisions are taken” said Michel Barnier as he exited the meeting of ambassadors from where the promise of an extension emerged. But those three more months were hard fought over.

The French had wanted to give the UK a little – not a lot more time – and President Macron had to be persuaded. First, he got a reason to say yes. The prospect of an imminent UK election would have been a key factor (made more likely over the weekend when the Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party said they’d back going to the polls in early December).

Second, Mr Macron is big on unity when it comes to Brexit. On the UK’s departure from the EU the 27 have tried – and pretty much succeeded – to speak with one voice.

Third, he would not want to be blamed if “non” to that January exit meant an exit by default this Thursday. And just days ago that looked like a real possibility. The decision needed to be unanimous and Mr Macron would not have wanted to have been the man to bring the deal down.

And so the “flextension” got the thumbs up. Stay until January if you need to, the EU have said, but go earlier if you manage to get the deal passed.

But that offer comes with conditions. The UK has been told it must “behave” if it is to continue as an EU member and do nothing to thwart the union’s objectives. That includes putting up a candidate for the next EU Commission – something Boris Johnson said he would never do.

Looks like the time for concessions isn’t over.

(c) Sky News 2019: EU has agreed Brexit delay until January 2020 – Donald Tusk