Delay to Brexit now inevitable

European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, right, and Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, left. Photo / AP

A delay to Brexit is now unavoidable, even if British MPs sign off a deal next week, the European Commission has suggested.

In an interview with a Spanish newspaper, Michel Barnier, the EU's chief negotiator, indicated that a "technical" extension would be needed to implement a deal.

Sabine Weyand, his deputy, later "liked" a tweet summarising his comments, in English, as "extension now inavoidable [sic] - will be granted".

Mr Barnier's comments confirm the private view of a significant number of the Cabinet that a limited delay is now inevitable. Theresa May agreed to put the option to MPs if she fails to win a majority for her deal by March 12.

Mr Barnier also indicated that the Commission was preparing to offer the UK a separate legal document that would reiterate a stipulation that the EU would use "best endeavours" to ensure the UK is not trapped in the "backstop" - the controversial insurance plan for the Irish border.

But David Jones, a member of the "star chamber" of current and former Eurosceptic lawyers set up to scrutinise any concessions, said such devices were usually insufficiently watertight and added he was "dubious" that the offer would "pass muster".

Today, Andrea Leadsom, the leader of the Commons, and Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, issue a joint warning against manoeuvres by colleagues they believe are attempting use a delay to stop Brexit altogether.

Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, Mrs Leadsom, who campaigned to leave the EU, and Mr Hunt, who previously supported Remain, state: "The active pursuit of a delay to Brexit - with no purpose beyond frustration - is a betrayal of the referendum result. It would lead to an irretrievable breach of trust with those who are already cynical about the will of Westminster to deliver on the result to begin with.

"The pair also warn against a no-deal departure, which they say would also cause "ruptures" and mean abandoning "a far more attractive option, in the PM's deal".

The article comes after Mrs Leadsomhit out at an intervention by Amber Rudd, David Gauke and Greg Clark in Cabinet last week over a joint intervention they made in favour of a delay.

They also warn the EU that it would be making a "profound mistake" if it refused to offer adequate concessions in response to a demand by MPs for "alternative arrangements" to the current backstop.

To do so would "in effect risk forcing the very thing they say they do not want to see - a no-deal Brexit that risks a hard border," they state.

Mr Barnier said that if a deal was approved on March 12 - 17 days from the current exit date - "and it takes two months to process this, it would be justified." Asked about the concessions under discussion with Geoffrey Cox, the Attorney General, Mr Barnier said: "We can confirm, clarify and guarantee that we Europeans have goodwill, and that we will do everything we can in good faith to avoid using that backstop at all - or to do so for a short period - through a document with legal force."

The comments suggest the EU is planning to elaborate on the so-called "best endeavours" clause in the current deal, under which the EU is required to negotiate in good faith to conclude an agreement that supersedes the backstop by the end of December 2021, the end of the transition period.