Brexit: Is a last-minute deal possible?

Video caption, David Davis tells MPs Parliament's vote on a Brexit deal may come after March 2019.
  • Author, Peter Saull
  • Role, Reality Check

The Brexit Secretary, David Davis, has suggested that Parliament might not get a vote on a Brexit deal until after March 2019.

It's prompted criticism from some MPs, who are worried their votes will be meaningless because by that point, the UK will have already left the EU.

Also significant is Mr Davis' claim that the European Parliament might have to wait to have its say too.

According to Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which the UK triggered seven months ago, the withdrawal agreement must be passed by a majority of members of the European Parliament.

Even if a deal was done at "the 11th hour" as Mr Davis suggested when giving evidence to the Commons Brexit committee, it would be too late for MEPs to debate it and vote it through.

So the upshot of a last-minute deal could be no deal at all.

The Brexit department later clarified that Mr Davis was talking about "hypothetical scenarios" and ministers are working to reach an agreement in "good time" before March 2019.

It's not entirely clear what "deal" Mr Davis was referring to.

The European Union has broken down the negotiations into two parts.

The first focuses on the issues associated with withdrawal, such as the rights of EU citizens, the Northern Irish border and the UK's financial obligations.

The second covers what our future relationship might look like, including areas such as trade, scientific research and consumer rights.

The British government says it's not possible to separate the two parts, because in many respects, they're intrinsically linked.

If the "deal" that Mr Davis was talking about this morning encompasses both, it must be ratified on or before 29 March 2019, which means an agreement would need to be reached in time for that.

The future relationship part could be ratified after the deadline, but only if part one is rubber-stamped before the deadline.

The EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, is hopeful of reaching a withdrawal agreement by autumn 2018 and the Brexit department said that was their aim as well.

Technically it is possible to extend the Article 50 period, currently fixed at two years, if there's unanimous agreement from the 27 remaining member states.

But that option would be a hard sell.

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