Theresa May pulls out of Brexit divorce deal after EU refuses to accept her demands to limit how long EU judges can rule over their citizens
The Prime Minister pulled out after the EU refused to accept her demand on judge's time limits for EU citizens
THERESA May dramatically pulled out of a Brexit divorce deal after the EU also refused to accept her demand to time limit euro judges’ say over EU citizens.
The Sun can reveal the Prime Minister wanted to attach a sunset clause of less than five years to the compromise arrangement to break a deadlock.
Under it, the European Court of Justice would be able to rule on disputes for Europeans living in the UK.
Legal cases about their rights would be referred to the Luxembourg court by Britain’s Supreme Court, on the advice of an independent ombudsman.
But to fulfil her promise to Leave voters to end the ECJ’s jurisdiction in the UK, Mrs May has insisted it be time limited.
She argued that there would be no need for the ECJ to continue safeguarding EU citizens’ rights as any controversial cases that arrive will have been ruled on within a few years.
The ECJ’s jurisdiction will only apply to EU citizens who are in the UK before the Brexit date and not after.
British diplomatic sources were still confident of winning the tussle for a sunset clause when the PM returns to Brussels tomorrow to continue negotiations.
A British source said: “It wasn’t just the row over the Irish border, Theresa also put her foot down on the ECJ.
“We are prepared to accept a remit for the court for what would only and up being a few small number of cases, but it cannot last forever.”
Brexiteers had reacted with fury after No10’s proposal to open the door for continued meddling by euro judges first emerged last week.
Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage told The Sun: “This is complete legal nonsense.
“It is against everything the British people voted for and utterly unacceptable.”