New blow for PM as Angela Merkel rules out any changes to her hated Brexit deal
BRUSSELS won't change Theresa May's Brexit deal even as the PM faces being booted out of office, Angela Merkel vowed today.
In a fresh blow for the PM, the tough-talking German Chancellor said the bloc have no plans to tweak the agreed Brexit deal, and no other EU leaders want to re-open the talks either.
It comes as Mrs May faces a crucial vote of no confidence tonight, where she could be forced out of office.
She will rally her MPs to back her in the coming hours, but if she loses then a leadership race will be triggered.
Today Mrs Merkel dashed hopes of a last-ditch tweak to the deal, saying Brussels won't re-open talks.
"We have no intention of changing the exit agreement," Merkel told a session of the German parliament held to discuss the upcoming Brussels summit of EU leaders.
"That is the common position of the member states."
She admitted that "things are in flux" in London but insisted "we still have time" to seal a deal for Britain to leave the EU in a calm way.
"I can only say to German citizens that we are working hard to make sure we get an orderly Brexit," she added.
Yesterday the PM had a last-minute dash to visit Mrs Merkel in Berlin to discuss how to get the deal through Parliament.
But the visit was overshadowed with the awkward moment the PM was locked in her car - forcing the Chancellor to awkwardly wait 13 seconds to greet her.
As the PM faced the fight of her life:
- Cabinet ministers and Remain-backing Tories piled in behind her with more than 100 MPs pledging support
- Brexiteers insisted she must go and let a new leader restart talks with the EU
- David Davis and Dominic Raab teamed up with Arlene Foster to announce a new plan for Brexit
- Contenders such as Boris Johnson and Sajid Javid jostled for position to replace Mrs May
- The PM called off a planned Cabinet meeting and trip to Dublin today
A vote of confidence will take place between 6pm and 8pm, backbench boss Graham Brady announced early this morning.
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EU diplomats told The Sun today that it would be "very difficult" to find "suitable wording to find British needs without undermining what the Irish want to subscribe to".
They said that prolonging Article 50 would be not realistic, and No Deal was still likely.
"The nervous atmosphere gets tenser and tenser, but hopes are still there. Even the funny elements of this are actually tragic."
Another sources said the EU would respect whatever happened in Britain "be it a referendum, be it what the House of Commons decides".
";The only priority we have beyond the all European priority is the security of our citizens that the rights of those already in the UK isn’t being violated in any manner," they added.
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