Opposition to May's Brexit Plan Threatens to Derail Negotiations
*By Chloe Aiello*
British Prime Minister Theresa May finally garnered European Union support for her Brexit plan, but unrest at home threatens to dismantle negotiations ー and lawmakers have warned there is no plan B.
"The worst case scenario for many, particularly for anyone who is a 'Remainer,' is that we leave the EU without a deal in place at all," Ayesha Javed, Deputy Editor of The Wall Street Journal's WSJ City, told Cheddar on Monday.
The 585-page deal is designed to keep the United Kingdom within the EU's economic orbit through a transitional period, after which those ties will slowly weaken. The deal includes provisions to prevent a hard border in Ireland, [according to the Guardian,](https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/nov/14/theresa-mays-brexit-deal-everything-you-need-to-know) and guarantees some legal protections for the millions of EU citizens living in the U.K. and vice versa. Much of the focus of the deal has been on goods, rather than on financial services, Javed added, and details concerning trade and securities must still be ironed out.
"The idea is to keep trade as friction-less as possible, although that seems unlikely to happen," she added.
By approving May's plan in Brussels on Sunday, the European Union lawmakers implicitly threw their support behind May, as she works to ensure U.K. Parliament votes to approve the agreement on Dec. 12. She faces tremendous opposition.
"There are lawmakers, for example on the opposition Labour side, who say that the deal goes too far. Some are still pushing for a second referendum. There are others within Theresa May's Conservative Party who say that the deal doesn't go far enough," Javed said. "Some say that this deal is the worst of all worlds. And others say this is just a compromise that Theresa May has had to come up with."
EU leaders have warned there is no alternative to the negotiated deal. If U.K. Parliament slaps it down, a few different things could happen.
In the event the deal dies in Parliament, May could request more time from the EU, although Javed said she doubts an extension would be approved. Alternatively, May could face a leadership challenge from within her own party. Lastly, "Remainers," or those who prefer the U.K. remain part of the EU, could opt for another referendum on Brexit. That, Javed said, would be "an extreme scenario," because in pushing for a referendum, the U.K. could ultimately end up leaving the EU with no deal at all.
A no-deal Brexit would "cause huge disruption at the borders, it would mean tariffs and checks at the borders, and all sorts of unforeseen circumstances, and so that's something that a lot of lawmakers are very keen to avoid," Javed said.
"So while many might try to hold out for another referendum, it could go entirely the other way," she added.
The U.K. is scheduled to officially leave the EU on Mar. 29, 2019.
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