Brits to vote again? Brexit delay creates headache for Europe

[rooster59]

Brits to vote again? Brexit delay creates headache for Europe

By Francesco Guarascio and Alastair Macdonald

 

FILE PHOTO: European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Brexit campaigner and member of the European Parliament Nigel Farage gesture before the start of the plenary session on the EU budget, at the European Parliament in Brussels, Belgium, May 2, 2018. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File Photo

 

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Brexit paralysis has prompted talk of a British election or a second referendum but one odd side-effect could be Britons having to cast their votes for an EU parliament they had decided to leave.

 

Britain is scheduled to quit the European Union on March 29, two months before citizens of the other 27 EU states elect a new European Parliament.

 

But with Prime Minister Theresa May looking unlikely to win British parliamentary backing next week for her EU withdrawal treaty, speculation is mounting that London will try to delay departure, creating a legal headache for Brussels.

 

"We are looking into what this might mean, but there is very little that is clear, legally, and it depends on what Britain decides to do," one senior EU official said, describing growing discussion of the issue around Brussels and in EU member states.

 

Key complications are:

 

- how long an extension Britain may seek to its two-year exit deadline under Article 50 of the EU treaty -- notably whether it leaves before or after the current EU legislature lapses on July 1

 

- whether an extension might end up cancelling Brexit altogether

 

- whether a need for Britons to vote for new EU representatives could be delayed beyond May

 

- whether the new EU chamber will need to ratify the Brexit terms.

 

"It's being discussed informally. There's not been any formal proposal and indeed a proposal would have to be kicked off by the UK government, at some juncture," said Richard Corbett, a leading British Labour Member of the European Parliament (MEP).

 

A European affairs minister from an EU government said the prospect of Britons having to hold a vote in late May to elect MEPs to a chamber they were still about to leave would be "mad politically, but legally we might have no other option".

 

A second EU official said Britain had told the EU it had budgeted for an election that, without Brexit, would have been scheduled for Thursday, May 23.

 

Asked about such plans, Britain's Electoral Commission said it had no plan for an election but it was "experienced in delivering well run, unscheduled elections and can draw upon this expertise as required".

 

SCENARIOS

 

There are several scenarios for how a delay to Brexit could play into the EU elections, which are shaping into a showdown between eurosceptic nationalists and more mainstream parties:

 

- An extension of Britain's EU membership of six weeks or so to allow for loose ends to be tidied up if May eventually wins parliamentary backing. That would have little impact as Britain would be out before European Parliament elections.

 

- An extension of three months to end-June could also have limited impact, as the existing EU parliament would be within its five-year mandate and could ratify the Brexit treaty.

 

- From July 2, any EU decision must be ratified by the new parliament elected on May 23-26. If Britain is still formally a member and has not returned its MEPs, there could be legal challenges to the validity of any agreement.

 

- That could strengthen arguments for Britons to go to the polls anyway on May 23 to elect MEPs -- though there could then be questions over the role of those MEPs in any vote on Brexit.

 

- Britain could hold a "catch up" election for MEPs later, if for example if it used the extension to hold a second referendum that might revoke the Article 50 notification and scrap Brexit.

 

- Some officials also note a mechanism whereby new member states send representatives from their national parliament to the EU legislature until they have held a direct EU election; but applying that to an existing member state is problematic.

 

- Adding to the problems, the EU already handed some of Britain's seat allocation to other countries -- but that change will be put on hold until after Brexit, leaving some states such as France unsure how many MEPs they may actually be electing.

 

The confusion could have a serious impact on EU business by delaying a timetable for choosing a new EU executive and setting a new legislative programme, including a new seven-year budget.

 

Officials say President Jean-Claude Juncker and his European Commission expect to have to stay in office beyond their end-October mandate even if Brexit goes smoothly, due to likely wrangling with eurosceptics in the new parliament and among national leaders over who should replace Juncker and his team.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-01-12

[tebee]

There are problems if we delay or cancel, but they are not insurmountable - the EU has already got legislation for just this scenario

[inThailand]

Years later it seems no one knows what the f... does Brexit mean. Bring back the guillotine and start with the MPs? 

[kannot]

13 minutes ago, inThailand said:

Bring back the guillotine

typical  foreign  rubbish from Eurppppppppp

[cornishcarlos]

Doesn't interest me in the slightest but seeing old men trying to high five, gives me the heebee jeebees !!!

[DoctorG]

The whole thing is just a shambles.

[Grouse]

At least there will be plenty of goodwill towards the UK! You know, the war and all that ....????

 

Remaining is obviously best for the U.K. But I'm now unsure it would be good for the EU. Would N+ be possible without EFTA? I don't want the U.K. to be a burden on them either.

 

Where can Europe put this deranged relative where we will be taken care of without being a continuous nuisance? Obviously incapable of taking care of ourselves.

[Mitker]

As a continental European, I deeply regret the Brexit move.

However, after almost 2 years the mess seems now so total that I end up hoping for a clear solution at the scheduled deadline instead of dragging this non-sense any further and risking a kind of forced relationship to be maintained at any cost

[vogie]

26 minutes ago, DoctorG said:

The whole thing is just a shambles.

This is what happens when our nation loses its backbone.

[Scott]

Troll post removed.

 

[mickymouse1]

Vote again? What for and why?

Those who opposed Brexit can just ask for ignoring the result and carry on as usual.

What a load of clowns representing the big top "toys"

[Basil B]

I doubt there will be a second referendum, any future referendum need to include a clear proposal, and be conditional on a clear majority not just a simple majority. 

I doubt we could sort out any proposal within the next decade or too, 

[newatthis]

So instead of 16,000,000 going through an unwanted divorce, it now looks like 17,000,000 have to stay in a forced marriage that they don't want.

[Chomper Higgot]

45 minutes ago, vogie said:

This is what happens when our nation loses its backbone.

This is what happens when people believe the crock of brown stuff that were the ‘Brexiter Promises’.

 

 

[IAMHERE]

UK, one of the top notch Empires in all human history can surmount this too. Go Go UK.

[Basil B]

11 minutes ago, mickymouse1 said:

Vote again? What for and why?

Those who opposed Brexit can just ask for ignoring the result and carry on as usual.

What a load of clowns representing the big top "toys"

You do not get it, Brexit is a dead Duck Swimming, it will be buried by next weekend. 

[Chomper Higgot]

9 minutes ago, newatthis said:

So instead of 16,000,000 going through an unwanted divorce, it now looks like 17,000,000 have to stay in a forced marriage that they don't want.

Many a couple change their minds between screaming ‘divorce’ in a fit of anger and coming to signing their decree absolute in the cold light of day.

[Joe Mcseismic]

5 minutes ago, IAMHERE said:

UK, one of the top notch Empires in all human history can surmount this too. Go Go UK.

Top notch? What does that mean?

[Chomper Higgot]

6 minutes ago, IAMHERE said:

UK, one of the top notch Empires in all human history can surmount this too. Go Go UK.

It pains me to break this news to you.

 

The ‘British Empire’ is dead and buried.

[Psimbo]

One wonders if this is not what the UK Gov't wanted all along? May and her cronies are Remainers in charge of an exit. They have done nothing but balls this up from the start.

 

The previous Gov't under Cameron was so arrogant it did not have a plan for exiting, which has seriously crippled the process. Junker is wetting himself laughing so hard.

 

A second referendum now would probably be to remain- not because its what people want but because the 'deal' is a complete cop-out and cluster**** which stuffs up the UK.

 

My big question is -will the Brit ex MEPS and Commissioners still continue to receive their bloated EU pensions- something that has not had much mention in the Press but I would think is extremely likely. Pigs still with their snouts in the EU trough.

[vogie]

14 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

This is what happens when people believe the crock of brown stuff that were the ‘Brexiter Promises’.

 

 

The only people that convenietly believes the "crock of brown stuff" are the remainers, and simply because it fits in their argument against democracy. Do you believe everything you read on the sides of buses, judging by your replies I would say you do and you're not alone on that one, remainers have been saying it for so long now, I actually think they are starting to believe it themselves.????

[Chomper Higgot]

7 minutes ago, Psimbo said:

One wonders if this is not what the UK Gov't wanted all along? May and her cronies are Remainers in charge of an exit. They have done nothing but balls this up from the start.

 

The previous Gov't under Cameron was so arrogant it did not have a plan for exiting, which has seriously crippled the process. Junker is wetting himself laughing so hard.

 

A second referendum now would probably be to remain- not because its what people want but because the 'deal' is a complete cop-out and cluster**** which stuffs up the UK.

 

My big question is -will the Brit ex MEPS and Commissioners still continue to receive their bloated EU pensions- something that has not had much mention in the Press but I would think is extremely likely. Pigs still with their snouts in the EU trough.

Of course, Brexit (which you were told was a crock) is a crock because of ‘Remain’.

 

No, Brexit is and always was a crock.

 

And to remind you, Rees-Mogg, Davis, Gove and Johnson promised a ‘Plan-B’ as an alternative to the deal Theresa May was making.

 

Where is this ‘Plan-B’?

 

Arch Brexiteers couldn’t deliver a plan, let alone a deal.

 

[Chomper Higgot]

2 minutes ago, vogie said:

The only people that convenietly believes the "crock of brown stuff" are the remainers, and simply because it fits in their argument against democracy. Do you believe everything you read on the sides of buses, judging by your replies I would say you do and you're not alone on that one, remainers have been saying it for so long now, I actually think they are starting to believe it themselves.????

You’ve gone from weak arguments to ‘Projection’.

[vogie]

Just now, Chomper Higgot said:

You’ve gone from weak arguments to ‘Projection’.

You need to widen your reading material, can I reconmend single deckers and double deckers as well as your beloved brexit bus.????

[tomacht8]

The Brexit madness has cost too much already.
The economic damage for the UK and the EU is enormous.
There are many studies that try to quantify the costs, but all of them only light up parts.
Additional cost of action for the 27 EU countries about 60 billion, damage to the 27 EU companies about 70 billion, loss of purchasing power of the euro currency well over 100 billion.
That should also put the EU on the UK bill.

[Chomper Higgot]

1 minute ago, vogie said:

You need to widen your reading material, can I reconmend single deckers and double deckers as well as your beloved brexit bus.????

Failed Brexit now belongs to ‘Remainers’ as, it now seems, does the ‘Brexit Bus’.

 

You’ve lost touch with the fact based universe.

 

 

[Psimbo]

5 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Of course, Brexit (which you were told was a crock) is a crock because of ‘Remain’.

 

No, Brexit is and always was a crock.

 

And to remind you, Rees-Mogg, Davis, Gove and Johnson promised a ‘Plan-B’ as an alternative to the deal Theresa May was making.

 

Where is this ‘Plan-B’?

 

Arch Brexiteers couldn’t deliver a plan, let alone a deal.

 

i know BREXIT is a crock, hence my comments above.

 

It wasn't the place of RM, Johnson, etc to have a Plan B- although MPs they were not in the Cabinet at the time of the vote-Johnson and Gove were later on under May. May was never going to accept anything put forward by Boris, who tried to take her on in the leadership battle and Gove is just a slimy little toad gearing up to be the next PM.

 

It is the Gov't that has failed  the Brits. There should have be 2 war plans- one for stay and one for Leave. Cameron ran away like a little coward when it didn't go his way instead of having a Plan B. May just runs around squawking like a chicken with its head cut off.

[ThaiPauly]

If the country had not been constantly lied to by the Leave Campaign, that most of the money that was going to be saved by not being in the EU would go directly to the NHS we would not be in this mess.

 

My Dad who is 89 voted leave for this exact reason. He now wishes with all his heart that he had voted remain

[evadgib]

Panto season may be over but "That's the way to do it!" ????

 

[newatthis]

40 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Many a couple change their minds between screaming ‘divorce’ in a fit of anger and coming to signing their decree absolute in the cold light of day.

And what about the 17,000,000 who will have to live in a forced marriage that they wanted out of? Do they count, at all?