Theresa May faces a crunch cabinet meeting later as she tries to win colleagues’ support for a draft Brexit agreement between the UK and EU. Senior ministers will gather in Downing Street at 14:00 GMT amid calls to reject the deal from both senior Brexiteers and some Remain supporters. The PM is also continuing one-to-one briefings with ministers on the plans. Some cabinet members have “deep reservations”, BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg says. But the draft is seen as a significant moment in the negotiations between the UK and Brussels. The pound made a tentative rise against the dollar on Wednesday morning – up 0.12% – and rose against the Euro – up 0.16% – in the wake of news that the draft had been agreed. Meanwhile, ambassadors from the remaining 27 EU member states will discuss the agreement and the possibility of organising an emergency summit to sign off on it. If this happens, the government will then face a battle to win Parliament’s backing, with some Tories vowing to vote against it and Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party – which Mrs May relies on to win key Commons votes – also expressing concern. The DUP’s Jeffrey Donaldson told BBC Radio 4’s Today that from “what we have heard… this deal has the potential to lead to the break-up of the United Kingdom and that is not something we can support.” He added that his party “do not fear a general election”, if that is what happens as a result of opposing the deal. Leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg told BBC Newsnight he was so unhappy with the agreement he could withdraw his backing for Mrs May. But Conservative Chief Whip Julian Smith said he was “confident” the deal would pass when put to a crucial Commons vote. What’s been agreed? The draft withdrawal agreement, which has been drawn up alongside a statement of future relations with the EU, has not been published but is thought to run to some 500 pages. It addresses the Northern Ireland “backstop”, which aims to guarantee that physical checks will not be reintroduced at the border with the Irish Republic, in the event of the EU and UK failing to agree a deal on future trading relations. This has proven the most contentious part of the withdrawal negotiations, with concerns raised by Brexiteer Tories and the DUP over how it will work. The backstop within the agreed draft is believed to avoid a return to a “hard border” with the Republic by keeping the UK as a whole aligned with the EU customs union for a limited time. However, some Brexiteers fear this will keep the UK locked into EU trade rules for years. The agreement also includes commitments over citizens’ rights after Brexit, a proposed 21-month transition period after the UK’s departure on 29 March 2019 and details of the so-called £39bn “divorce bill”. The future relationship statement is expected to be far shorter, with the UK and the EU’s long-term trade arrangements yet to be settled. Number 10 said ministers were being called to the emergency meeting to “consider the draft agreement the negotiating teams have reached in Brussels, and to decide on next steps”. Before they do, they will be able to read relevant “documentation”. What are people saying? Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson described the reported agreement over the Northern Ireland backstop as “utterly unacceptable to anyone who believes in democracy”, and said he would vote against it. Mr Rees-Mogg told BBC Newsnight it was “not what we were promised”, saying he could find it “very hard to carry on supporting” the prime minister. And former Brexit Secretary David Davis said: “Cabinet and all Conservative MPs should stand up, be counted and say no to this capitulation.” But one of Mrs May’s allies, former first secretary of state Damian Green, criticised “hyperbole” from people who had not read the document. Source: BBC]]>
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