British Prime Minister Boris Johnson assured European Council President Donald Tusk that a letter would be sent to him on the evening of Saturday 19 October to signal London's request for a further postponement of Brexit, normally scheduled for 31 October. indicated to AFP a European source.
This request is the result of a vote of the British deputies, who decided on Saturday, a narrow majority - 322 votes for and 306 votes against - to postpone their decision on the divorce agreement announced Thursday between London and Brussels. "The Prime Minister (Mr Johnson, ed) confirmed that the letter would be sent to Donald Tusk today" Saturday, said the European source.
"Donald Tusk, on this basis, will begin consultations with the leaders of 27 on how to react.This could take a few days," added the source.
"Waiting for the letter"
In a tweet shortly before, the President of the European Council had just announced a telephone conversation with Boris Johnson in the early evening on the consequences of the surprise vote in the House of Commons. "Waiting for the letter" (Boris Johnson), he had written on the social network.
Waiting for the letter.
I just talked to PM @BorisJohnson about the situation after the vote in the House of Commons.
As a result of Saturday's vote, Boris Johnson is legally bound to make a new request to the EU to postpone the Brexit date, which has already been postponed several times. For his supporters, he aims to give more time to MPs to discuss the deal in detail without risking a "no deal" on October 31 if they have not finished.
To signify his determination to leave his country of the EU at any cost on October 31 - which he had strongly committed to - Boris Johnson has told the House that he does not want to "negotiate a postponement" with the 27 .
"Any postponement would be bad for this country"
"I will not negotiate a postponement with the European Union and the law can not force me to do so," said the head of the British government. "I will tell my friends and colleagues in the EU exactly what I have said to everyone over the last 88 days, since serving as Prime Minister: that any postponement would be bad for this country, bad for the European Union and bad for democracy, "he said.
Additional time concerning the date of Brexit "is in the interest of nobody," reacted, in stride, the Elysee. Emmanuel Macron also met in the afternoon with Boris Johnson and insisted on "the need for a quick clarification of the British position".
For its part, the European Commission has "taken note" of this postponement and asks the British government to inform it of the "next steps" in the divorce proceedings.
Firmness of the British Parliament
Taken out in extremis after laborious negotiations on Thursday, the agreement was supposed to settle the conditions of the divorce after 46 years of common life, allowing a smooth exit accompanied by a period of transition current at least until the end of 2020.
But his success was suspended by the approval of the British Parliament, which has already been intransigent in the past. MEPs rejected three times the previous exit agreement between former Prime Minister Theresa May and the other 27 members of the European Union.
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"No better way out"
Boris Johnson has spent all his efforts in recent days to convince members to support his agreement, chaining phone calls and interventions on television.
Arguing that there was "no better way" than his agreement to leave the EU on October 31, the prime minister urged the elected to imagine a world where the obstacle of Brexit, which paralyzes the British political life for three years, will have been "exceeded". "I think the nation will breathe a great sigh of relief," he added.
The prospect of a Brexit without agreement is feared by economic circles, because it could lead, according to the forecasts of the government itself, shortages of food, gasoline or drugs.
>> To read: "Brexit: Can Boris Johnson convince the British Parliament?"
With AFP and Reuters