UK / Belgium - Johnson, Juncker on outline Brexit deal / Barnier 'happy' as EU grants Brexit 'flexte

(20 Dec 2019) On October 17th 2019 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson arrived in Brussels for a two-day summit with EU leaders. Speaking at a news conference, Johnson announced that the UK would be leaving on October 31. But the deal would still need to be approved by Parliament. Johnson urged the government to be cooperative in approving the deal. Johnson said he hopes, "to get this excellent deal over the line and to deliver Brexit without any more delay." Even if the United Kingdom leaves by the of the month, both sides will have to negotiate a new trade agreement for years to come. *** The European Union on October 28th agreed to delay Brexit until 31 January - just three days before Britain was due to become the first country ever to leave the 28-nation bloc. Michel Barnier, the European Union's Brexit negotiator, said the decision to agree to a "flextension" was made after a "very short and efficient and constructive" meeting of diplomats in Brussels. The decision was expected to be formalised through a written procedure, meaning a special summit of EU leaders won't likely be necessary to approve the move. Two diplomats told The Associated Press the "flextension" means that the UK could leave even earlier than January 31st if the Brexit divorce deal that the EU and Prime Minister Boris Johnson agreed upon is ratified before that date. If that happens, the UK will leave the EU on the first day of the month following the ratification. Speaking anonymously because details of the decision had yet to be made public, one diplomat added that the Brexit withdrawal agreement could not be renegotiated during the extension period. It's the second time the deadline has been changed since British voters in 2016 referendum decided to leave the bloc. *** Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has called for a second referendum on Scotland's independence from the UK. Sturgeon, whose Scottish National Party is running on a pro-independence, anti-Brexit platform, made her comments at a rally in Glasgow on November 2nd. She stressed it was "time for Scotland to be an independent country" and urged both the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn to "stop running scared and come and justify why Scotland should not be independent." Sturgeon told the pro-independence rally that a clear win for the SNP in the upcoming UK general election on December 12th will bring Scotland a step closer to independence, vowing to hold a second referendum vote in the country next year. *** Brexit supporters have been celebrating after the UK Parliament on December 20th gave preliminary approval to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill. The bill clears the way for the UK to leave the European Union at the end of January 2020. The House of Commons voted 358-234 for the Withdrawal Agreement Bill. The bill commits Britain to leaving the EU on January 31st and to concluding trade talks with the bloc by the end of 2020. Trade experts and EU officials say striking a free trade deal within 11 months will be a struggle, but Johnson insists he won’t agree to any more delays. The Brexit bill has been amended to bar ministers from agreeing to extend the transition period with the EU. 01:12:16 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...