Brexit: Theresa May calls special cabinet meeting as draft deal agreed

Theresa May is to chair a special cabinet meeting on Wednesday to discuss a draft Brexit withdrawal agreement.

A cabinet source has told BBC the text has been agreed at a technical level by officials from both sides after intensive talks this week.

The Sun reported that every minister was being asked to see the PM for one-to-one talks on Tuesday evening.

The future of the Irish border has been the last major outstanding issue to be settled in the negotiations.

Earlier, ministers said they would publish a “full legal statement” before MPs vote on any final agreement.

The undertaking was given as the government faced near-certain defeat in the Commons over whether to publish the legal advice it gets about the terms of the UK’s withdrawal.

Cabinet ministers were briefed on the state of the negotiations earlier on Tuesday, at which they were told a “small number of outstanding issues” remained to be sorted.

The BBC’s chief political correspondent Vicki Young said individual cabinet ministers were likely to be shown the full draft text this evening as a prelude to a full meeting on Wednesday afternoon.

She said they would have to decide whether they could support it, and if not, whether to resign from cabinet.

In another development, ambassadors from the remaining 27 EU states will meet in Brussels on Wednesday.

The prime minister has been under pressure from both Brexiteers and pro-EU MPs as she tries to seal a deal with the EU on the terms for the UK’s exit on 29 March 2019.

source: BBC