Following the Prime Minister’s statement to the House of Commons on the Government’s work to secure a withdrawal agreement that Parliament will approve, Jonathan Djanogly asks her if she any EU states have indicated that they would not approve an extension to article 50.
Mr Jonathan Djanogly (Huntingdon) (Con)
Will my right hon. Friend please confirm whether over the last fortnight in conversations with EU members she has heard anything to suggest that any EU country would fail to give us an extension to article 50, and if that is the case what those reasons might be?
The Prime Minister
I have not been discussing with individual member states an extension to article 50; what I have been discussing with them is what the UK Parliament requires—what this House requires—in order to get the change that would secure a majority in this House for the withdrawal agreement. However, the point is very simple: were it to be the case that an extension of article 50 were requested by the UK, that would require the unanimous consent of all 27 members of the European Union. I have not had that discussion with them.