The Parliamentary week began with a stark choice between the UK
government's Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration
(WA) and a "no deal" Brexit. The week has ended with no
real change. Next week, the government will seek for the third time
to secure approval for the WA in order to obtain a short
"technical extension" to the Article 50 notice period so
that the necessary legislation can be passed. If the WA were to be
rejected again, then the government would have to ask for a longer
extension, and that request might be vetoed by any EU member state.
Consequently, the House of Commons still faces a choice between the
government's WA and "no deal".
While it might seem improbable that the government could
overturn a 230 vote and a 149 vote rejection of the WA, the
imminent prospect of a "no deal" Brexit might be enough
to secure a late resolution in its favor. Armed with the House of
Commons resolution, passed on March 13th, to rule out a
"no deal" Brexit, the
