BOMBSHELL as Top Tory says we could leave EU in AUGUST

Tom Tugendhat, who chairs the Commons foreign affairs committee, has floated the idea that Boris Johnson could unilaterally withdraw the UK from the European Union in the next 10 days to try to avoid attempts by parliament to block a no-deal Brexit.

However a Downing Street Spokesperson poured cold water on the idea and source said the idea was not under consideration, and one expert in EU law said the withdrawal date could only be changed with the consent of Brussels.

The plan, if carried out, would be hugely controversial, and would take companies and the financial markets by surprise before no-deal preparations had been completed.

In response to tweeted questions about the repeated objections by the Democratic Unionist party to any regulatory provision that applied only to Northern Ireland, Tugendhat argued that a Johnson government could ignore this if it won a majority in the subsequent election, and that a referendum would give the idea credibility.

What odds would you give on:
1 UK exits EU by 24 Aug – in time for G7 or before Parliament returns. Art 50 passed so nothing to stop unilateral withdrawal.
2 General Election straight after to get majority.
3 Answer Irish border Q with NI only referendum on NI only backstop?

— Tom Tugendhat (@TomTugendhat) August 14, 2019

Such a plan, particularly the idea of unilateral withdrawal without any warning followed by an immediate election, would seem hugely politically risky and prompt short term instability but perhaps solve many of the issues the UK faces.

Senior advisers to the Prime Minister are very concerned that the Commons could find a way to block Johnson’s much-promised departure by 31 October if it involved leaving the EU without a deal, whether through taking control of the parliamentary order paper or means such as a no-confidence vote in the government.

Steve Peers, a professor of EU law at the University of Essex, said he did not think such a plan was feasible. While changing the date of withdrawal could be done via so-called secondary legislation, not voted on by MPs, he tweeted, the EU Withdrawal Act states it must happen “in accordance with article 50(3) of the Treaty on European Union”, which sets out the EU’s constitutional basis.

Section 50(3) of the treaty says an extension to the standard two-year wait for departure under article 50 can only take place if “the European council, in agreement with the member state concerned, unanimously decides to extend this period”. This indicated any change of date would need agreement, he said.

Peers wrote: “So the EU would have to agree to change the date. ‘Unilateral’ change of date is therefore illegal.”

There is also the option that the Government could stop challenging the Tilbrook Legal Case and agree with its findings resulting in a retrospective unilateral exit from the EU.