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The Year in Review: Challenges and Choices of 2019
It’s been a very busy European election year and most of us are heading for a well-deserved Christmas break. Meanwhile, if you do fire up your browser, here you can catch up on our 30 most read stories that made waves in 2019.
Johnson gets his election as UK lawmakers finally agree December poll
The UK will go to the polls for a pre-Christmas general election on December 12, after opposition lawmakers finally abandoned their opposition to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s demands for an election at the fourth time of asking.
EU moves towards Brexit delay as PM Johnson seeks election to break impasse
EU leaders should delay Brexit after Prime Minister Boris Johnson paused legislation on his deal following a parliamentary defeat, European Council President Donald Tusk said on Tuesday (22 October), as Britain spins towards a possible election to break the impasse.
Explainer: As Johnson pushes ahead with Brexit, what happens now in UK’s parliament?
Prime Minister Boris Johnson will try to drive the legislation needed to take Britain out of the European Union through parliament in the next 10 days, or else break his "do or die" pledge to leave on 31 October.
UK’s Johnson adamant on Brexit deadline, despite delay request
A defiant British government has doubled down, insisting it will leave the European Union in 11 days despite parliament's forcing a reluctant prime minister to request another delay.
Johnson gets his deal and plaudits, now eyes shift to Westminster
Boris Johnson got his Brexit deal in Brussels on Thursday (17 October), but this appears to have been the easy part. Now he has to sell it at home.
Brexit talks enter crucial ‘tunnel’ phase, but gaps on substance remain
Talks on a new Brexit deal have entered a potentially decisive last phase, as officials from the EU and the UK appear to be closing in on a last-ditch agreement that could avert the UK's messy cliff-edge exit on 31 October.
Table Brexit plans by September 30 or talks are ‘over’, Johnson warned
Boris Johnson has been given until September 30 to submit an alternative to the Irish border backstop in writing to Brussels, or the Brexit talks are "over", the leaders of France and Finland stated on Wednesday (18 September).
Risk of no-deal Brexit ‘very real’, Juncker tells EU lawmakers
The risk of a no-deal Brexit remains 'very real', European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker warned MEPs in Strasbourg on Wednesday but said he is prepared to work "day in day out, morning until night" to strike a deal.
‘Empty lecturn’ press conference leaves Johnson humiliated
Visiting UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson was left humiliated after his Luxembourgish host effectively empty-chaired him on Monday, before criticising Johnson’s handling of the Brexit negotiations and accusing the Leave campaign, which Johnson had fronted, of lying during the 2016 referendum campaign.
Scottish court hands Boris Johnson fresh Brexit blow
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered a fresh blow Wednesday (11 September) when a Scottish court ruled that his controversial decision to suspend parliament in the run-up to Brexit was unlawful.
UK lawmakers to block election again, as constitutional crisis intensifies
The chances of an election before the UK leaves the EU are rapidly receding but the political and constitutional battle between Prime Minister Boris Johnson and parliamentarians is set to continue to intensify.
EU’s Juncker tells Britain: no-deal Brexit will hurt you the most
A no-deal Brexit would hurt Britain more than the rest of Europe no matter how much Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government pretends otherwise, outgoing European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said in remarks published on Saturday (10 August).
It’s up to EU to avoid no-deal Brexit, says UK foreign minister
Britain's foreign minister on Thursday (8 August) pressed the European Union to amend the terms of Britain's EU withdrawal agreement, saying Brussels would have to take responsibility for a no-deal Brexit if it does not compromise.
Verhofstadt warns Brexit extension could ‘poison’ EU elections
Liberal group leader Guy Verhofstadt warned on Tuesday (16 April) that the decision to grant the United Kingdom a Brexit extension last week could “poison” the European elections, in which the UK is now likely to take part.
Trick or treat for May as EU leaders agree on Halloween Brexit date
The UK is set to remain in the EU until 31 October and take part in next month's European elections, after Theresa May accepted a new extension granted by EU leaders in the early hours of Thursday morning (11 April) that will prevent the UK crashing out of the bloc at the end of the week.
UK will become ‘Trojan horse’ inside EU, British MP threatens
The UK will become a “trojan horse” inside the EU should the country fail to withdraw from the bloc, prominent Pro-Brexit MP Mark Francois has claimed.
Macron should keep Britain twisting on its Brexit hook
With the Brexit camp in increasing turmoil, EU leaders would be wise to give Theresa May her extension and wait for the tide to continue turning, argues Denis MacShane.
Leave vote softens but UK still split down the middle on Brexit, says polling guru
The Leave vote may have softened, but most Britons would vote the same way again if the UK held another referendum on Brexit, says UK polling guru John Curtice.
No-deal Brexit could impact foreign and security policy, Barnier warns
The EU should prepare for the implications of a no-deal Brexit on the future security partnership with the UK, the bloc's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, told the European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee on Tuesday (2 April).
No deal Brexit ‘almost inevitable’ after UK MPs fail to break deadlock
A 'no deal' Brexit has become 'almost inevitable" after UK lawmakers again failed to break the Brexit deadlock on Monday night (1 April), narrowly rejecting all four alternatives to Prime Minister Theresa May’s Withdrawal Agreement.
Betrayal hangs in the air as citizens’ revolt hits Westminster
The sense of a citizens’ revolt hung heavy in the air around Westminster on Friday afternoon as a host of Leave supporting groups gathered for rallies, furious at the MPs who have denied them the Brexit they were promised. As...
Tusk calls crisis summit after MPs nix Brexit deal a third time
The EU will hold a Brexit crisis summit on 10 April, European Council President Donald Tusk announced on Friday (29 March) after the parliament in London rejected Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal for a third time, by 58 votes.