‘EU has made no deal INEVITABLE!’ DUP hits out at Barnier as Brexit talks COLLAPSE
NORTHERN Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), which makes up part of Theresa May's cabinet, believe a no-deal Brexit is 'inevitable' following failed talks between Brexit secretary Dominic Raab and EU negotiator Michel Barnier over the weekend.
Brexit: DUP threatens the government over deal disagreements
The UK and European Union (EU) failed to reach an agreement on the key issues of a Brexit deal, following a meeting between the figures, saying the Irish Border debate was “still open”.
But on Monday, the DUP - which has a major stake in Theresa May's Commons cabinet, said a no-deal Brexit was "inevitable" as debate over the Irish border rages on.
DUP Brexit spokesman Sammy Wilson said on Monday: "Given the way in which the EU has behaved and the corner they've put Theresa May into, there's no deal which I can see at present which will command a majority in the House of Commons.
"So it is probably inevitable that we will end up with a no deal scenario."
Mr Raab and Mr Barnier met over the weekend to discuss key sticking points in the UK's exit from the bloc in March 2019, including a free trade agreement between the UK and the bloc, and a resolution to the Irish border issue.
Following the meeting on Sunday, a UK Government spokesman said both sides had “made real progress in a number of key areas.”
But after the hour-long meeting, Mr Barnier said issues such as avoiding a hard border with Ireland were “still open”.
Mr Barnier and Theresa May are due to hold a summit on Wednesday along with other EU leaders at the European Council (EC), with no further talks planned before the tense showdown.
It comes as Mrs May faces increased pressure over her contested Chequers proposal and mutiny from prominent Brexiteers such as Jacob Rees-Mogg grows within her own cabinet.
The Tory Eurosceptic has played down reports he would align himself with the DUP and Labour to vote down the Budget over Brexit demands.
And Mr Rees-Mogg admitted that he would not join the DUP in voting down the Government's Budget in order to scupper the £39bn Brexit divorce bill and plunge Theresa May into chaos.
The EU's timetable before Wednesday's summit will now have to shift, meaning a meeting of EU advisers has been postponed from Monday to make way for more talks.
Negotiators will wait for the outcome of a summit mid-week before any resumption, according to sources.
A senior EU diplomat said: "Despite constructive and intensive negotiations, several key issues remain unresolved. No further negotiations are planned ahead of the European Council. The EU negotiator will brief the leaders who will then assess the progress so far."
Mr Barnier tweeted on Sunday: “We met today @DominicRaab and UK negotiating team. Despite intense efforts, some key issues are still open, including the backstop for IE/NI to avoid a hard border.
“I will debrief the EU27 and @Europarl_EN on the #Brexit negotiations.”
He then went on to say: "However there remain a number of unresolved issues relating to the backstop.”