EU chief has 'no grounds for optimism' ahead of crunch meeting with Theresa May
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Tusk has said there are "no grounds for optimism" in relation to a Brexit deal ahead of a key summit of EU leaders.
The European Council president was speaking as Theresa May prepares to travel to Brussels on Wednesday to convince the EU to back her Brexit plan.
Mr Tusk said the prime minister must put forward "concrete proposals on how to break the impasse", which centres on a disagreement over a customs backstop to preserve an open border Northern Ireland.
Earlier in the day, Ms May attempted to convince her Cabinet to back her Brexit plan, which could see the UK remain in the customs union indefinitely if no other method is found for avoiding a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The prime minister told ministers they must "stand together" but Downing Street said no decision was made on her controversial plan during a three-hour meeting.
Elsewhere, John Bercow reportedly told friends he would step down as House of Commons Speaker next summer. It came as he faced criticism from MPs over allegations of bullying, which he has denied, following the publication of a report into harassment in Parliament.
Follow our live coverage as it happened...
STORY: John Bercow to stand down as Commons speaker after being criticised in report on bullying in Parliament
Donald Tusk has said there are "no grounds for optimism" that a Brexit deal is imminent and demanded Theresa May put forward "concrete proposals on how to break the impasse".
Speaking at a press conference in Brussels, the president of the European Council said:
"Unfortunately the report on the state of the negotiations that I got from Michel Barnier today, as well as yesterday's debate in the House of Commons, gives me no grounds for optimism before tomorrow's European Council on Brexit.
As I see it, the only source of hope for a deal for now is the goodwill and determination on both sides.
However, for a breakthrough to take place, besides goodwill we need new facts.
Tomorrow I am going to ask Prime Minister May whether she has concrete proposals on how to break the impasse. Only such proposals can determine if a breakthrough is possible.
While working on a Brexit deal, we also need to make sure that we are prepared in case an agreement is not possible or in case it is rejected. Therefore tomorrow the leaders will discuss how to step up our preparations for a no-deal scenario.
"But, as I have already stressed, the fact that we are preparing for a no-deal scenario must not under any circumstances lead us away from making every effort to reach the best agreement possible for all sides."
Responding to Donald Tusk's demands that Theresa May bring forward new proposals to break the "impasse" in Brexit talks , the prime minister's spokesman said:
"The PM set out her position on where she thinks the negotiations are yesterday.
"Donald Tusk has set out his views today.
"The prime minister looks forward to having a face-to-face discussion with him in Brussels tomorrow."
Full story: MPs have written to the Metropolitan Police asking if the government pushed for an investigation into the Vote Leave campaign to be "soft-pedalled"
Earlier today "Pepper" became the first robot to give evidence to a parliamentary select committee when she answered questions from the Education Committee on technology in classrooms.
One MP quipped that the robot was "better than some of the ministers we've had before us".
That's all for today - see you tomorrow for more live updates from Westminster. Thanks for following.
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