This is an OZY Special Briefing, an extension of the Presidential Daily Brief. The Special Briefing tells you what you need to know about an important issue, individual or story that is making news. Each one serves up an interesting selection of facts, opinions, images and videos in order to catch you up and vault you ahead. WHAT TO KNOW What happened? U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May suffered a historic defeat on her Brexit withdrawal bill in January. So, in a last-ditch effort to save it as Britain stares down a March 29 deadline to reach a deal, she went back to negotiate with the European Union over the Irish border backstop, an agreement that would avoid a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The backstop, which has been contentious for hardline Brexiters, would keep Northern Ireland in the EU’s customs union past December 2020 if the EU and U.K. don’t have a deal worked out to keep it open by then. May returned with a legal add-on that would allow the U.K. to challenge the backstop via formal dispute proceedings — something allowed by the withdrawal agreement already — in a way that May insists is legally binding. Unfortunately, her own Attorney General Geoffrey Cox almost immediately published his opinion that the changes amount to nothing of substance. MPs also were not impressed: They voted the deal down tonight by 391 to 242, which was better than last time but still not enough. Why does it matter? Legislators may now have to choose between no deal — supported by some but predicted to be catastrophic for U.K. industry, trade and even food supplies — and extending the Brexit deadline. There are other factions demanding a second referendum, dubbed a “People’s Vote,” to avoid a no-deal exit without inflaming tensions among Leave voters over their voices being ignored. And others say the U.K. should cancel Brexit altogether, something European officials say is still feasible. |