Law Officer Says UK Can Cancel Brexit Invoking Article 50

The UK should be able to unilaterally cancel its withdrawal from
the EU, according to a top European law officer.

The non-binding opinion was delivered by the European Court of
Justice’s advocate general.

A group of Scottish politicians has asked the court whether the
UK can call off Brexit without the consent of other member
states.

The Court of Justice (ECJ) will deliver its final ruling at a
later date.

The advice from advocate general Manuel Campos Sanchez-Bordona
comes as the House of Commons begins five days of debates on Prime
Minister Theresa May’s proposed Brexit deal, with a vote due to be
held next Tuesday.

In a written statement, the ECJ said Mr Campos Sanchez-Bordona’s
opinion was that if a country decided to leave the EU, it should
also have the power to change its mind during the two-year exit
process specified in Article 50 of the EU treaty.

And it should be able to do so without needing the consent of
the other 27 member states – contrary to what the EU itself has
argued.

While the advocate general’s opinions are not binding, the court
tends to follow them in the majority of its final rulings.

The anti-Brexit politicians and campaigners who have brought the
case hope it will give MPs an extra option when considering whether
to approve Mrs May’s draft deal or not, because it could keep alive
the prospect of calling off Brexit – potentially through another
referendum.

The ECJ statement said the advocate general had proposed that
the Court of Justice should “declare that Article 50 allows the
unilateral revocation of the notification of the intention to
withdraw from the EU”.

It added: “That possibility continues to exist until such time
as the withdrawal agreement is formally concluded.”

The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March next year, but the
deal negotiated with the EU has to be backed by a majority MPs if
it is to come into force.

Welcoming the advocate general’s opinion, SNP MEP Alyn Smith,
one of those who brought the case, said it showed that “we now have
a roadmap out of the Brexit shambles”.

He said parliament was not necessarily facing a choice between
accepting Mrs May’s deal or leaving the EU with no deal, and that
“there are other options, and we can stop the clock.”

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