Britain: Opposition rejects new election in mid-October

United Kingdom and Gibraltar European Union membership referendum

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The British opposition parties reject Prime Minister Boris Johnson's attempt to speed up a new election in mid-October. This was agreed by Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn and other leaders in talks in London.

Johnson's government had announced it would take a new run next Monday to push for a new election. The Prime Minister wants to vote on 15 October, then to appear at the EU summit two days later with a mandate for his Brexit course.

The head of government had thus failed in a first attempt on Wednesday already in Parliament. A two-thirds majority of all MPs in the lower house is necessary for calling a new election by a simple resolution.

The opposition wants to agree to a new election, however, only if an EU exit without agreement on 31 October is safely averted. For this, a law should be passed on early Friday evening. It will force Johnson to request a three-month extension of the Brexit deadline if no agreement with the EU is ratified by 19 October. However, the application would then have to be approved unanimously by the remaining 27 EU Member States.

House of Lords passes law against no-deal Brexit

If necessary, Johnson wants to lead the United Kingdom out of the international community on October 31, even without an agreement. He hopes to move the EU into concessions on the Brexit deal. The agreement negotiated with its predecessor Theresa May with Brussels has already failed three times in the lower house in London.

Meanwhile, a court in London denied a lawsuit against Johnson's forced stay of several weeks in Parliament. However, the High Court judges allowed an appeal to the Supreme Court on Friday. There it should continue on 17 September.

The law against an unregulated exit from the United Kingdom took Friday's final parliamentary hurdle. The British House of Lords passed the law, now only the signature of Queen Elizabeth II is missing, so that it can come into force.