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Theresa May should reject calls to forge a multi-party consensus on Brexit when she will lay out her Plan B in Parliament on Monday, preferring to support further diplomatic efforts in Brussels to renegotiate Irish support.
The Premier held a teleconference with her very divided cabinet of the Checkers' Campaign retreat on Sunday night.
Cabinet sources said the consensus on the 90-minute appeal aimed to redouble efforts to find acceptable changes to the protective device, but that the conversation was poorly lit. One of them said there was "no real solution" proposed during the call.
"It's hard to know – as always – what she's going to do," said another. "But the general agreement is about the need to involve the DUP and the conservative rebels."
After Parliament's important defeat last week in which it said it would address "senior parliamentarians" from all parties to seek a compromise, government sources insisted that its top priority was to prevent a historic split in the conservative party.
Several high-ranking Conservative MPs suggested forming a dissident party if May decided to support a customs union – one of the central demands of the Labor movement, also supported by conservative supporters of a Norwegian Brexit.
According to Whitehall sources, Prime Minister Gavin Barwell's chief of staff advised him to consider a customs union after last week's disastrous defeat, which was rejected by an overwhelming majority of 230.
However, when the government presents an official statement on Monday, setting out its next steps, it should focus on changing the Irish system to gain control of the European research group of Jacob Rees-Mogg and DUP.
The Prime Minister could then travel to Brussels as early as Monday night – although Downing Street denied doing so.
May's decision comes as new polls suggest that the public is optimistic about the possibility of a Brexit without a transaction.
A poll by the ICM after the government's defeat last week and seen by the Guardian asked voters what should happen next.
The most popular option, backed by 28% of voters, was a Brexit without agreement. Showing the gap in public opinion, the second most popular option, supported by 24% of citizens, is to launch the second referendum process.
According to the representative online survey of 2,046 adults from January 16 to 18, out of 2,046 adults, only 8% think May should continue to seek support for his project in Parliament, while 11% thought that it should call general elections.
Earlier Sunday, Liam Fox said that "the most overwhelming view" among his party colleagues was that the Prime Minister's agreement would be recoverable if she managed to get changes.
"This seems to be the area in which we are coming together," said the Secretary of International Trade. "Many of my colleagues in the House of Commons have said that if we make changes to the media, we would be ready to vote for the agreement."
However, sources from the Irish government and Downing Street have thrown cold water on reports that the government is considering the possibility of a joint UK-Ireland treaty that would replace the security system.
The plan is favored by some tough Brexiters, including former Minister Owen Paterson, and Fox gives him weight, he prefers a "different mechanism" to avoid a hard border.
"Of course, Ireland and the United Kingdom both said that they did not want to see a hard border and the Irish Prime Minister said that in the event of the absence of He would not want to see a hard border, "said Fox. I said. "Now, since we are in the same place, it should be the area in which we have to find a compromise."
However, a Downing Street source said the plan was "not a program we recognize". Irish sources said the government would reject any approach from May for a bilateral deal, calling the idea "non-party" and claiming that the EU was very clear: the withdrawal agreement could only be reopened only if May changed her red lines.
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said: "I can badure you that the Irish Government's commitment to abide by the entirety of the withdrawal agreement is absolute, including the backstop allowing to ensure, in all circumstances, an open border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Friday agreement, are protected. "
"The solidarity in the EU is total there, as clearly explained by Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker: they are waiting to see what is the plan B Theresa May," added a source of Irish Government. "From our point of view, a bilateral agreement is simply not a credible proposal."
Heiko Maas, Germany's foreign minister, was skeptical on Sunday that British attempts to push Dublin to accept backstop changes would pay off for the UK. Asked by German TV ZDF about reports of talks between Britain and the Irish government, Maas said the UK's targets were "a mystery."
He said: "We must negotiate and also agree on a withdrawal agreement with Britain. It's a bit mysterious to know what the British government wants to negotiate with Dublin or what sort of extra agreement it should be. This will have no effect on what has been agreed with the [European] commission.
"The 27 members must be in agreement. In recent days, relatively clear statements have been made that many of them are not ready and some are open. We have to wait to see what the British suggest. "
The number 10 repeatedly denied that he was preparing for a general election to break the stalemate, but Conservative MP Huw Merriman became the first Conservative to admit that the possibility was likely Sunday.
"When Parliament can not pbad laws, not just on Brexit, but on other issues, and that the government can not govern in this way, it is normally in elections general, "he told the BBC.
Conservative President Brandon Lewis wrote Sunday to all Conservative members to ask them to donate under the heading "Corbyn Wants Elections", although he insisted later that the party is was preparing for local elections in May.
Former Labor Prime Minister Gordon Brown has called for section 50 to be extended by one year so that a series of citizens' meetings can be held to determine what happens next.
"Parliament must inflict a second defeat on the government – by voting next Tuesday to extend Article 50 for a year. Not as a delaying tactic, but for a specific purpose: to allow a process of consultation and reflection at the national level, "he wrote in The Guardian.
"The key to this would be a series of citizens' bademblies, the reflection of which would then lead to a constructive parliamentary review of our relations with Europe, including the options for renegotiation followed by a referendum. The direct engagement of the British people is now essential to meet the triple challenge of a government that defies the sovereignty of Parliament, an increasingly divided country, and a growing mistrust between Parliament and the people, "he said. he writes.
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