British Prime Minister Theresa May is trying to achieve an orderly Brexit, UK's ambassador to Croatia, Andrew Dalgleish, told N1 on Friday, following UK Parliament's vote on Thursday in which MPs voted to reject a so-called no-deal Brexit.

The latest vote means that unless the Parliament agrees to the withdrawal deal by March 20, London would ask for a delay of Brexit, currently scheduled for March 29. Dalgliesh explained that the UK government’s goal was to get Parliament approval for the withdrawal deal agreed with Brussels, even after the MPs voted against it twice already.

“The important thing is what the Prime Minister is trying to achieve, through Parliament, is an orderly Brexit, and this is what we’ve said all along. The effect of a non-orderly Brexit will be very disruptive, and that’s why we have made it a priority to look after to reassure our citizens on this… Yesterday’s vote was about saying what we do want to do to deliver that orderly Brexit. And it’s for sure that we will need a little more time. We’ll need time to take any agreement through to parliamentary processes, but we still don’t have that agreement approved yet. And the Prime Minister has said that what she wants to do by March 20, which is before the European Council, is find out whether we can agree the deal that is on the table,” Dalgleish explained.

The prospect of the UK Parliament backing May’s withdrawal deal currently seems remote as lawmakers had overwhelmingly rejected it for a second time on Tuesday.

The most contentious point is the so-called Irish backstop, intended to prevent the return of border infrastructure in Northern Ireland by keeping customs arrangements between the UK and the Republic of Ireland aligned. But euro-sceptic lawmakers believe it would indefinitely bind the UK closer to the EU’s rules.

Meanwhile, any request by the UK to postpone Brexit must be agreed by Brussels, but European leaders seem reluctant to re-open negotiations for a new withdrawal deal, or grant a delay to Brexit without a specific purpose.

“The withdrawal agreement is a product of 28 member states getting together. and agreeing a position. Now the Prime Minister is taking this to Parliament, and Parliament initially said ‘We don’t like this.’ And The Prime Minister said ‘Well, unfortunately, that’s the deal on the table and that’s the deal we’re going to have to work with. And we might have to do a bit more explaining as to why it is the best deal available, and you might need a bit more time to understand that the alternatives to this deal are worse.’ That’s why we are sticking with the deal and we are hoping to get it through Parliament,” Dalgliesh told N1.

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