Even with no deal the UK will eventually have to accept the deal, says the EU

No, there will be no unicorns and fairy dust.

The UK must eventually accept the deal on the table, the one negotiated with Theresa May, even in the event of a no-deal Brexit, as a condition for the EU being willing to begin negotiations on future relations, including trade.

The E.U. Seems Ready to Put Brexit on Ice. But for How Long?

The president of the European Council, Donald Tusk, and the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, have suggested an extension until June 1, 2020, diplomats say. 

If Britain’s Parliament were to pass the withdrawal agreement that the government has negotiated with the bloc any time sooner, the country would leave the bloc on the first of the next month, this proposal goes.

European leaders stressed that, whatever should happen in the process of withdrawal, or Brexit, the British Parliament would still have to pass the withdrawal agreement before there could be any discussions about the future relationship — even if Britain had left without an agreement first. 

The terms would include the major sticking point for pro-Brexit lawmakers, the so-called backstop to prevent a physical border between Northern Ireland and the south.

The agreement covers technical issues concerning the withdrawal and is not up for renegotiation, European leaders say, while an associated “political declaration” covers things like trade and customs and could serve as the basis for negotiations on the future.

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With any extension under consideration, Britain would have to hold elections for the European Parliament on May 23. 

Mrs. May has regarded that prospect, three years after the British voted for Brexit, as absurd, but she now accepts it as the inevitable price of avoiding a no-deal Brexit and the damage that would do to her country’s economy.

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But in any case, European officials emphasize, the withdrawal agreement, including the Irish backstop, designed to guarantee no hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, will not change.