LONDON — Prime Minister Boris Johnson won approval for his Brexit deal in parliament on Friday, the first step towards fulfilling his election pledge to deliver Britain’s departure from the European Union by Jan. 31 after his landslide victory. Only after that will the prime minister face talks to secure a trade deal with the bloc and another target date of the end of next year. Getting “the Brexit vote wrapped up for Christmas” was the main aim for Johnson showing that, unlike his predecessor Theresa May, he now had free reign to drive Brexit forward despite continued criticism from opposition lawmakers. In a change to the bill, Johnson made it illegal to extend those talks beyond the end of next year. “Today we will deliver on the promise we made to the people and get the Brexit vote wrapped up for Christmas,” he said in comments before the vote.

Source: National Post December 20, 2019 14:37 UTC