European Council President Donald Tusk said he will ask for another 90-day extension for Britain’s exit from the EU to avoid a no-deal scenario, after Parliament failed to approve the timetable for a negotiated departure.

The previous Brexit deadline of October 31 should be moved to January 31, 2020, Tusk suggested on Tuesday.

Following PM @BorisJohnson’s decision to pause the process of ratification of the Withdrawal Agreement, and in order to avoid a no-deal #Brexit, I will recommend the EU27 accept the UK request for an extension. For this I will propose a written procedure. — Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) October 22, 2019

While Parliament approved Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s negotiated exit in a 329-299 vote earlier in the day, the "programme motion" to fast-track it through all the stages of the House of Commons failed with 308 votes in favor and 322 against, just minutes later.

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Johnson has yet to publicly announce his government’s next steps, having said earlier that his policy remains a Brexit by October 31 and a general election if the timetable falls through. A report citing an unnamed Downing Street source has claimed that the PM will call an election if a three-month delay is granted by the EU.

Downing Street source says that if the EU offers a lengthy delay "the only way the country can move on is with an election."Question is, if no-deal is off the table and an extension agreed, will Labour accept the calls for an election? — Shehab Khan (@ShehabKhan) October 22, 2019

Whatever the final outcome of deliberations in Westminster might be, “a no-deal Brexit will never be our decision,” Tusk told the European Parliament in his farewell speech on Tuesday. He is scheduled to step down from his post at the end of November, with former Belgian PM Charles Michel in line to succeed him.

There are rumblings of discord within the EU, however. France may only accept a “purely technical” extension of a few days to complete the parliamentary procedures, rather than the full three months, Reuters reported citing diplomatic sources. The agreement has been reached and “it must be implemented without delay,” the source said.

“We cannot extend this situation to infinity,” France’s Secretary of State for European Affairs Amelie de Montchalin told the National Assembly, according to the agency.

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