THERESA May has set her sights on clinching a Brexit deal just 72 hours before departure day.

The PM faces a nerve-racking round of talks which will take the process right to the wire.

3 Theresa May has set her sights on clinching a Brexit deal just three days before departure day Credit: EPA

It raises the prospect of MPs having to vote for a final agreement or face crashing out three days later.

Twitchy MPs anxious to avoid a “no deal” Brexit were urged to stay calm and hold their nerve.

A senior government source said: “It’s a tight landing zone – but it’s a landing zone nevertheless. If we can get our timing right, we’ll touch down in time.”

Mrs May will spend this week in talks with 27 EU leaders in her search for a legally-binding change to the hated Irish backstop.

THRASH OUT A DEAL

If she survives a fresh round of Commons votes on Thursday, her next big chance to pin down European chiefs is next week when they gather for a summit in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.

Tories hope they will meet at the margins to thrash out a formula to ensure the backstop is temporary and a high-tech solution to keep an open Irish border.

It is likely the final decision would be made at an all-night summit of EU leaders on March 22, a week before Britain’s s scheduled exit day.

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LAST CHANCE VOTE

Mrs May would return to make a Commons statement on Monday March 25, followed by a debate and vote the next day.

Downing Street hope the tight margin will win over enough MPs to back a freshly-tweaked deal.

Former government chief whip Mark Harper said: “The most likely date for a meaningful vote on a revised withdrawal agreement could well be as late as Tuesday March 26 – just three days before we are formally scheduled to leave the EU.

“To give the Prime Minister a fighting chance to secure the necessary changes to the withdrawal agreement to get Parliament’s approval, MPs will have to hold their nerve right up to the wire.”

3 Former government chief whip Mark Harper said: 'The most likely date for a meaningful vote on a revised withdrawal agreement could well be as late as Tuesday March 26' – 72 hours before we are scheduled to leave the EU Credit: Corbis - Getty

3 If the PM survives a fresh round of Commons votes on Thursday, her next big chance to pin down European chiefs is next week when they gather for a summit Credit: PA:Press Association

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar says 'the onus is on Westminster' to come up with solutions to Brexit mess

SCHOOL LEAVERS SCHOOLS face closure under plans for a No Deal Brexit. Kids would be sent home if fumes from lorries carrying goods from the Channel ports caused too much air pollution. Freight trains would run through the night and police forces sent to places where they were most needed, such as London and Kent. Whitehall hopes to avoid shortages if the UK exits the EU on March 29 without a deal.