Despite talks with the opposition Labour Party to try to find an alliance to get the Brexit withdrawal agreement through Parliament, British Prime Minister Theresa May's deputy David Lidington conceded on Tuesday there was not enough time left to get the deal through the assembly.

"It is regrettably not going to be possible to finish that process" before May 23, Lidington said in a statement, promising to make the delay "as short as possible."

May deeply regretted the move, her spokesman said.

This means that the UK will have to take part in European Parliament elections, which will take place from May 23 to 26.

"Ideally, we'd like to be in a situation where those MEPs never actually have to take their seat in the European Parliament — certainly, to get this done and dusted by the summer recess in the British parliament," he added. This would probably be in late July.

Pro-Remain parties recently fared well in local elections

Talks with Labour go on

Talks to find an agreement with Labour were continuing on Tuesday, as May was due to meet with members of her Conservative Party who reportedly wanted to know when she would be stepping down as leader.

The talks with Labour to "try and find a way forward that has maximum possible support amongst politicians of all political parties," are continuing but still sticking around issues including a customs union with the EU, and the possibility of a second public vote on the agreement.

May's proposed deal with the EU has already been rejected by parliament three times. Her government has spent more than four weeks in talks with Labour, without any signs of a deal which would be accepted by Parliament, and then by Brussels.

The UK's exit date from the EU has been pushed back to October 31.

Candidates for European Commission president Manfred Weber (EPP) The center-right European People's Party (EPP) — the largest faction in the European Parliament — has picked Manfred Weber, its German parliamentary party leader. He has the backing of Chancellor Angela Merkel. Though considered the front-runner, Weber is little known on the international stage, and his language skills are considered poor.

Candidates for European Commission president Frans Timmermans (S&D) Frans Timmermans, the European Commission's first vice president, will lead the campaign for the Progressive Alliance of Socialists & Democrats (S&D). Weber's main rival promises to bring the bloc closer to ordinary voters at a time when Britain's looming exit is one factor behind the nationalist movements across the EU.

Candidates for European Commission president Margrethe Vestager (ALDE) Margrethe Vestager, 51, is one of seven lead candidates for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats. As the current EU commissioner for competition, the Danish MEP has taken on corporations like Apple, Amazon and Google parent Alphabet. It's also been said that she served as the inspiration for the main character in Borgen , a Danish series where a woman becomes Denmark's first female leader.

Candidates for European Commission president Jan Zahradil (ECR) The third-largest group in the EU Parliament, the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), has just one candidate: Jan Zahradil, chairman of the Czech ECR delegation. Zahradil, 65, is affectionately known as "Forrest Gump" for cycling from Prague to Strasbourg for a session of the European Parliament and for once running 1,300 kilometers (about 800 miles) across the Czech Republic for charity.

Candidates for European Commission president Ska Keller (Greens/EFA) The Greens/EFA is the seventh largest group in European Parliament, so the German is a long shot to become European Commission president. The Greens have proposed a job share, with two candidates serving for two-and-a-half years each. The most favorite to join Keller is Dutch lawmaker Bas Eickhout.

Candidates for European Commission president Violeta Tomic and Nico Cue (GUE/NGL) The EU's left-wing groups will be headed by Spanish trade unionist Nico Cue and Violeta Tomic (at left). Tomic is a deputy in Slovenia's National Assembly, best known as a TV presenter and actress. She entered into politics in 2014 and has been an advocate for LGBT rights and stronger citizens' rights in Europe. Cue grew up in Belgium after his family was forced to flee Franco's Soain. Author: Keith Walker



Local election votes for Remainers

"The prime minister said that while an agreement with the opposition had not been reached, the public had sent a clear message in the local elections that they want both of the main parties to get on with delivering Brexit" her spokesman said she told her ministers.

However, in recent local elections, two parties which unequivocally back staying in the EU, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens, won a large number of seats.

Liberal Democrats won 11 councils — leaving them in control of 18 — and 676 councillors. The Greens made net gains of 185 seats across England.

By contrast, the Conservatives, Labour and Brexit party UKIP saw their share of the local vote fall.

Conservatives lost nearly a third of the councils it had, keeping 93 (down 45), with net losses of 1,269 seats. Labour lost six councils, ending up controlling 60, with a net loss of 63 seats. UKIP saw a net loss of 36 seats.

jm/rs (Reuters, AP)

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