Britain's Attorney General Geoffrey Cox is seen outside Downing Street in London, Britain, February 20, 2019. REUTERS/Simon Dawson

(Reuters) - UK Attorney General Geoffrey Cox is considering plans for a unilateral exit mechanism to the Irish backstop with a notice period of 12 months, the Telegraph newspaper reported bit.ly/2E0XHql late on Wednesday.

The “backstop” provision in Britain’s European Union divorce deal aims at avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland. Earlier on Wednesday, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and British Prime Minister Theresa May said that the backstop provision is temporary.