Theresa May will fly to Brussels on Wednesday with new plans to change Britain’s EU withdrawal agreement, as she desperately tries to save her Brexit strategy.

The prime minister arrives in Belgium with a stack of legal papers setting out how she believes negotiators can tweak the “Irish backstop” hated by Tory backbenchers.

Ms May also managed to maintain the support of Brexiteers in her own party by promising to make some of their proposals the basis for future discussions on trade with the EU.

Her latest trip to the Belgian capital will see Ms May have a significant meeting with Jean-Claude Juncker, although the European Commission president poured cold water on the idea that it would lead to a major breakthrough at this point.

If there is progress, Ms May could decide to attend a summit at the Egyptian resort of Sharm-el-Sheikh on Sunday, where she would have the chance to win approval for any changes from Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron.

That would allow her to show MPs she is making progress in her strategy, before going into a further set of critical votes in the House of Commons next week.

The Independent understands that attorney general Geoffrey Cox has now prepared draft proposals for a legally binding “codicil”, which would be attached to the existing withdrawal agreement, offering additional clarity as to the temporary nature of the Irish backstop.

One senior minister said: “It depends what happens in the next few days, but we will see something now start to take shape.

How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Show all 14 1 /14 How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Passports British passports that expire after 29 March 2019 will continue to be valid as UK travel documents, but will lose the power that comes with being a European Union passport – notably the right of free movement within the EU27. UK passports issued from 30 March 2019 will have the words “European Union” removed from the cover and the first page (along with the translations into Welsh and Gaelic). But they will still be burgundy. By October 2019, new British passports will have dark blue covers Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Pets You will still be able to travel to the EU with your pet after Brexit, but it could well get more complicated depending on the status that the European Union decide to apply. If the UK is given “Part 2 listed status”, there would be some extra requirements for travelling pets and owners post-Brexit. “These would require an additional visit to the vet and some additional papers to be carried but would not prevent you from enjoying your trip,” says Eurotunnel. But it adds that if the UK is given unlisted, third-country status, “owners who wish to travel with their pets from the UK to EU nations will need to discuss their specific preparations and requirements with an Official Veterinarian at least four months prior to their desired travel date AFP/Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Eurotunnel/Eurostar The Treaty of Canterbury between the UK and France governs the Channel Tunnel link and operations will continue – subject to any local disruption at Folkestone and/or Calais AFP/Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Driving Motorists, whether taking their own cars or hiring abroad, are likely to need to obtain an International Driving Permit or two; different EU countries are signed up to different treaties, so for a trip embracing Spain and France you would need both types. These are currently sold from a limited number of Post Offices, but the government intends to make them widely available. The cost is £5.50 for each. Motor insurance will no longer automatically extend to the EU. Insurers will provide on request a “Green Card”, for which an extra charge will be made PA How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Flights Even in the event of a no-deal Brexit, flights will continue to operate between the UK and European Union. However, in the event of the UK leaving with no deal, many flights are likely to be cancelled because departures would be capped at 2018 levels. As UK airlines have already announced thousands of new flights to Europe from the end of March 2019, some would have to be cancelled Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Air routes The network of flight links between Britain and eastern Europe could be affected by any reduction in the number of workers from those countries. Not only do they use the flights – so do their families and friends PA How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Flight disruption rights Current European passengers’ rights rules, known as EC261/2004, stipulate high payouts for delays and cancellations that cannot be attributed to “extraordinary circumstances”. Buried in a document called Beyond the Horizon: The Future of UK Aviation, the government says “the UK will not fall below current standards of protection when we leave the EU” AFP/Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Entry regulations to the European Union From 11pm GMT on 29 March 2019, UK travellers will become “third-country nationals” when travelling to Schengen countries and subject to the standard rules of admission for citizens of nations such as the US, Japan and Australia. That means there must be at least 90 days (roughly three months) left on your passport beyond your intended date of departure. Because third-country nationals can remain in the Schengen area for 90 days, the actual check carried out could be that the passport has at least six months’ validity remaining on the date of arrival Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Online registration prior to travel – ETIAS From 2021, non-EU nationals who do not require a visa to enter the Schengen area – including British travellers – will need to request prior authorisation to visit Schengen countries. The Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) is aimed at reducing the “migration, security or public-health risk” from nationals of visa-exempt third countries, which is what the UK will become after Brexit. It costs €7 for three years AFP/Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe ‘Brexit clauses’ A large number of travel providers – even including National Express coaches – have added “Brexit clauses” to their terms and conditions. These generally specify that they will not be liable for “consequential losses” as a result of Brexit-related issues PA How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe ‘Fast track’ lanes for passport control entering EU countries British passport holders will not be able to use them, and must join the queue for third-country nationals. People holding an EU passport or ID card as well as a British passport will be able to exit the UK on the British passport but enter Europe on the EU document Getty How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Ferries The ferry industry insists vessels will continue to sail. The UK Chamber of Shipping says: “Unlike the carriage of cargo, trade deals do not have a significant effect on the cruise and passenger ferry industry. The explicit standardisation of commodity codes and tariffs associated with trade deals have little relevance to holidaymakers.” Having said that, the government and Kent County Council are planning for possible chaos at Channel ports because of a backlog of trucks in the event of a no-deal Brexit. This would impinge on holidaymakers’ plans PA How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) The EU says: “If you fall ill or have an accident during a visit to another EU country, as an EU citizen you have the right to receive the necessary public healthcare in any EU country under the same conditions as people in the host country.” The EHIC also works in Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Treatment, says the NHS, is “at a reduced cost or, in many cases, free of charge”. From 11pm GMT on 29 March 2019, when the UK ceases to belong to the European Union, British travellers will have no automatic right to use the EHIC. There is no certainty about what may replace it PA How Brexit will affect your travel to Europe Mobile phones From 30 March 2019, the law banning mobile phone firms from charging extra for calls and data in Europe will cease, though operators have yet to set out exactly what will replace it. In theory, mobile phone firms can impose whatever fees they think the market will bear. But Dave Dyson, chef executive of Three, says his firm is “committed to maintain the availability of roaming in the EU at no additional cost following Brexit” AFP/Getty

“It will probably not mean that the major breakthrough comes this week, but it will be enough to show colleagues we are making progress.”

The sticking point to Ms May winning full support from her party for her deal has always been the “backstop”, an arrangement to ensure the Irish border remains open after Brexit, but one that would see the UK potentially locked into an indefinite customs arrangement at the end of 2020 if no new trade deal is signed.

The backstop was sealed in the withdrawal agreement signed off by EU leaders in 2018 and which they have refused to reopen. The potential advantage of the codicil is that it could provide legally-binding additional words to the agreement without needing to reopen it.

But in a reality check ahead of her meeting with Mr Juncker, the Commission president told reporters in Stuttgart: “There is not enough movement for me to be able to assume that it will be a productive discussion. I don’t know what Ms May will tell me tomorrow.”

His deputy chief spokeswoman later quoted him as saying: “I have great respect for Theresa May, for her courage and her assertiveness. We will have friendly talks tomorrow but I don’t expect a breakthrough.”

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One cabinet source told The Independent the prime minister should go to Sharm el Sheikh at the weekend, where EU leaders will hold a summit, in order to convince them of her new proposals viability.

She then faces a round of votes in the House of Commons on February 27 when MPs will once again bring forward their own proposals for the UK’s next steps – including some which would delay Brexit as a step towards MPs taking greater control of the process.

A minister said: “What she gets this week has to be enough to take us through the votes on the 27th. She needs to be able to say look we are on the right track, don’t rock the boat now.”

At Tuesday morning’s cabinet, Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay briefed Ms May’s top team on talks in Brussels 24 hours earlier, at which EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier poured cold water on the backbench Malthouse compromise.

It sought to replace the backstop with a free trade agreement along with technological means of keeping the Irish border open – and if that is not acceptable to Brussels, the UK would leave without a deal but only in 2021 after further preparations.

However, the government is set to try and keep authors of the proposal on board by offering to try and put some of its elements in the future “political declaration” which sets out the terms of trade negotiations that will take place during the transition period.