The European Parliament will only vote on the Brexit agreement once the parliament in London has approved all the necessary laws. The group leaders of the European Parliament adopted this advice from their Brexit working group on Monday evening, as expected.
It is still unclear when the British parliament will make a decision on the deal. Prime Minister Johnson's government plans to submit the entire package of legislative proposals today (Tuesday), so a vote can take place later this week. It is highly uncertain whether the British MPs will manage to push all the complicated laws through in two or three days, as is doubted in Strasbourg.
If green light comes from London, the European Parliament can, if necessary, convene a special session next week in Strasbourg or Brussels to finalize the paperwork before October 31.
"We will advise that there must be full ratification in Great Britain before we can give our final vote," said Brexit coordinator Guy Verhofstadt of the European Parliament. "We will not ratify something that may never be ratified on the other side of the Channel," Philippe Lamberts of the European Greens expressed.
The European Parliament is already making preparations, "but for now the ball is in the UK's court." The group leaders will meet again on Thursday to discuss possible next steps.