Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson insists on delivering the Brexit by October 31, according to a British Government source.
Johnson is meeting with the European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker this Monday in Luxembourg, the first meeting they have since Johnson took office last July and that the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay and the Brexit and Brexit representative David Frost are also attending.
" would make clear that he would not countenance any more delays," said the source, "Any further extension would be a huge mistake. It is not just a question of the extra dither and delay - it is also the additional long months of rancour and division, and all at huge expense," it added.
The British government claims that there are many things happening behind the scenes and that a deal is in sight. Brussels, on the other hand, insists that negotiations are stalled as the British Government has not been able to provide a good enough alternative to the Irish backstop clause, whose purpose is avoiding a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
"We don't know what the British want exactly, precisely or in detail, and we're still waiting for alternative proposals," said the European Commission president Jean Claude Juncker on the German radio on Sunday.
Despite the British, Parliament approved a law that would obligate the British Government to ask Brussels for an extension, a move that brought a lot of relief into the markets, Johnson keeps insisting on continuing with his plans. In an article published by the telegraph, the Prime Minister accused the British Parliament of trying to stop the United Kingdom from ever leaving the European Union, something that he considers highly undemocratic.
Johnson also said that his team is working hard to find a solution to the Irish issue.
"If we can make enough progress in the next few days, I intend to go to that crucial summit... and finalize an agreement that will protect the interests of business and citizens on both sides of the channel, and on both sides of the border in Ireland," he said.
It seems that the British Government plan is keeping Northern Ireland more aligned with the Republic of Ireland and the UE, a move that would be heavily opposed by the Democratic Unionist Party.
British Chambers of Commerce cut its growth forecasts
The British Chambers of Commerce decided to cut its growth forecasts for this and next year, attributing the economic slowdown to the global trade tensions, a slowing down global economic and to the Brexit political crisis.
The BCC cut this year's growth forecast from 1.3 percent (June's figure) to 1.2 percent, and next year's from 1.0 percent to 0.8 percent. This would be the slowest economic growth since the 2008 economic recession. The BCC director highlighted that their predictions would stand even if Britain avoids a no-deal Brexit.
"Our latest forecast shows a number of warning lights are flashing for the UK economy, even if we are able to avoid a messy and disorderly exit from the EU in just a few weeks’ time,” he said.
By 7:09 GMT the GBP/USD pair was at 1.2453, falling 0.38 percent, while the GBP/JPY pair dropped by -0.57 percent, at 134.36.