Theresa May has announced that the Brexit “endgame” is in sight, with a draft deal finally on the table after months of intense negotiations.
The prime minister will call a special Cabinet meeting at 2pm today to encourage ministers to rally behind the 500-page proposal outlining Britain’s relationship with the EU after 29 March, when the UK will formally depart the union.
Although the specific details of the proposed arrangement are being kept swiftly under wraps, DUP ministers and Tory dissenters are already calling for a parliamentary rebellion to vote down the deal, which former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has dismissed as “vassal state stuff”.
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Many on social media were equally unimpressed, whether by the rumoured terms of the deal or by the confirmation that the UK is firmly set on its course for Brexit.
Nigel Farage did not mince his words on the agreement, which reportedly contains multiple concessions seen as redlines to hard Brexit advocates:
And reports that Conservative MPs were also doubtful that the plans represented a bright future for Britain prompted dark mirth on Twitter:
Attempts to reassure nervous Remainers were met with sarcasm:
All of which indicates that the PM will have an uphill battle at this afternoon’s “rally the troops” Cabinet meeting:
The Independent’s political sketch writer Tom Peck had a tongue-in-cheek trivia question for his followers:
Some wondered how future generations would make sense of it all:
And even politics professor Tim Bale had had enough of all the… well, politics:
