hello, you are watching bbc news, i am clive myrie. in the last few minutes, the prime minister has been speaking in downing street. she announced plans to seek a further extension to britain's departure from the european union and offered to sit down with the leader of the labour party to formulate a deal that both sides in parliament could agree to. she said if it wasn't possible to agree, they could choose a series of options to put to parliament. lets hear that statement in full. i have come from chairing seven hours of cabinet meetings to find a way out of the impasse, one that can deliver the brexit the british people voted for and also to move on and bring

the divided country back together. i know some are so fed up with delay and arguments that they would like to leave with no deal next week. i've always been clear that we could make a success of no deal in the long term, but leaving with a deal is the best solution. so we will need a further extension of article 50, one that is as short as possible and which ends when we pass a deal. and we need to be clear what such an extension is for — to ensure that we leave in a timely and orderly way. this debate, this division, cannot drag on for much longer. it is putting members of parliament and everyone else under immense pressure, and it is doing damage to our politics. despite the best efforts of mps, the process that the house of commons has tried to lead has not come up with an answer. so today i'm taking action

to break the logjam. i'm offering to sit down with the leader of the opposition and to try and agree a plan that we would both stick to to ensure that we leave the eu and that we do so with a deal. any plan would have to agree the current withdrawal agreement. it has already been negotiated with the 27 other members, and the eu has repeatedly said it cannot and will not be reopened. what we need to focus on is our future relationship with the eu. the ideal outcome of this process would be to agree an approach on a future relationship that delivers on the result of the referendum, that both the leader of the opposition and i can put to the house for approval and which i could then take to next week's european council. however, if we cannot agree on a single unified approach, then we would instead agree a number of options for the future relationship that we could put to the house

in a series of votes to determine which course to pursue. crucially, the government stands ready to abide by the decision of the house, but to make this process work, the opposition would need to agree to this too. the government would bring forward the withdrawal agreement bill. we would want to agree a timetable for the bill to ensure it is passed before the 22nd of may, so that the uk need not take part in european parliamentary elections. this is a difficult time for everyone. passions are running high on all sides of the argument. but we can and must find the compromises that will deliver what the british people voted for. this is a decisive moment in the story of these islands, and it requires national unity to deliver the national interest.

the prime minister is speaking after a marathon meeting with her cabinet, vicki young is here, let's break down the statement, vicki, she says. all she is going to seek an extension, another extension to article 50. no indication to how long it would be. the first thing to say is that no—deal, still the legal fallback position on april the 12th, she is saying that she won't do that, so instead she is going to go and ask for another delay to brexit. now, as we know, it is in the eu's gift, they have to unanimously agree it, and they have said they will only do so if there is a clear plan, and there has to be a plan, so that is why she is going to do it, but she doesn't say for how long, she wa nted she doesn't say for how long, she wanted to be short, which suggests that what she is going to do was talk about changes to the political declaration. she is saying that the

future relationship, the future relationship with the eu is the thing that could be changed and could be changed very quickly, the eu have made that clear. she talks about the bill still going through parliament by the 22nd of may so the uk doesn't have to take part in eu elections. that is still her plan. the most significant thing is that a lot has been said about nothing being changed, but something has changed because she is suggesting she will be prepared to compromise. of the next part of his statement says she is willing to sit down with the leader of the opposition, jeremy corbyn. the hope is, she said, that they will come to some sort of opposition that parliament can ratify. the problem is, her idea of where britain should be going and jeremy corbyn‘s idea, the leader of the opposition, they are poles apart. again, we are reading into what she has had to say, but the fa ct what she has had to say, but the fact that she will be willing to sit down with him, she must be willing to compromise. as you say, the

question is where she is willing to compromise. most people think she wouldn't compromise over freedom of movement, for example, so the idea of single market membership could probably be ruled out. so what she might be looking at is some kind of customs union, something that the house of commons has not quite had a majority for south are in the indicative votes, but something that they might be able to agree on. the politics of this is still fascinating, because there is still politics here. she is getting labour involved, so if jeremy politics here. she is getting labour involved, so ifjeremy corbyn is to go along with this, his fingerprints will be all over brexit, as well as his, and up to now that has not been the case, labour has stood back, has voted against a deal and not got involved. will he be willing to get involved. will he be willing to get involved in this kind of brexit? in the end, they will both have to compromise, so you can tell, because she has another plan, she might not be totally confident it will work, but that will be incredibly unpopular with her own party, because many of them, many

conservatives, dozens and dozens, voted for a no—deal brexit. they would be perfectly happy to leave in just over a week without a deal, and what you are saying already as those in the tory party who had voted for her deal and have been warning the erg about this, saying, the hardest brexit you will get is his, if you don't back this, then the only inevitable consequence is a much softer brexit, and that does look like what will be on the cards. so the final point then from his statement is that if some kind of agreement is not reached withjeremy corbyn, sitting down with him, then we could get another series of indicative votes in parliament, and the government would be bound by whatever parliament reaches. now, that could be, what, an election, second referendum 7 that could be, what, an election, second referendum? but the government would be listening to what parliament says. that is a huge suggestion from her to say that rather than may be frustrating the process , rather than may be frustrating the process, some feel the government

has frustrated, not allowing the cabinet to vote on that, and there are questions you — will there be a free vote for everybody, what is the government going to whip one way or the other? they would not be truly indicative if it was not a free vote, and i have not coalesced around anything so far, but if there was talks withjeremy corbyn around anything so far, but if there was talks with jeremy corbyn file, then all those options are back on then all those options are back on the table, and if she says that the government will go along with that, eve ryo ne government will go along with that, everyone who has been really fighting like cats and dogs to get their staying forward and get them to coalesce around that, they will now all think, actually, there might bea now all think, actually, there might be a chance now for my referendum or my option. indeed, vicki, stay with us. my option. indeed, vicki, stay with us. let's go to damian grammaticas, but first we are going to bring up what donald tusk has been saying in response to theresa may's statement, there it is. the eu council president, even if after today we don't know what the end result will

be, lets us be patient. that might be, lets us be patient. that might be an indication that perhaps the european union might be willing to grant another extension to article 50. damian grammaticas is in brussels for us now, we know from the last few days of the whole debate over brexit that the european union is frustrated and they are getting a little bit angry at the suggestion that they believe britain cannot come up with its own way forward and is — what you think they will make of what theresa may has just said? it is very interesting, the tweet from donald tusk coming out just the tweet from donald tusk coming outjust in the last few minutes, clearly shows you the eu is watching very closely what has been happening in london, donald tusk saying, let us in london, donald tusk saying, let us be patient. so what is likely to happen? at the minute, the eu is simply going to sit and wait and say, as it has done already, that the uk has to present a clear plan by the beginning of next week,

prefera bly by the beginning of next week, preferably monday for that eu summit on wednesday, to consider. because if you look at what theresa may said, she is asking for an extension possibly up to the 22nd of may so that the uk would not have to take pa rt that the uk would not have to take part in european elections. now, this is something that the eu leaders have already dealt with, they had that big summit, a long meeting late into the night that happened already a few days ago, and they were very clear that there would only be that extension if the withdrawal agreement was passed. the uk could still do that, but if it goes down this route, as is now happening, what the eu said is no extension beyond the end of next week unless the uk commits to taking pa rt week unless the uk commits to taking part in european elections. mrs may said just now that she did not want to do that, i think that is a clear point of difficulty, and i do not see how, to be frank, the eu leaders

are going to roll back, because that was their —— there stipulated in their written conclusions, all 27 countries put that down as the condition, so it is highly unlikely that they will now row back from that, because what they were doing there is saying they were protecting their own legal order, the legal integrity and certainty of the elections. they do not want an extension april the 12th, the last day the uk can commit to taking part in those, unless it is clear it is going to happen, so it seems to me they will still say, the most likely thing is a clear plan a clear commitment to take part in the elections. so that could be a potential sticking point, there was european union elections. thank you, damian. geeta guru—murthy has been on college green all day, covering this story. over to you. thanks very much, clive, we have got

three guests we cum, don foster from the guardian, hilary benn of the labour party, hilary benn, can i start with you, your reaction to the prime minister's statement on the offer to work with the labour party? i welcome the fact that the prime minister has finally acknowledged that she cannot take the eu out —— ta ke that she cannot take the eu out —— take the uk out of the eu with no deal, and an extension is good news, but there are a number of important questions. how long an extension is she going to apply for, because the 22nd of may, at that point, as i argued in the house this week, that might mean there was no further extension possible because the eu would say you did not take part in the european elections. secondly, what happens if the eu proposes a different extension to the one the prime minister has sought? if the offer of cross—party collaboration

is meant, is she going to talk to jeremy corbyn about the answer to both of those very important questions, and my second reaction is this — after two and three quarters yea rs this — after two and three quarters years she has said she wants to reach out, but we have been here before, and the net result was the prime minister listening politely but her mind remained closed. and she really needs to give, i think, parliament and indication that she is willing to move. if this is the first indication she will shift, then that of course is important, but if it is the same old story, it isn't. there is a simple way forward. she can put a deal to the british people in a confirmatory referendum... she has said she will listen to the will of the house, hasn't she? a confirmatory referendum and customs union, ken clarke's suggestion, where the two that got the most support. that is correct, and i have an amendment to the business question for tomorrow to have a further opportunity on monday in the house of commons to

see whether we could make further progress, because the customs union got within three votes, and that is a large question and the government has managed with its own deal after two and three quarters years. this is theresa may accepting, surely, that her deal on its own cannot get through with the erg and the dup, she is moving towards a softer brexit, isn't that something that you welcome? if that is what this is about, then of course i welcome it, it should have happened to and three quarters years ago, but i am not going to be churlish about it this evening, and if the meaningful vote is not coming back for the fourth time, you are right, it is recognition that her deal has run out of road and she needs to reach out of road and she needs to reach out across the house to find another way forward. the only way you are going to resolve this now, given that parliament has been deadlocked thus far, is to go back to the british people in a confirmatory referendum, and support for that is building. she is talking about

reaching out and talking tojeremy corbyn, what do you know about the talks that have happened in the past, and how could they now swiftly, productively go forward? as far as swiftly, productively go forward? as farasi swiftly, productively go forward? as far as i understand it — i have not beenin far as i understand it — i have not been in them — but they have not got very far, because up until this moment the prime minister has said, thank you very much, i am sticking with the deal i negotiated earlier. what would labour agree to now? labour wants a customs union, a close relationship with the single market, protection of workers' rights and environmental protections, and labour is arguing for a confirmatory referendum, and the prime minister said, ok, we can have all of those, we will talk to the eu about a different type of political declaration, the eu would be willing to make those changes, then we would put it to the british people and say, right, on the one hand, this is the deal that has been negotiated to leave, the only deal, there are no other deals whatever you were promised at the referendum was never possible, to keep all your

sovereignty and all of your economic benefits, that was never the choice, and the last two and three quarters yea rs have proved and the last two and three quarters years have proved that to be a fa ntasy, years have proved that to be a fantasy, and on the other hand, if on reflection you don't like that, the uk would remain, people can vote leave or remain, they can change their mind or not change their mind, that would be a way of getting a final decision. if labour do not move as well, so both sides have to compromise here, then if the uk leaves on a no—deal exit, labour has some responsibility for that now. the one thing the prime minister cannot do, after two and three quarters years, is to seek to blame the opposition for her own failings. that is not going to watch, it is not going to work, it doesn't reflect the truth. the fact is labour has put forward, over a long period of time now, its proposals, we waived for them again yesterday in the house of commons, but it depends on the prime minister,

whether she is willing to move. by jeremy corbyn's position, and his front bench team, their position on what they want, whether they are even behind a second confirmatory vote has been totally divided and confused, many say deliberately. jeremy corbyn is now being offered the chance to reach a consensus with the chance to reach a consensus with the prime minister to resolve this, there is a lot of pressure on labour to do that and deliver, isn't there? labour has been putting forward an alternative proposal for quite some time and, secondly, afterjeremy announced we would support a confirmatory referendum, the labour party we pt confirmatory referendum, the labour party wept yesterday and last wednesday in support of a confirmatory referendum, a very clear expression of the labour pa rty‘s clear expression of the labour party's policy. so if the customs union on its own, just support in the house of commons for the customs union and a confirmatory vote and that was tacked onto the withdrawal agreement as part of the political declaration, would labour support that? i can't speak for the front

bench, but if a confirmatory referendum is offered by the prime minister, then i would vote for that, because it is a way to give the british people the chance to decide whether they want to leave on the basis of the deal the prime minister has negotiated... she has made it very clear she is against a second referendum, because the conservative party would divide over it. it is hard to believe the conservative party could be any more divided than it is at the moment, thatis divided than it is at the moment, that is why we are in this terrible mess, facing this crisis for the future of our country, and it requires leadership that is prepared to show a willingness to move, and if that is what the prime minister is genuinely saying today, i am sure she will find jeremy corbyn willing to ta ke she will find jeremy corbyn willing to take herup she will find jeremy corbyn willing to take her up on the other in discussions that i hope will begin very soon. dawn foster of the guardian, a left—wing newspaper, of course, do you thinkjeremy corbyn will respond to this and trying to work actively with the prime

minister now, supporting a customs union with a second vote, and reach a deal? i think he will go into the talks to try to get as much out of it as possible. it puts a lot of pressure and the labour party, doesn't it? it does, and labour will be clear and open with the public about how the talks are going. be clear and open with the public about how the talks are goingm be clear and open with the public about how the talks are going. is it potentially a trap for the labour party? if there is a no—deal brexit, labour gets some of the blame. party? if there is a no—deal brexit, labour gets some of the blamelj think labour gets some of the blame.” think theresa may will see it as a trap, the labour party and the general public will see what happens. essentially, theresa may is asking jeremy corbyn to come in. if she doesn't offer anything, if it is purely a pr exercise, labour will be very open about that. the public have very little trust in theresa may at the moment, and a big issue that we have now is that may wants to extend article 50 to the 22nd of may so she doesn't have to go through european elections, but europe were very clear at the weekend that the only circumstances under which they would extend article 50 is if theresa may had a

way forward, and the two main ways forward we re a way forward, and the two main ways forward were a general election or a confirmatory vote, and labour have been pushing for the confirmatory vote, so i think europe will push as well and theresa may then has to acce pt well and theresa may then has to accept that she either goes for the confirmatory vote in the public get a say on the deal or she pushes for no—deal, and if she does that, she has to accept the blame himself. there is still a lot ahead, what the prime minister has outlined, and very little time. she made the point that she wants to get this legislation through by the 22nd of may, so even if the commons science face off, it is not a bail until it has gone through both houses of parliament, and we know that brexiteers will try to frustrate that, even if they support the deal in the end. there is a lot of process that needs to be gone through, and as dawn said, the conditions for the extension of

article 50 were very