Newly appointed Swedish European Union Minister Hans Dahlgren has declared that despite the multiple setbacks faced by Prime Minister Theresa May, he believes an orderly Brexit will occur on March 29th.
Mr Dahlgren said that in his opinion there is unlikely to be an extension of the Brexit negotiations saying, “The EU side has told the British that if you have good reasons for needing an extension then we can discuss it. But I think the British government really wants to try to get a decision in Parliament that allows them to keep this date,” broadcaster Sverigesradio reports.
The Swedish minister also noted the possibility of a no-deal Brexit occurring which would see the UK operating under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and could see the UK refuse to pay billions of pounds expected by the political bloc as part of the current deal advocated by Prime Minister May.
A recent Sky News poll revealed that no-deal is the most popular outcome for Britons wanting to leave the political bloc.
Other European politicians, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, have expressed some optimism over the Brexit deadline but Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallström slammed the entire process saying that the UK political class should not have held the referendum in the first place.
“You should not promise referenda if you don’t prepare them properly,” Wallström said and added, “I just think that they’ve made such a historical mistake and they’ve really created a problem for all of us.”
The Brexit process may have had an impact on the change in the policy of the populist Sweden Democrats who announced this week that they would be dropping proposals to hold a membership referendum.
Party leader Jimmie Åkesson spoke on the issue saying, “It would be irresponsible for Sweden to leave before knowing how it goes with Britain.”