UK may note vote on a Brexit deal until 2021 says Leader of the House of Commons Rees-Mogg

UK Leader of the House of Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg appears to have pushed back against speculation that there might be a Commons vote on a Brexit deal as early as next Monday/Tuesday, saying that the House of Commons may not vote on any deal until 2021.

However, the Leader of the Commons did caveat that a vote in 2021 could come after a Brexit deal has already come into force, saying that Parliament could be asked to “retrospectively correct” domestic law to recognise the agreement and backdate it to 31 December, when the transition period officially ends.

Rees-Mogg’s comments come after a flurry of speculation earlier in the day that the UK and EU might be on the cusp of announcing a deal, with a debate and vote on the deal to happen potentially as early as next Monday and Tuesday. This speculation, which was admittedly pushed back against by a number of reports citing their own sources, boosted GBP at the time, pushing GBP/USD above 1.3400. EU officials were also sounding more optimistic on the chances for a deal earlier on during Tuesday’s session (a German envoy to the EU was reported as saying it is still possible to reach a deal by end of the week and the Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said he believes the two sides are seeing progress).

Market Reaction

Rees-Mogg does not seem to have pushed back against increased hopes that a deal might be announced soon, thus GBP/USD continues to trade close to daily highs close to 1.3430.