UK cannot revoke Article 50 as a temporary measure: Brexit minister

Reuters
FILE PHOTO: Britain's Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, Stephen Barclay, arrives in Downing Street, in central London, Britain December 6, 2018. REUTERS/ Toby Melville

LONDON (Reuters) - Brexit minister Stephen Barclay said on Tuesday Britain's Article 50 notice to leave the European Union could be not be revoked as a temporary measure. Earlier this month, the EU's top court ruled that the British government may reverse its decision to leave the bloc without consulting other member states. Any extension of Article 50, however, would require the agreement of the rest of the EU. Asked by a lawmaker if there were circumstances in which the government might revoke Article 50 as a de facto extension while it prepared for a no deal Brexit or sought a better deal from the EU, Barclay said: "What the court case was clear (about) is one can't revoke as a temporary measure." (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan and Andrew MacAskill, editing by Elizabeth Piper)