Theresa May is expected to set out plans to axe the Irish backstop from her Brexit deal with the EU, as she shuns efforts to find a cross-party consensus and focuses on winning over the DUP and rebels in her own party.
From her countryside retreat of Chequers on Sunday, the prime minister convened a conference call with her cabinet.
She briefed them on her recent calls with EU leaders and how she plans to respond to the historic defeat of her Brexit deal in the Commons last week.
Theresa May made clear she was ditching efforts to seek a cross-party compromise, because the level of support expected from Labour MPs was not deemed strong enough to pass the Withdrawal Agreement and the subsequent Brexit legislation required before the UK leaves the EU.
Instead, Mrs May is expected to set out plans to try and “remove the Irish backstop” in an effort to win around the DUP, whose 10 MPs she relies on for support in parliament, and some of the 118 Conservatives who opposed her deal last week.
The Irish backstop is the commitment within the Withdrawal Agreement that would mean the UK would effectively remain in the customs territory of the EU after Brexit if a trade deal that preserves an open border on the island of Ireland is not in place.