Tusk to recommend ANOTHER 3-month Brexit extension to EU

European Council President Donald Tusk said he will ask for another 90-day extension for Britain's exit from the EU to avoid a no-deal scenario, after Parliament failed to approve the timetable for a negotiated departure.

The previous Brexit deadline of October 31 should be moved to January 31, 2020, Tusk suggested on Tuesday.

While Parliament approved Prime Minister Boris Johnson's negotiated exit in a 329-299 vote earlier in the day, the "programme motion" to fast-track it through all the stages of the House of Commons failed with 308 votes in favor and 322 against, just minutes later.

Johnson has yet to publicly announce his government's next steps, having said earlier that his policy remains a Brexit by October 31 and a general election if the timetable falls through. A report citing an unnamed Downing Street source has claimed that the PM will call an election if a three-month delay is granted by the EU.

Whatever the final outcome of deliberations in Westminster might be, "a no-deal Brexit will never be our decision," Tusk told the European Parliament in his farewell speech on Tuesday. He is scheduled to step down from his post at the end of November, with former Belgian PM Charles Michel in line to succeed him.

There are rumblings of discord within the EU, however. France may only accept a "purely technical" extension of a few days to complete the parliamentary procedures, rather than the full three months, Reuters reported citing diplomatic sources. The agreement has been reached and "it must be implemented without delay," the source said.

"We cannot extend this situation to infinity," France's Secretary of State for European Affairs Amelie de Montchalin told the National Assembly, according to the agency.

Losing Scotland from UK a fair price to pay for Brexit, THREE QUARTERS of English Tory 'Leave' voters say - poll

More than three quarters of English Tory 'Leave' voters believe that Brexit is more important than keeping Scotland in the United Kingdom and would sacrifice the Scots if it came down to a choice, according to a new poll.

The research by respected Conservative pollster Lord Ashcroft found that 76 percent of Tory voters who opted to leave the European Union in the 2016 referendum would put Brexit first, even if it meant that Scottish independence was the price to pay.

A slightly smaller number of 74 percent said the same about Northern Ireland.

In contrast, only 48 percent of Labour 'Leave' voters said they would be willing to see Scotland go in order to ensure Britain left the EU. Overall, across all party affiliations, 36 percent of English voters said they would prioritize Brexit over keeping Scotland in the union, while 45 percent of all voters said keeping Scotland was more important.

Scottish Tories had earlier sought to downplay the significance of a YouGov poll in June which found that 63 percent of Tory voters would be willing to see an independent Scotland if it meant Brexit went ahead.

The polls also found that 43 percent believed that one way or another Brexit had made Scottish independence more likely, with most believing that Scotland would probably vote for independence in the next few years whether Brexit was happening or not. Meanwhile, 23 percent said Brexit would not make a difference to the issue of Scottish independence.

Polls have shown that Scots are still very divided on the issue of independence. Earlier this month, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said she would request consent from London for a second independence referendum in a "matter of weeks" after a new poll showed support for independence was at 50 percent.

The new research also revealed that many English voters believe that Scotland and Northern Ireland benefit more from the union than the rest of the UK. That belief is most common among Conservatives who voted to leave the EU, the pollster said. Interestingly, respondents were slightly more inclined to think Scotland benefits disproportionately from its place in the union than Northern Ireland.

Ashcroft said many English 'Leave' voters saw parallels between Scots' desires to leave the UK with their own desire to leave the EU, with one saying it was "similar in the way we want to control our own destiny."

"Scotland want their independence, we want our independence from the EU for roughly the same reasons... Taking back control," the voter said. That view is somewhat surprising, since generally speaking pro-Brexit Conservatives are thought to be very strongly attached to the concept of the 'union' and unlikely to want to see it break up.

On the question of Northern Ireland, some acknowledged that many feel that the entire island of Ireland should be reunited. "There's water separating England and Ireland. So if Northern Ireland became part of Ireland, that's Ireland, one whole country," one said.

• Is democracy a dying species?
• Illiberal Undemocrats say 'boll**ks' to the people in the name of 'liberalism' and 'democracy'
• Brexit: DUP to reject customs union compromise, Speaker will block vote on "same" EU deal
• Interminable Brexit boll*x: Johnson's Unionist problem
• SNP declares intent to hold second Scottish independence referendum in 2020

• NewsReal: Yellow Vest Protests, Brexit Farce - Revolutionary Climate in Western Europe?
• NewsReal #26: Globalization vs Nationalism - The Hidden Causes of The Yellow Vest Protests in France

• Sabotage? Deadly explosion at Russian rocket test site near home of Northern Fleet - 5 nuclear specialists killed

• Kremlin dismisses speculation about fatal missile test explosion in Archangelsk, insists it was an accident
• Another massive explosion at an arms depot in Russia

• Top Ukrainian justice official: US ambassador gave us a 'do not prosecute list'
• US ambassador to Kiev sacked amid 'meddling' accusations from Ukraine's top prosecutor

• Bellingcat-led backlash tanked scientific paper arguing Assad was not responsible for Syria chem attack
• WH blames 'bad actor' Russia for the Douma 'chem attack', no timetable for response
• US and France have 'proof' and 'very high confidence' of Douma event - But curiously the evidence is 'classified'
• Investigative reporter interviews Douma residents, all say they witnessed no signs of chemical attack
• UN says it's unable to 'independently verify allegations' of alleged chem attack in Douma