European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday the European Union is not open to further negotiations on Britain's exit from the bloc and is unlikely to decide this week whether to give Britain an extension on its March 29 deadline.
British Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to send a letter to EU leaders to ask for a delay to give her government and parliament more time to agree on how exactly the divorce should take place.
So far, Britain's House of Commons has emphatically rejected the terms British and EU negotiators reached after two years of talks, and has also signaled an objection to proceeding with no deal in place.
The BBC reported Wednesday that according to a Downing Street official, May's request will be for a short delay, not a long one.
Juncker told Germany's Deutschlandfunk radio that May needs to show the EU some more clarity about Britain's plans in order to win an extension, which must be approved by all of the other EU members.
"There will be no renegotiations, no new negotiations and no additional assurances on top of the additional assurances we have already given," he said.
May sought to have another parliament vote on her proposed terms for leaving the EU, but House of Commons Speaker John Bercow ruled this week that the prime minister cannot keep asking lawmakers to vote on a proposal they have already rejected.
