The Government has been in Brexit negotiations with the Labour Party after the Prime Minister reached out to Jeremy Corbyn before Easter. BBC’s Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg outlined the Prime Minister’s “problem” with the strategy of still trying to get her deal to pass. Ms Kuenssberg also claimed some MPs in Westminster believe Downing Street is living in “La La Land” with its approach.

Speaking on BBC’s Today programme, she said: “Number 10 is still saying the that ‘we can bring this bill back’, David Gauke was very carefully there trying to suggest ‘let’s see we might be able to bring the Brexit deal back soon’.

“When you ask almost anyone else in Westminster whether that is realistic, you get a variety of answers ranging from, ‘that is never going to happen, it will never get through’, to ‘Downing Street must frankly be living in La La Land’.

“That doesn’t mean they are still not trying, it doesn’t mean the talks with Labour about finding a way to do that are not genuine.

“It does seem extremely likely that is a strategy that has got a good chance of succeeding, it is not impossible, but it is extremely difficult.

Number 10 is still saying the that ‘we can bring this bill back’

BBC’s Political Editor Laura Kuenssberg

“The problem for Theresa May and the loyal ministers she has left, is when you ask, how do you answer the question of, why is the Government in such a mess and how are you going to get out of it?

“The answer comes, it is complicated, but we have to be sensible, and we have to keep going.

“That has been the same argument for a very long time. It is not winning in their own party. How do they win the country in critical elections in a couple of weeks time?”

Mrs May’s de-facto deputy David Lidington admitted European elections would go ahead on May 23 on Tuesday but said the Government was “redoubling our efforts” to get an EU withdrawal agreement ratified by the start of July so the MEPs elected this month never have to take their seats.

The Government and Labour are to hold further talks next week aimed at breaking the Brexit deadlock following a second day of “extended” discussions in Whitehall this week.

A No 10 spokesman said: “This is the second extended meeting between the Government and the opposition, which demonstrates the seriousness with which both sides are approaching these talks.

“Over the coming days, there will be more meetings of the bilateral working groups and further exchanges of documents as we seek to nail down the details of what has been discussed.”

A Labour Party spokesman said: “After the second day of talks this week, the negotiating teams are working to establish scope for agreement and will meet again at the beginning of next week.”

The Prime Minister is also facing members of her own party calling for her to step down and rebuffed demands to set out a timetable for her departure amid growing pressure from Tory MPs to make way for a new leader.

The chairman of the Conservative backbench 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady, who met the Prime Minister privately on Tuesday, made clear she had not offered any further clarity about her future.

Sir Graham said she would meet the committee’s 18-strong executive next week amid grass roots fury over the party’s worst local elections performance in 24 years.

Downing Street made clear the Prime Minister was not ready to go beyond her earlier promise to the 1922 to quit as Tory leader when the first phase of Brexit negotiations – dealing with the divorce terms – is complete.

They said: “The Prime Minister made a very generous and bold offer to the 1922 Committee a few weeks ago that she would see through phase one of the Brexit process and she would leave and open up for new leadership for phase two.”

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