British Prime Minister Theresa May bowed to intense political pressure [on February 26] and handed control of Brexit to Parliament, telling lawmakers they will get to choose between leaving the European Union on schedule — with or without a divorce deal — and asking the EU to postpone departure day.

May said that if Parliament rejects her deal with the EU in a vote due by March 12, lawmakers would be given a vote the next day on whether to leave the bloc without a withdrawal agreement. If the no-deal option is defeated, as seems likely, they would get a vote on whether to ask the EU to delay Brexit by up to three months...

Britain is scheduled to leave the EU on March 29, but so far the government has not been able to win parliamentary approval of the agreement on withdrawal terms and future relations. Anxiety over the standoff is intensifying since a chaotic “no-deal Brexit” could cause disruptions for businesses and people in both Britain and the 27 remaining EU countries...

This was excerpted from 26 February 2019 edition of The Associated Press.