Prime Minister Boris Johnson will submit "final" proposals for a new Brexit agreement on Wednesday, officials said, warning that if the European Union did not engage with them, Britain would leave the bloc this month with no divorce deal.
Johnson will provide details of what his Downing Street office said was a "fair and reasonable compromise" during his closing speech to his Conservative party's annual conference in Manchester.
But a statement issued late Tuesday stressed this was a "final offer" and Johnson would be keeping his pledge to leave the EU on October 31, with or without a deal. Johnson himself told The Sun newspaper that he had "10 days" to listen to EU counter-offers and find a compromise.
"If there's a deal to be done, it could be done in that time," said Johnson. "If there isn't, then we'll know. That's the truth."
European officials were reluctant to dismiss the plan before they had seen the final text, but one exasperated diplomat noted: "If you're saying 'take it or leave it' and you're already leaving', well you can just go."