EU leaders leaning towards agreeing to a flexible extension to Brexit

One of the European Parliament's main decision-making bodies lent its weight on Thursday to those who were arguing that Brussels should accept London's request for an extension to the then current 31 October deadline for Brexit.

After reviewing the state of play around the UK's withdrawal from the bloc, the Conference of Presidents asked European Council President Donald Tusk to support an extension with an option attached for an earlier end should the ratification and consent procedure be finished sooner.

"This extension will allow the United Kingdom to clarify its position and the European Parliament to properly exercise its role," Conference President David Sassoli wrote.

In an immediate reaction, the pound spiked to a session high of 1.1628 against the single currency on the back of the news but as of 1213 BST it was drifting lower by 0.14% to 1.1584.

Overnight, Tusk said he told the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, in a phone call, that he was recommending to all EU leaders that they accept granting an extension, with a spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel soon afterwards reportedly saying that Germany would not oppose one.