LONDON -- The deputy leader of Britain's opposition Labor Party said Saturday that the party has an obligation to talk with Prime Minister Theresa May about plans to leave the European Union, if she is ready to hold an "intelligent conversation" about exiting the bloc.
Tom Watson called for an "open and frank debate" on the government's stalled plan to exit the EU.
The announcement came hours after Keir Starmer, the party's spokesman on the EU exit, said in a speech that it is up to Parliament to make the tough decisions needed to break the impasse. He said holding a second referendum on Britain's EU membership has to remain an option.
May's EU withdrawal plan was soundly rejected in Parliament last week, leading to crisis talks with other parties. May must now return to Parliament on Monday with an amended plan.
Britain is scheduled to leave the bloc on March 29 and does not have a Parliament-approved withdrawal plan. Many economists warn that this "no-deal" scenario could have serious economic consequences.
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz suggested Saturday that the EU may be willing to give Britain more time to leave if it has a good strategy, adding that a no-deal departure would be bad for everyone. He was quoted by Germany's Welt am Sonntag newspaper as saying that "if London presents an orderly strategy and plan, a postponement of the exit date by a couple of months is conceivable."
He added, using the colloquial term for Britain's exit, that "One thing is certain: A hard, disorderly Brexit would harm us all."
Cross-party talks in Britain designed to move the process forward have failed to produce momentum toward a solution.
Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn has refused to take part in the talks May has requested until she removes the possibility of a no-deal departure from the table. She says there is no legal way for her to do so.
Corbyn said in a Friday night letter to May that the talks are just a delaying tactic. He complained that May is unwilling to consider extending the deadline for Britain's withdrawal or allowing a second referendum on whether to depart.
Corbyn is the only party leader who has refused to participate in the talks.
Former Conservative Prime Minister John Major told the BBC on Saturday that a no-deal departure would be the worst possible outcome, one that would harm millions.
He said Parliament should be allowed to hold a series of "indicative" votes on a number of different plans to exit the EU, and lawmakers should vote without being constrained by party loyalties. He said a second referendum may be necessary now that the complexity of Britain's departure is better understood.
Also on Saturday, Romania's foreign ministry said Britain has offered reassurances that the half-million Romanian citizens working or studying in the U.K. can continue living there regardless of the outcome of EU-exit talks.
The ministry said Saturday that British Foreign Office Minister Alan Duncan "reiterated that regardless of the outcome of Brexit, the rights of Romanian citizens in Britain would be respected."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel framed exit talks as a historic test of the EU's ability to withstand crises, saying both sides are responsible for avoiding a risky no-deal departure.
Vowing to work until the "last day" to guarantee an orderly divorce, the German leader signaled Saturday that the responsibility doesn't lie solely with May.
"We also have a responsibility to shape this separation process in a responsible way, so that people don't look back in 50 years, shaking their heads, and say we weren't in position to make a compromise," Merkel said at a party event in the Baltic port city of Rostock.
Information for this article was contributed by Gregory Katz, David Rising and staff members of The Associated Press; and by Patrick Donahue of Bloomberg News.
A Section on 01/20/2019