UK Official Welcomes Brexit Proposals

LONDON (AP) -- Britain's international trade secretary is welcoming proposals drawn up by hard-line Brexit supporters that outline what it will take for them to support Prime Minister Theresa May's deal with the European Union.

Liam Fox told the BBC that proposals outlined by the European Research Group in the Sunday Times could be seen as an effort to find common ground on the sticky issue of the Irish border.

Lawmakers rejected May's deal last month, largely because of concern that provisions designed to guarantee that there are no physical border checks along the Irish border could keep Britain linked to the EU indefinitely.

Fox says the ERG proposal for a legally-binding mechanism by which Britain could escape the so-called backstop seemed to be a "genuine" attempt "to try to map out ground."

(KA)