Theresa May has written to the EU requesting a Brexit extension until 30 June, as top-level talks between Jeremy Corbyn and the prime minister's negotiating teams appear on the brink of collapse.
It comes amid suggestions the bloc will offer the UK a year-long "flexible" delay at next week's emergency summit in Brussels next week.
A plan being drawn up by Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, would allow the UK to leave earlier if parliament approves an exit deal.
Here's how we covered the day's development as they happened
Mr Tusk is preparing to put the option to EU leaders at a crunch summit next Wednesday in a bid to prevent the UK crashing out of the bloc on April 12, according to the BBC.
Top-level talks aimed at finding a way out of the Brexit deadlock at Westminster will also continue between the government and Labour on Friday.
One source told The Independent that "no bigger offer" has been made so far in the negotiations, but the talks are "ongoing." We'll bring you any update on this throughout the day.
Brexit to be delayed until next year, attorney general warns
Brexit is on course to be delayed until next year, the attorney general has warned, as cross-party talks to end the crisis remained deadlocked.
Geoffrey Cox risked blowing apart the fragile cabinet truce over an Article 50extension by suggesting it would be more than “just a few weeks or months” – unless Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn strike a deal.
The prime minister is still clinging to the hope of carrying out EU withdrawal by 22 May, but Mr Cox acknowledged that hope was fading before a crunch summit of EU leaders next Wednesday.
In her letter, the prime minister says the "impasse cannot be allowed to continue" to Westminster and hopes talks with Jeremy Corbyn will result in the agreement of a proposal that can be put before the House of Commons.
The PM says it remains the government's view that despite her reluctant request for an Article 50 extension, it is not in the interest of both parties to take part in May's European elections.
"However, the UK accepts the European Council's view that if the UK were still a member state of the EU on 23 May 2019, it would be under a legal obligation to hold the elections.
"The government is therefore undertaking the lawful and responsible preparations for this contingency, including by making the order that sets the date of the poll.
Theresa May asks EU to delay Brexit until 30 June
Labour wins Newport West by-election despite Brexit ‘anger’ and turnout slump
Labour has held on to the Newport West seat, winning the by-election in south Wales with a reduced majority despite a significant slump in turnout.
The party’s candidate Ruth Jones took 9,308 votes, giving her a majority of 1,951 over the Tories in the contest triggered by the death of veteran Labour MP Paul Flynn.
Fought against the backdrop of the Brexit crisis at Westminster, UKIP’s Neil Hamilton took third place with 2,023 votes as the party saw support increase from its showing at the 2017 general election.
The seat has long been a Labour stronghold, but also voted Leave by a margin of 56 to 44 per cent in the 2016 EU referendum.
Editorial: Angela Merkel is asking the right question about Brexit – and it scuppers everything
In every centre of power the thought is slowly crystallising that no-deal Brexit is at best a purely theoretical possibility.
EU set to offer Theresa May one-year ‘flexible’ delay to Brexit
Theresa May is set to be offered a year-long “flexible” delay to Brexit at next week's emergency summit in Brussels, EU officials have said.
A plan drawn up by Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, would let Britain stay in the bloc until 31 March 2020 – over a year after the original planned exit date.
Brussels is framing the proposal as a “flextension” – to stress that the UK could leave before the final date if MPs agree to implement the negotiated Brexit deal before then.
Nicola Sturgeon has written an open letter to EU citizens living in Scotland, telling them: "This is your home, you are welcome here and we want you to stay."
In her letter, made available in several different languages, the first minister wrote that the hardest part of Brexit had been meeting people from the EU who have no certainty over whether they will be able to stay in the country.
Ms Sturgeon said: "As EU citizens in the UK, you have had to endure years of careless indecision on what the future holds for your lives, your careers and your families.
"Many of you have been living in Scotland for several years and have built your lives and raised your families here.
"The hardest part of dealing with Brexit has been meeting EU citizens across Scotland, who want to stay here but who do not know what steps they need to take and whether their rights will be secured."
She added: "The closer we move towards the UK's exit from the European Union, the more real and substantial reassurances about your rights and position in this country you need.
"As the First Minister of Scotland, I want to thank you for the contribution you make to Scotland.
"I am proud to say this is your home, you are welcome here and we want you to stay."
Commenting on the prime minister's Article 50 letter this morning, Caroline Lucas, the Green MP and support of the pro-EU campaign group Best for Britain, said Ms May's actions were "completely at odds with reality".
"The EU rejected an extension until the 30th June just weeks ago and they look set to do the same again at European Council next week. This is a national humiliation. Far from taking back control, we are now completely at the mercy of the EU27.
"This letter also undermines ongoing talks with Labour by effectively ruling out a people's vote on the final deal. Both party leaders, and our EU partners, must recognise that we need more time to get out of this gridlock, and not force parliament to make a decision in days which it’s been impossible to get to in almost three years.
"If that means we participate in the European elections, bring it on. We shouldn’t be fearful of any sort of democratic process or event, and there is certainly no way in which a trip to the ballot box on 23 May should be a reason to leave with an ill thought through rushed and harmful deal.
"Any form of Brexit damages jobs, communities and our environment. We must use the Article 50 extension granted by the EU wisely, going back to the British people so that they can have the final say on Brexit."
Opinion: If the Tories want to win the next election, they should avoid a hard Brexit leader
Nigel Farage, the former Ukip leader, says the "world is looking on astonished at what is happening to our nation", and fears there are "more battles to fight" before Brexit is achieved.
Speaking to Sky News, he says "Brexit is about independence", which is being "actively and wilfully betrayed by virtually everyone in Westminster".
On the "confirmatory" referendum, he says it would offer a choice between Remain, and Ms May's deal. "It would be a disgrace if talks continued on that basis," he said.
Why are UK child citizenship fees much higher than the rest of Europe?
The cost of applying for a child to be granted British citizenship has risen by 51 per cent since 2014, writes social affairs correspondent May Bulman.He told the BBC: "It's obviously not optimal to have any extension at all and we have a plan to leave the EU and deliver on the referendum result which we put before Parliament a number of times.
"We still hope to leave the EU in the next couple of months, that's our ambition, we don't have a majority in Parliament and that means that we have to have these discussions with Jeremy Corbyn to see if there is enough common ground to do that."
Asked if he could accept a long extension, Mr Hunt said: "If we can't find a way through with Parliament then we have no choice."
EU slaps down Jacob Rees-Mogg for suggesting UK should deliberately cause chaos if Brexit is delayed
"That's what Labour was founded to achieve, that's what Welsh Labour showed yesterday, that's what the support we received showed," he said.
"People united together in the determination of the social, economic and political agenda that the Labour Party is putting forward."
You can read more on the by-election here
Sketch: With seven days to avoid no deal Brexit, the House of Commons actually flooded
Were Brexit a farce, you’d throw the script away. Too stupid, too far-fetched, writes Tom Peck on yesterday's farce in the Commons.
New campaign launched to give everyone living in UK the right to vote in elections
A new campaign has been launched to give everyone living in the UK the right to vote in elections and referendums, with MPs saying current voting laws should "shame us as a society".
The major change would see all UK residents, plus British citizens living abroad, allowed to vote in general elections regardless of their citizenship.
Commonwealth and Irish nationals are currently the only non-Britons allowed to vote in general elections and referendums, while EU citizens can vote in local and European elections. UK citizens who have lived abroad for more than 15 years are also not allowed to vote.
Campaigners said current laws mean 10 million UK residents and Britons overseas are disqualified from voting.
