Irish party member says no deal Brexit stance likely to harm Theresa May

Taking a no-deal Brexit off the table will harm Prime Minister Theresa May's prospects of reaching an acceptable divorce deal with the European Union, a senior member of the Northern Irish party propping up her government said on Tuesday. May is set to propose formally ruling out a no-deal Brexit later on Tuesday in a bid to avoid a rebellion by lawmakers, who are threatening to grab control of the divorce process, The Sun and Daily Mail newspapers reported.

"We have a concern that if we take no deal off the table at this stage, it would weaken the prime minister's negotiating position. To take options off the table at this stage, I think that you make the prospect of getting an agreement in the final weeks much more difficult," Jeffrey Donaldson of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) told BBC Northern Ireland.