The European Parliament's Brexit co-ordinator is suggesting the formal approval of a deal by MEPs could come after 31 October, when the UK is currently scheduled to leave the EU.

Any EU-UK Brexit withdrawal deal also needs the official backing of the European Parliament.

But Guy Verhofstadt says the EU legislature will take its full time to carefully examine and approve the plans.

MEPs will only start their work once the UK Parliament has passed a fully binding Brexit deal, he says, adding it could well have to be picked up in a session beginning on 13 November.

The parliament "will only start its work from the moment that we are 100% sure that the British Parliament will adopt this deal", Mr Verhofstadt says.

A long afternoon of Brexit discussions did not spoil appetites in Brussels, where Boris Johnson dined with EU leaders to celebrate reaching his deal.

The starter was scallops with pumpkin mousse, which was followed by sauerkraut (a fermented raw cabbage) soup.

For their main they had roast veal with green beans and fondant potato.

All of this was topped off with figs and puff pastry for dessert.

The SNP has tabled an amendment, external to the prime minister's Brexit deal, asking for an immediate extension to the October 31 deadline and a general election.

The party's Parliamentary leader Ian Blackford says the deal is "even worse than Theresa May's" and opposition parties must stop Brexit.

"It would be devastating for Scotland - dragging us out of the EU, single market and customs union against our will, and singling Scotland out, alone of UK nations, for a raw deal, with our votes and voice ignored," he says.

"The SNP will never vote for this deal, which would inflict lasting harm on jobs, living standards, public services and the economy. It is clearer than ever that the best future for Scotland is as an equal, independent European nation and the people of Scotland must be given that choice."

Senior Labour party sources have told the BBC's Nick Eardley that fewer than 10 Labour MPs will back the government on Saturday.

Meanwhile, BuzzFeed's Alex Wickham reports that the government is "preparing measures" to support Labour MPs who are considering backing its deal.

Image source, UK Parliament

Boris Johnson's deal offers a "clear pathway" for the UK to become a "free, independent trading nation", says leave supporting Conservative MP Steve Double.

"I respect the DUP position and their concerns, but at the end of the day I have to make up my own mind of what I believe is right for the United Kingdom," he says.

"Of all of the possible outcomes that are before Parliament at the moment, I think this is by far the best deal we're going to get."

He adds that he has not met any Conservative MPs who say they will not vote for the deal, but says some are considering it.

Image source, PA Media

In a video posted on her Instagram profile, external, Stella Creasy, the Labour and Co-operative MP for Walthamstow, said the deal is "worse" than Theresa May's deal.

She said: "It [Mr Johnson's deal] doesn't have a level playing field,essentially the consumer rights, the working protections, the environmental protections we've always had as being part of the European Union, that have made a big difference to our lives here at home.

"Keeping them means we can have a close trading relationship with the European Union.

"This is really the hardest of all Brexits he [the PM] is proposing."

BBC Radio 5 Live

The final say on a Brexit deal should be had by the British people, says Belgian MEP Philippe Lamberts, adding that he doubts Boris Johnson's deal can pass in Parliament.

"I'll believe it when I see it," he says.

"When I see how offensive Boris Johnson has been to 21 rebels that he sacked quite brutally three weeks ago, when I see how he has dealt with Parliament - humiliating Parliament, ridiculing Parliament, sidelining Parliament - it's that Parliament that he now needs. I'm not sure that the spirit in the Parliament will be inclined to be nice to Mr Johnson."

Brussels correspondent Adam Fleming compares Boris Johnson's withdrawal agreement with Theresa May's.

We have more detail on reports the SNP plans to amend the government's Brexit deal motion to call for a general election.

BBC political correpsondent Nick Eardley says an SNP amendment will "decline to approve" the deal and call for the prime minister to secure an extension until 31 January 2020 in order to hold an election.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, UK Parliament

Labour MPs in leave-voting areas should listen to their constituents as they prepare to vote on Mr Johnson's deal, says Labour MP Ronnie Campbell.

"They've got to think: 'Do I vote against this deal? Will there be a general election if I vote against this deal? What's my constituency going to think? If there's a general election in a couple of weeks' time down the road, they're going to be in trouble," says Mr Campbell, who represents leave-voting Blyth Valley.

"Let's get this deal across the road because the British people are just fed up."

BBC Radio 5 Live

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Boris Johnson's deal is "second rate" compared to Theresa May's and raises concerns about VAT, customs, and consent from Northern Ireland, says Naomi Long, MEP and Alliance Party of Northern Ireland leader.

"There are issues around the collection of VAT and how that would be handled that could have serious implications for small businesses, so we want that clarified. There are also issues around customs and how those are going to be managed - so there's talk of exemptions for certain groups of people but it's not clear how those exemptions will be managed," she says.

"Our bigger concern is around the issue of consent. The assembly in Northern Ireland has been given the power to either say yes or no to these arrangements on a rolling basis. That puts the assembly under considerable pressure, and given that currently it hasn't sat for over a thousand days, you can see that we're in a rather fragile space where the assembly is concerned."

The parliamentary timetable for this Saturday's sitting of MPs has been released.

It shows a statement will be made to the Commons by Boris Johnson before a motion for the deal is tabled.

The timetable also shows there is no cut-off time for the debate, which could run for many hours.

The chancellor praises the deal brokered between the UK and EU, and urges parliamentarians to back it.

Labour MP Hilary Benn has written a letter, external to Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay asking for the government to release impact assessments for Boris Johnson's Brexit deal ahead of Saturday's vote.

Simultaneously, a group of cross-party MPs has signed a letter, external asking Chancellor Sajid Javid to do the same.