Brexit: Buckle up for the next 24 hours

As Wednesday draws to a close, a deal is still, DBP - difficult but possible, in case you haven't caught the lingo by now.

I hear from both sides of the Channel that the issues between the UK, Ireland and the EU are pretty much ironed out.

A schedule is in place for EU leaders to be able to sign off a deal tomorrow, discussing it as the first item on the agenda at the summit if the ink is dry.

The government has in place its plan to ask MPs to approve the hypothetical deal in Parliament on Saturday.

Despite all the obstacles, all the warnings about the tightness of the timetable, it is not yet too late.

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Happy sentiments in Westminster or Brussels however do not turn into signatures on a page.

The DUP tonight tell me there are still concerns, still gaps.

They expect conversations to continue, perhaps late into the night, and certainly into the morning.

However you see their position, their concerns are genuine, and can't be brushed aside, not least for the government.

Even though they only have 10 MPs, it's not just that Boris Johnson has no majority of his own, but Brexiteers listen to their counsel too.

If the DUP isn't buying, some Eurosceptics might pass on a deal too.

'Buckle up'

So buckle up for the next twenty four hours.

There may be more moments where it seems it's all on, only to seem all off, then all on again.

One cabinet minister joked it's "like the moment when the bar comes down to strap you in on a rollercoaster - you know that it will end, but you start screaming anyway."

Only seven days after Boris Johnson had that crucial walk around a country house with Leo Varadkar, we might just be at the point where the political pressure overcomes the policy obstacles.

The prime minister might be able to get off the big dipper, punching the air with a victory of sorts.

But to resort to Brussels cliche, because phrases become well worn for good reason, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.

And if it is agreed tomorrow, there's then Parliament for the prime minister to deal with, where it is already obvious there are swathes of MPs ready to stand and fight.