The EU is willing to “allow more time” for a Brexit transition to improve the chances of resolving the Irish border issue, Irish Deputy Prime Minister Simon Coveney said Wednesday.

His comments follow a presentation by Michel Barnier to EU27 ambassadors on Sunday evening about the state of the talks, in which the idea of extending the transition was floated. One EU diplomat who was in the room said the EU Brexit negotiator is open to a one-year extension of the transition period from the 21 months currently agreed in principle to 33 months.

That would mean the U.K. being subject to all EU rules until January 2022 as well as extra British contributions into the EU budget beyond what has been agreed as part of the Brexit bill.

“The EU side is willing to allow more time in the transition period to agree an alternative solution to the backstop,” Coveney told the BBC’s Today program, referring to the legal mechanism that is currently being negotiated to avoid a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

He made clear in his remarks, however, that a watertight backstop would need to form part of the legally binding Withdrawal Agreement that is due to be finalized in the next few weeks.

“I think Michel Barnier has shown a willingness to think imaginatively and to show flexibility to get there, but a number of things do have to be achieved in terms of a final outcome,” said Coveney. “There needs to be a backstop that needs to be there unless and until something better can be negotiated.”

It is not clear whether any transition extension offer has been put to the U.K. in the talks but the suggestion was made by Barnier again at a meeting of EU ministers, excluding the U.K., on Tuesday. U.K. officials are relying on second-hand reports to understand exactly what was said and a U.K. government official refused to confirm whether such an offer has been made to British negotiators directly.

Barnier appears to be suggesting that the transition period could be extended if a U.K.-wide temporary customs arrangement after the end of the transition period — during which the U.K. would continue to apply EU trade tariffs — is not ready in time. But he is not backing away from the EU’s insistence that its own backstop plan to keep Northern Ireland within the EU’s customs territory must form part of the divorce deal itself.

“This doesn’t solve anything,” said a U.K. official familiar with the progress of the talks. “Not a single thing. It still means the U.K. has to sign the Northern Ireland backstop in the Withdrawal Agreement.”

Click Here: Spain Rugby Shop

Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesperson said Tuesday: “We have no proposals to extend the implementation period [the U.K. government’s preferred term for the transition period].”

‘Mind boggling’

One MP from the ruling Conservative Party, who did not want to be named, said the extension of the transition did not solve the Irish backstop, which remained unacceptable to the House of Commons.

“MPs will not stomach it,” he said. The MP, who is one of the leading figures in the campaign to get the prime minister to change course, said proposing to extend the transition in order to provide more time to negotiate a temporary customs union “makes the mind boggle,” given the transition period is already slated to run till the end of 2020. “We’re supposed to be negotiating a full-blown FTA [free trade deal] in the same time frame,” he said.

“Yeah, it’s just not going to fly, just no way,” said another influential Tory MP opposed to against May’s proposals. “Just no way.” The MP said about half the cabinet was now concerned about the direction of the negotiations and would not countenance more time locked into the customs union and single market.

Coveney said it is the U.K.’s responsibility to do everything it can to make sure the Good Friday Agreement is protected and peace in Northern Ireland is preserved.

“The U.K. has a responsibility to make sure there is no significant collateral damage as a consequence of leaving the EU,” he said.

Referring to the possibility of EU leaders agreeing on a date for a special Brexit summit in mid-November, Coveney said: “I think what’s more likely is that dates will be suggested, but that there won’t be a commitment to a new summit unless there is a signal from the negotiating teams that there’s something to sign off on.”

He said that although much work has been done over recent weeks, significant gaps remain. “What we don’t want to do is create drama around a new summit date,” he said.

On the contentious border issue, Coveney said that different pressures apply to Northern Ireland than to other parts of the U.K. “We have a peace agreement, which has provided stability and normality, that we have to protect,” he said.

Charlie Cooper contributed reporting.