House of Lords Pass UK's New Version of Brexit Bill

LONDON (Sputnik) - The decision of the UK parliament to adopt the government version of the bill on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union will allow to carry out "smooth" Brexit, UK Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday.

"Today Parliament has passed the EU Withdrawal Bill, a crucial step in delivering a smooth and orderly Brexit – the Brexit people voted for," May said on Twitter.

Earlier in the day, the House of Lords of the UK Parliament finally approved the Brexit bill ending months of parliamentary debate on that issue. The Lords approved the bill by a simple majority, without conducting a voting procedure.

This decision put an end to attempts to amend the document, which would provide the parliament with the authority to change the terms of Brexit or cancel the exit from the bloc if it is impossible to reach an agreement with Brussels.

Now the bill needs the Queen's approval, the so-called Royal Assent and then it will gain the status of the law.

The United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union in a referendum in 2016. The Brexit negotiations officially kicked off in June 2017 and are expected to be completed by the end of March 2019. Despite what the parties called a breakthrough in the negotiations in March, when they managed to agree on significant issues, such as the transition period, they have noted a lack of major progress after their talks in April.