THE prospect of Britain remaining tied to EU rules in an extended implementation period until 2022 has been raised by Stephen Barclay, the Brexit Secretary, who suggested a “landing zone” to a deal with Brussels was now in sight.

As Boris Johnson prepares for his working lunch with Jean-Claude Juncker, the outgoing European Commission President, in Luxembourg today, it appears the possibility of extending the implementation period by as much as two extra years could, the UK Government believes, provide the time for the Stormont assembly to be restored and, crucially, enable local politicians to give their consent to the alternative arrangements Whitehall is proposing to the problematic backstop.

“A deal can be done; there is a landing zone that we can see but there’s a huge amount of work still to do,” Mr Barclay told BBC Radio 4’s Pienaar’s Politics, noting how securing a new agreement would require “creativity and flexibility on both sides”.

The Secretary of State pointed out how if an agreement were reached by October 31, any changes to the UK’s trading relationship with the EU27 would “not apply until the end of the implementation period, which is December 2020 or one or two years later by mutual agreement”.

When he was challenged on the prospect of the transition being pushed to the end of 2022, Mr Barclay pointed out how he was simply stating “what the legal text says,” noting: “The point is there is scope for an extension but it is by mutual consent, so it would be a sovereign decision.”

Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, also appeared on the airwaves, pointing out how the Government was “working through” the Irish border issue with the EU.

“The reality is we have to deal with the backstop issue, and people said, under the Theresa May deal, that the Withdrawal Agreement would never be considered or looked at again, and neither would the political declaration.

“We are in different territory right now, so it’s no point arguing about the past. We are moving forward now as a government, collectively, focused on leaving but leaving with a deal,” she told BBC TV’s Andrew Marr Show.

The Prime Minister at the weekend claimed a "huge amount of progress is being made" although No 10 is playing down the chance of a breakthrough moment in Luxembourg.

He has proposed keeping Northern Ireland in the single market for agriculture and food – the so-called all-Ireland food zone - which would remove the need for health checks at the border.

But the EU believes this is just a small step and fails to address the issues of tariffs, customs checks and border controls more widely.

One EU source claimed Brussels was “dismayed” by Mr Johnson’s rhetoric, saying: “I am not even going to call them negotiations.”

He explained last week did touch on content, which was “quite a step forward,” but admitted a deal was “still quite far away”.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday all eyes will be on the 11 judges of the UK Supreme Court, who begin their deliberations over whether or not the PM’s decision to prorogue Parliament was lawful. Three English judges at the High Court in London ruled it was a political matter and not one for the courts while three Scottish judges at the Court of Session in Edinburgh concluded it was unlawful with the purpose of stymying debate at Westminster. Their decision is expected later in the week.

Downing St sources have made clear the PM will tell Mr Juncker that Britain will not seek an extension beyond October 31 irrespective of what Parliament has ordered the Government to do.

It was suggested that during a meeting of ministerial aides on Friday, Dominic Cummings, Mr Johnson’s de facto chief of staff, warned of a "nuclear" option; that if the Supreme Court ruled against the Government, it "could just prorogue again".

He is said to have added: "The constitutional crisis is only just beginning."