MPs wrestled control of Brexit from the hands of Theresa May tonight, voting to hold a series of votes that could determine how - if at all - the UK leaves the European Union.
The Commons voted by 329 votes to 302 - a majority of 27 - to approve an amendment brought by Tory ex-minister Sir Oliver Letwin allowing it to take control of business on Wednesday from the Government.
This will allow MPs to select their favorite Brexit option in so-called 'indicative votes', which are likely to include soft Brexit options and the possibility of remaining in the European Union.
Three ministers were among 29 Tory rebels who defied the Prime Minister and backed the amendment.
Minutes before the vote Watford's Richard Harrington quit as an energy minister in order to support the Letwin plan, accusing the Government of ‘playing roulette’ with people’s lives.
He was followed by Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt and health minister Steve Brine.
Theresa May indicated in the Commons earlier today that she would allocate Government time for indicative votes if the Letwin Amendment was defeated
The historic moment the Government lost the Letwin amendment by 329 votes to 302, a whopping majority of 27 for the rebels. The last time a similar vote was held a fortnight ago it lost by two votes
Sir Oliver's move to give MPs control over the path to Brexit attracted cross-party support and won by a convincing margin in the Commons to heap fresh pressure on Theresa May
Energy minister Richard Harrington quit to vote for the rebel amendment, sending a letter to the Prime Minister accusing her Government of 'playing roulette' with people's lives
MPs later narrowly rejected a backbench amendment to allow the Commons to have a vote if the UK is seven days away from leaving the EU without a deal by 314 votes to 311, a majority of three.
Earlier a group of eight Remainer ministers had reportedly indicated they would not vote for the amendment after meeting Mrs May.
Breaking the Tory whip to support it would have led to them having to resign their posts.
Tory former minister Ed Vaizey voted both for and against Sir Oliver's amendment, which is regarded as a formal abstention.
This put the number of Tory MPs who rebelled to support the amendment at 29, with one who rebelled to formally abstain. Eight Brexiteer Labour MPs rebelled to vote against Sir Oliver's amendment, according to the division list.
They were: Kevin Barron, Ronnie Campbell, Rosie Cooper, Caroline Flint , Stephen Hepburn, Kate Hoey, John Mann and Graham Stringer.
The Prime Minister had earlier told the Commons she would set aside Government time for votes if the amendment was defeated, in a bid to head off the rebellion.
She addressed the Commons this afternoon and admitted 'as things stand there is not sufficient support' to hold a fresh vote on her deal, quashing speculation that it would happen tomorrow.
She faces a move by rebel MPs who want to pass a motion in just a few minutes time to seize control of Brexit - giving them the power to hold a vote on Wednesday letting the Commons select its favorite Brexit option in so-called 'indicative votes'.
The PM vowed to whip against the motion proposed by Remainer rebel MP Oliver Letwin and also said she could ignore MPs' preferences if they try to force her to adopt a softer Brexit.
But she offered to hold indicative votes on government time in an effort to head-off the rebellion – meaning the votes would do ahead but rebel MPs would not be in control of the process.
After ruling out a third vote on her deal tomorrow, Theresa May told MPs this afternoon she could not guarantee that she would commit to implementing anything they voted for in an indicative process because they could involve an 'outcome that is un-negotiable with the EU'.
She added: 'No government could give a blank cheque to commit to an outcome without knowing what it is. So I cannot commit the Government to delivering the outcome of any votes held by this House, but I do commit to engaging constructively with this process'.
The Prime Minister said the 'default outcome' remained leaving without a deal and said: 'The alternative is to pursue a different form of Brexit or a second referendum.
'But the bottom line remains: if the House does not approve the Withdrawal Agreement this week and is not prepared to countenance leaving without a deal, we would have to seek a longer extension.'
That would mean holding European elections and would mean 'we will not have been able to guarantee Brexit'.
Mrs May leaving the House of Commons tonight after addressing rebellious MPs who later voted to wrestle control of Brexit away from the Government despite her efforts to stop them
These are the seven options for Brexit MPs could vote on this week if Mrs May is forced towards a softer Brexit
Setting out the choices facing MPs, Theresa May said: 'Unless this House agrees to it, no-deal will not happen.
'No Brexit must not happen. And a slow Brexit, which extends Article 50 beyond May 22, forces the British people to take part in European elections and gives up control of any of our borders, laws, money or trade is not a Brexit that will bring the British people together.'
She said her deal was a compromise which respected both sides of the argument and 'if this House can back it we can be out of the European Union in less than two months'.
Confirming that the Government would oppose the Letwin amendment, Mrs May she said it would set an 'unwelcome precedent which would overturn the balance of our democratic institutions'.
However she said the Government would provide time to allow MPs to debate and vote on the alternatives to her deal.
'It will be for this House to put forward options for consideration and to determine the procedure by which they do so,' she said.
'However I must confess that I am sceptical about such a process of indicative votes.'
To jeers from the opposition, she added: 'I think it's important that nobody would want to support an option which contradicted the manifesto on which they stood for election to this House.
'MPs elected to this House at this time have a duty to respect the result of the referendum that took place in 2016 and attempts to stop that result being put into place or attempts to change the result of that referendum are not respecting the voters and not respecting our democracy.'
Mrs May’s spokesman later denied No Deal was off the table.
He said: ‘The point the PM was making is that the House has voted against No Deal and will take every opportunity to seek to stop it.’
No one wants another election! Only 12 PER CENT of the public say they want to go to the polls - but ministers say they WILL call one if MPs try to force a soft Brexit
Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay leaving Downing Street with Theresa May today after cabinet, at which he is said to have again floated the idea of holding a General Election
The Government is prepared to pull the plug and force a General Election if MPs try to seize control of Brexit and make it softer than Theresa May's deal.
Ministers including Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay are said to have raised the prospect if Parliament votes this evening to wrestle control of the withdrawal process.
The Commons will tonight vote on a series of amendments to a Government motion that would pave the way to so-called indicative votes taking place on Wednesday.
These would allow MPs to show what sort of Brexit they wish to push through if a majority cannot be found for Mrs May's twice-defeated deal.
The talk of forcing a General Election come despite an Opinium poll from two months ago finding that only 12 per cent of Britons would welcome another one, just two years after the last resulted in a hung Parliament.
Mr Barclay reportedly repeated at Cabinet today warnings he gave on television yesterday.
Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show he said that if the Commons took control of the order paper and votes for a different outcome, it would 'potentially collide with fundamental commitments the Government has given in their manifesto', though he said the vote itself would 'not be binding'.
Explaining the scenario, he said: 'What Parliament has done is vote for a number of contradictory things so we would need to untangle that but ultimately, at its logical conclusion, the risk of a general election increases because you potentially have a situation where Parliament is instructing the executive to do something that is counter to what it was elected to do.'
International Trade Secretary Liam Fox this morning gave a stark warning to MPs, telling BBC Radio 4's Today: 'I was elected, as 80 per cent of members were, to respect the referendum and leave the European Union.
'I was also elected on a manifesto that specifically said no single market and no customs union.
'That, for Conservative MPs who are honouring the manifesto, limits their room for manoeuvre.
The former hardline Brexiteer turned May loyalist added that the prospect of a longer Brexit delay meaning participation in May's European Elections would 'unleash a torrent of pent-up frustration from voters'.
'I'm not sure that there are many people in the House of Commons who would fancy that particular meeting with voters,' he said.
'It would unleash a torrent of pent-up frustration from voters and I think that the major parties will do what they can to avoid having to fight those European elections.
'There is nothing in politics like a little bit of self-interest to concentrate the minds, and I think, as we get towards that date, increasingly my colleagues will have to decide which of the limited options they want to follow.'
He urged MPs to back Mrs May's deal, warning: 'For a lot of my colleagues, I think they still believe there is a route to no deal. I have come to the conclusion some time ago that was unlikely given the House of Commons that we have.
'I think we will see today that there is a mood in the House of Commons to stop us leaving without a deal, even if that means no Brexit. I think that is a constitutionally disastrous position.'
He said Mrs May continued to want her deal to pass and that No Deal was still the default option in law.
Asked if the offer of ‘Government time’ meant accepting the rebel plan, a No 10 spokesman said it was no more than ‘fulfilling our commitment’ – meaning the Letwin amendment is still likely to pass tonight.
Mrs May caused fury among the DUP for claiming No Deal preparations had been made in Northern Ireland because it has no devolved executive.
A No 10 spokesman insisted it was ‘not a tactic’ but a ‘statement of facts’.
The Prime Minister is keen to offer a final vote to stop MPs taking charge of the UK's departure from the EU with Parliament ready to push Britain towards a softer Brexit or a second referendum.
But a phone call between Mrs May and DUP leader Arlene Foster at lunchtime failed to provide the breakthrough the Prime Minister needs as she seeks to win support for her deal.
The 10 DUP MPs have opposed the Withdrawal Agreement in the two previous votes on it and a party spokesman said the party's 'position remains unchanged'.
And in a sign of strained relationship the DUP's Westminster leader Nigel Dodds appeared to be shaking with rage as he accused Theresa May of a 'fundamental lack of preparation' for No Deal.
He said the Government had known for 'considerable time' the UK was due to leave the EU on March 29 - but still wanted an extension for a fortnight.
He said: 'What will change in 2 weeks?' before savaging her for agreeing to the Irish backstop 'when it is the thing that bedevils her agreement' and Ireland and the EU say the Northern Irish border will remain open in the event of a No Deal.
DUP MP Sammy Wilson then told Mrs May: 'When are you going to stop using Northern Ireland as an excuse? We will not be used in any scare tactics to boost this through.'
This afternoon Mrs May met Jeremy Corbyn for a 'frank and comprehensive exchange of views' on Brexit - but the Labour leader rejected the idea that she would be willing to split her Brexit deal into two parts in bid to win their support.
Responding to Theresa May's latest update to the Commons, Mr Corbyn told the Commons: 'The Government's approach to Brexit has now become a national embarrassment.
'After two years of failure, broken promise after broken promise, the Prime Minister finally accepted the inevitable last week and voted to extend Article 50 and went to Brussels to negotiate.
'Last week's summit represented another negotiating failure for the Prime Minister - her proposals were rejected and new terms were imposed on her.'
Mr Corbyn criticised last week's 'wholly inappropriate' Downing Street speech by the Prime Minister, arguing she should not have tried to 'pit the people against MPs'.
He added: 'In a climate of heightened emotions where MPs on all sides have received threats and intimidation, I hope the Prime Minister will further reflect and think again about making what I believe to be such dangerous and irresponsible statements.
'Every step of the way along this process the Government has refused to reach out, refused to listen and refused to find a consensus that can represent the views of the whole country, not just the Conservative Party.'
Brexiteer MPs including Boris Johnson and Jacob Rees-Mogg could still back Mrs May's deal but have indicated she would have to promise to quit afterwards to secure their backing.
Today the Prime Minister faced her fractured Cabinet days after they tried to oust her in a failed coup that was sunk within 24 hours this weekend.
She told ministers she wanted to hold another vote on her deal - but despite rumours about her future no ministers mentioned the prospect of her resignation.
Describing the two-hour meeting her official spokesman said: 'There was a determination at Cabinet to do whatever it takes to get a deal so the UK can leave as soon as possible. There is a sense from the PM and Cabinet to get on with this.'
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2019/03/26/rebel-mps-seize-control-of-brexit-historic-night-of-drama-in-the-commons-as-29-tories-defy-may/
Main photo article MPs wrestled control of Brexit from the hands of Theresa May tonight, voting to hold a series of votes that could determine how – if at all – the UK leaves the European Union.
The Commons voted by 329 votes to 302 – a majority of 27 – to approve an amendment brought by...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves Online news HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/03/25/22/11446688-6849181-Theresa_may_indicated_in_the_Commons_earlier_today_that_she_woul-a-36_1553552258467.jpg
Комментариев нет:
Отправить комментарий