HOPES FOR 2ND BREXIT VOTE REACH FEVER PITCH
London, Dec. 2: Hopes for a second referendum on EU membership are rising in Britain amid heightened uncertainty over Brexit, but big hurdles remain — from the timing to legal complexities on both sides of the Channel.
Prime Minister Theresa May is struggling to convince British lawmakers to back her Brexit deal — formally signed off by EU leaders last weekend — in a key vote in Parliament on December 11.
If, as widely expected, it is voted down, what happens next remains highly uncertain. But the backers of a so- called "People's Vote" argue it opens up an opportunity to ask Britons to think again.
"There is a growing momentum behind the campaign for a second referendum," said Constantine Fraser, an analyst research consultancy TS Lombard.
"It will become a serious option on the table if, or more likely when, Theresa May's deal is voted down.
"I wouldn't say it's a probability, but it's a likelihood that's growing fast."
In the latest instance of second referendum activism, the pro- EU Best for Britain group on Saturday launched a new advertising campaign on vans targeting the districts of "key MPs like Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn".
The support of the opposition party, which has delivered mixed messages on the issue — arguing for all options to be left on the table — is seen as crucial to force another poll.
John McDonnell, Labour's finance spokesman, fuelled hopes the leadership was moving closer to the idea by saying Tuesday it was "inevitable" the party would support a second poll if it could not force a general election.