Defiant PM urges her party to come together
THERESA May now has to fight a “heck of a battle” in Brussels today over the Northern Ireland backstop, DUP MP Nigel Dodds said last night.
Mrs May last night urged her party to “come together” after seeing off the attempt by rebel backbenchers to oust her as Conservative leader and Prime Minister.
She won a confidence vote of the 317 Conservative MPs by a margin of 200 to 117 in a secret ballot at Westminster.
Speaking in Downing Street moments after the result was announced, Mrs May acknowledged that a “significant” number of her MPs had voted against her and said: “I have listened to what they said.”
She pledged to seek “legal and political assurances” on the Brexit backstop to allay MPs’ concerns about her withdrawal agreement when she attends a European Council summit in Brussels today.
The DUP has consistently said it will not accept reassurances, but requires legal certainty in any attempt to persuade it to back a withdrawal deal.
Mr Dodds welcomed the shift in the PM’s language.
“She says tonight she is going to go off and try and get legal and political changes,” he told BBC’s Newsnight.
“I think that is quite significant, she has recognised it is not just political declarations or reassurances necessary.
“Against that, Leo Varadkar and Jean-Claude Juncker say the Withdrawal Agreement cannot be reopened or contradicted. So there’s going to be a heck of a battle that has to happen now.”
Last night the BBC reported that EU leaders are considering making a commitment to continue negotiating a trade deal with the UK even if the Irish backstop comes into force.
It was reported that the move aims to reassure the House of Commons that the backstop will be a temporary measure. However, it would not be legally binding — a DUP requirement.
It is believed this would be the start of a two-stage reassurance process starting immediately, with officials working on more drafts to be published in January.
Mrs May also she sowed the seeds for her eventual departure yesterday, by telling Tory MPs that she would not lead the party into the next general election, expected in 2022.
Mrs May also said she and her administration had a “renewed mission”, adding: “Following this ballot, we now need to get on with the job of delivering Brexit for the British people and building a better future for this country.”
But arch-Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg said Mrs May should resign “as soon as the Queen has a moment in her diary to see her”.
However, other Brexiteers said they would end their efforts to unseat Mrs May.
Nadine Dorries said: “The PM has secured the confidence of the Parliamentary party tonight. It’s not the way I voted, however I will fully respect the result.”
It was Mrs May’s decision to pull a vote on her deal ahead of a likely heavy defeat that had sparked a new wave of letters of no-confidence from Tories, triggering the challenge to her position.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said that the “dismal” deal should be put before MPs next week.
“It’s clear that she has not been able to negotiate the necessary changes in Europe,” Mr Corbyn said. “She must now bring her dismal deal back to the House of Commons next week so Parliament can take back control.”
Labour MPs described Mrs May as a “lame duck” due to her decision to pre-announce her departure.
Mrs May said after the result: “While delivering Brexit is important, we also need to focus on the other issues that people feel are vital to them and matter to them today. The issues that we came into politics to deal with, building a stronger economy, delivering first-class public services, building the homes that families need.
“We owe it to the people who put us here to put their priorities first. So here is our renewed mission: delivering the Brexit that people voted for, bringing the country back together and building a country that truly works for everyone.”
Mrs May’s victory in the vote means that another challenge cannot be mounted against her position as Tory leader for a year. But she still faces the danger of a no-confidence motion in the Commons, which could bring her Government down.
Addressing MPs at a meeting of the 1922 Committee moments before the crucial vote, Mrs May said she accepted she could not fight the next election as leader.
Solicitor general Robert Buckland told reporters: “She said, ‘In my heart I would like to lead the party into the next election’ and then that was the introductory phrase to her indication that she would accept the fact that would not happen, that is not her intention.”
And, according to MPs at the meeting, she also promised to find a “legally-binding solution” to ensure that the UK does not get permanently trapped in a backstop arrangement.
❝ Our renewed mission is to deliver the Brexit people voted for and bring the country back together