If May Brexit deal fails it will ‘just cause chaos’

A FAILURE to get agreement on Brexit will ‘just cause chaos’, our political leaders have been warned, as Theresa May faces an uphill battle to win support for her proposals.

The British prime minister warned yesterday that if she fails they will be ‘back at square one’. However, the deal is opposed by the DUP, Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the Scottish National Party and indeed many Tory MPs.

And yesterday DUP leader Arlene Foster threw a fresh spanner in the works by threatening to withdraw from the confidence and supply deal her party has with Mrs May, to keep the Tory government in power.

If the draft deal negotiated by the British prime minister is voted down it could lead to a no-deal exit from the EU by the UK, which would be disastrous for our economy.

Mrs May took questions from the public on BBC Radio yesterday, and appeared to agree with a caller who suggested the alternatives to her deal will ‘just cause chaos’. She replied: ‘If the deal is voted down I think we’re back at square one. I think what we end up with is more uncertainty and more division, frankly.’

She added: ‘I believe people’s jobs, people’s futures, the future for their children should be at the forefront of MPs’ minds.’

She also ruled out the prospect of returning to the EU and asking to renegotiate the terms of Britain’s European divorce.

‘I believe that if we were to go back to the European Union and say “people didn’t like that deal, can we have another one?”, I don’t think they’re going to come to us and say we’ll give you a better deal,’ she said.

Although Tory minister Amber Rudd has said that the parliament will not allow a no-deal Brexit to happen, when pressed yesterday on a choice between no-deal and no Brexit, the PM insisted the UK will leave the EU. ‘Personally, there’s no question of no-Brexit, because the government needs to deliver what people voted for in the 2016 referendum’ she said.

‘So as far as I’m concerned, the UK is leaving the EU on the 29th of March 2019.

‘But people will have heard, if they look at what’s happening in parliament, they’ll have heard there are voices in parliament that want to frustrate Brexit and want to stop Brexit.’

Mrs May was evasive when asked if she would retire if she cannot get her Brexit deal through the Commons. ‘I’m focused on actually ensuring that we do get this deal through parliament, because I believe that this is absolutely the right deal for the UK,’ she said. ‘This isn’t about me.’

However, the Taoiseach admitted that the British prime minister faces an uphill struggle to convince MPs of the merits of the deal, but urged them to consider the alternative. ‘I think that is going to be a difficulty and I’ll have the chance to speak with Prime Minister May on Sunday,’ he said. ‘Ultimately that’s a matter for the British parliament to decide. But I would ask the most obvious question. If it is the case that the British parliament can’t vote for this agreement, is there an alternative agreement that would command a majority of the house? That doesn’t seem to be the case. People who are opposed to it are also opposed to each other.’

Meanwhile, the DUP is preparing to bring fresh chaos to the proposals if the deal actually squeezes through the British parliament, by threatening to bring down Mrs May’s government.

On Wednesday DUP MP Jeffrey Donaldson called on the prime minister to ditch the border backstop if she wants her confidence and supply partners to use their ten votes to help pass the deal.

Europe would never agree to a deal without the backstop, which would prevent a hard border reemerging on the island of Ireland.

And yesterday, Ms Foster threatening to withdraw from the confidence and supply deal with the Conservative party if Brexit is not introduced. ‘If this is not going to deliver on Brexit then of course that brings us to the situation of looking again at the confidence and supply deal,’ she said, adding, ‘But we are not there yet.’

The DUP this week breached its deal with the Tory party by withholding members’ vote on elements of the Finance Act. The move did not impinge on the legislation.

Last night, the UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond met DUP MPs in the North to provide assurances over the backstop. Speaking to RTÉ, Mr Hammond said his government had a number of choices through parliamentary process, including an extension of the implementation period which could avoid the use of the backstop.

A DUP spanner in the works