Brexit deal vote put on ice

LONDON: British Prime Minister Theresa May will head back to Brussels to seek to renegotiate the so-called Irish backstop element of her exit deal with the European Union (EU), a junior minister said yesterday.

Ms May abruptly decided yesterday to pull a parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal, throwing Britain’s plan to leave the EU up in the air on the eve of the vote, after repeated warnings from lawmakers she faced a rout.

Reacting to the delay, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said it demonstrated “pathetic cowardice by a PM and government that have run out of road”.

“The government has decided Theresa May’s Brexit deal is so disastrous, that it has taken the desperate step of delaying its own vote at the eleventh hour,” Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said yesterday in a statement.

The postponement came to light after Ms May held an unscheduled conference call with cabinet ministers before a parliamentary debate on the deal, ahead of the vote that was initially expected to be held tomorrow.

Ms May will now come under pressure to seek to renegotiate the deal at a summit with EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.

The EU has said no renegotiation of the withdrawal agreement is possible, although some EU officials have hinted there could be changes to the accompanying non-binding declaration on post-Brexit ties between Britain and the EU.

If the parliament refuses to ratify the withdrawal agreement, the UK will be on course to leave the EU without a deal, unleashing economic and political chaos.

Ms May herself could be forced to resign from her post, and the UK might need to call for a fresh election or a new referendum to resolve the crisis.