Article 50 in just two weeks after PM crushes rebellion
THERESA May will fire the starting gun on Britain’s EU exit in just two weeks – after she crushed a threatened Parliamentary revolt yesterday.
Opposition to the Prime Minister’s strategy melted away as MPs decisively threw out two amendments to the Brexit Bill that had been made by the House of Lords.
Peers last night abandoned the amendments, allowing the legislation to be given royal assent by the Queen this morning.
There had been speculation that Mrs May would move immediately to invoke Article 50 during a Commons appearance later today.
But her official spokesman yesterday scotched rumours, telling reporters that the PM had always said she would do so by the end of March. And Downing Street flatly denied claims she had decided to delay after being spooked by Nicola Sturgeon’s demand for a second referendum on Scottish independence.
‘I’ve said “end” many times but it would seem I didn’t put it in capital letters strongly enough,’ the No 10 spokesman said.
It is now thought that the most likely date for the move will be in the last week of March, following the special summit of the remaining 27 member states in Rome on March 25 to mark the 60th anniversary of the European Union.
Yesterday MPs voted overwhelmingly to scrap changes made to the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill by peers as a mooted Tory rebellion fizzled out.
MPs rejected a Lords amendment to guarantee the status of EU nationals resident in the UK by a margin of 335 votes to 287, and overturned a second amendment, which would have required the Government to grant Parliament a ‘meaningful’ vote on the withdrawal deal eventually secured by Mrs May, by 331 votes to 286.
Peers then defeated a Lib Dem attempt to keep the amendment on EU citizens by 274 to 135.
No Tory MPs rebelled on the ‘meaningful’ vote amendment, while just two, Tania Mathias and Alex Chalk, did so on EU nationals. A number who expressed concerns over the Government’s approach appeared to abstain on the meaningful vote amendment by not voting.
They included former ministers Nicky Morgan and Anna Soubry, former attorney general Dominic Grieve and justice select committee chairman Bob Neill.
Urging MPs to reject the Lords amendments, Brexit Secretary David Davis said the majority of voters, regardless of whether they backed Leave or Remain, wanted Mrs May to ‘get on with the job in hand and to do so with no strings attached’. Mr Davis told MPs he felt a ‘moral responsibility’ towards four million EU nationals in Britain and UK expats living on the continent and wanted swift agreement on their status.
He dismissed concerns they could be deported if no deal is struck, and said he hoped a guarantee of their future rights would be confirmed in an exchange of letters in advance of the completion of the final deal, to end uncertainty for foreign nationals.
He warned that calls for a parliamentary vote on the deal could be interpreted as an attempt by MPs or peers to defy the will of the British people. ‘Whilst it has been badged as a meaningful vote, the reality is there are some who would seek to use this to overturn the result of the referendum,’ he said. ‘Any prospect that we might actually decide to remain in the European Union would only serve to encourage those on the other side to give us the worst possible deal in the hope we will do exactly that.’
Conservative backbencher David Davies told the Commons: ‘As somebody who is married to an EU citizen without a British passport, can I say I wholeheartedly support this Government’s approach to it and it’s absolutely right we get reciprocity before we go ahead with any agreement with the rest of the EU.’
The Lords last night did not contest the rejection of its amendments, meaning Mrs May needs only to await royal assent before triggering Article 50.
The Prime Minister is expected to wait another fortnight before kicking off the two-year process. No 10 last night rejected suggestions the PM had delayed notification due to Miss Sturgeon’s new push for independence.