Early summer break scrapped

CONTROVERSIAL plans to give MPs an early summer holiday were axed in a humiliating climbdown last night – 24 hours after they were announced.

Ministers were forced to withdraw proposals for the Commons to break up tomorrow after MPs warned that they would vote them down.

The plans, drawn up by Tory chief whip Julian Smith, would have seen MPs leave for their summer break five days early and appeared designed to break up Conservative plots against Theresa May. The move was opposed by Commons leader Andrea Leadsom, who warned Mrs May that it would ‘look bad’ to break up early while Parliament is in the throes of a crisis about Brexit. But she was overruled by No 10.

Government sources said the idea was initially supported by Labour and the SNP. But Labour yesterday changed tack to oppose the idea. And a string of Tory MPs spoke out against it, raising the prospect that the Government would have been defeated in a vote on the issue.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid is said to have opposed the plan ‘pretty forcefully’ at a meeting of the Cabinet yesterday.

Former Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon said: ‘Longer holidays are an idiotic idea when the country expects us to sort stuff. I will vote against.’

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn last night accused the Tories of wanting to ‘rush to the beach and put their heads in the sand’.

Downing Street at first defended the move. But last night, ministers abandoned the plan, saying they would no longer put the idea to a vote.