May calls off MPs’ vote on Brexit deal
PRIME MINISTER Theresa May is to travel to Europe to seek concessions on her Brexit deal, after calling off a crunch House of Commons vote in which she was expected to go down to a heavy defeat.
In a statement to MPs, Mrs May also said the Government was stepping up preparations for a possible no-deal Brexit.
And she said that MPs who were threatening to vote against the deal she secured with Brussels must ask themselves the fundamental question: “Does this House want to deliver Brexit?”
If the answer was yes, she said that they needed to consider whether they were prepared to make “compromises” in order to make good on the 2016 referendum vote.
Mrs May’s statement came amid dramatic scenes at Westminster, as news of her plan to postpone yesterday’s “meaningful vote” broke just minutes after Downing Street had insisted it was going ahead.
Speaking to MPs, Mrs May accepted that there was “widespread and deep concern” over the backstop arrangement, designed to keep the Irish border open if the EU and UK fail to strike a wider trade deal.
If the vote had gone ahead as planned, the Government would have been defeated by a “significant margin”, she said.
“We will therefore defer the vote scheduled for tomorrow and not proceed to divide the House at this time.”
Mrs May said she believed there was “a majority to be won” in the Commons on her deal, if she is able to “secure additional reassurance” on the backstop, and that this would be her focus over the coming days.
But she insisted: “There is no deal available that does not include the backstop.”
Mrs May said she had spoken by phone with European leaders and will meet others, as well as the chiefs of the European Council and Commission, before the EU summit opens in Brussels on Thursday.
Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar ruled out reopening negotiations around the backstop, which is designed to keep the Irish border open following Brexit.
The Taoiseach said it was not possible to reopen any aspect of the Withdrawal Agreement without reopening all aspects of it.
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable both urged Jeremy Corbyn to call a vote of no confidence in the Prime Minister, which they said their parties would support.
Both Ms Sturgeon and Sir Vince said they would press for a second referendum to allow voters to pass judgment on whether they still want Britain to leave the EU.
Shouts of “resign” were heard from the Labour benches as Mrs May concluded her statement. Mr Corbyn said: “The Government has lost control of events and is in complete disarray.”
Sterling tumbled to an 20-month low following Mrs May’s announcement, hitting its lowest level since April 2017.
European Council president Donald Tusk said: “We will not renegotiate the deal, including the backstop, but we are ready to discuss how to facilitate UK ratification. As time is running out, we will also discuss our preparedness for a no-deal scenario.”
A spokeswoman for European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said: “This deal is the best and only deal possible. We will not renegotiate.”