May’s bid to get Brexit back on track

THERESA May has paved the way for a bruising showdown with diehard Remainers in Parliament next week as she seeks to throw out attempts by the Lords to thwart Brexit.

Downing Street said the Commons will hold a marathon 12-hour session next Tuesday in a bid to overturn a string of amendments to the EU Withdrawal Bill.

Tory whips cancelled all leave for the day as they tried to ensure they have the numbers to get the legislation through.

Labour last night described the attempt to ‘ram through’ the legislation in a single day as ‘an absolute disgrace’. Chief whip Nick Brown told a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party it was potentially ‘unsafe’ to keep MPs voting until late on critical issues.

Labour is said to be pushing for four days of debate on the 15 amendments passed by the Lords.

However, Eurosceptic MPs welcomed the decision to bring back the legislation. Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith said Brussels was exploiting uncertainty about the legislation to stonewall on trade talks in the belief Parliament could vote to keep the UK in the customs union or single market.

The EU Withdrawal Bill is designed to transfer EU regulations into UK law and is seen as vital for a smooth Brexit.

But anti-Brexit peers pushed through a string of amendments designed to tie the Government’s hands in negotiations.

Ministers are most concerned about a measure that would allow Parliament to send the PM back to Brussels if they do not like the deal she negotiates. Peers also voted for measures designed to keep Britain in the customs union and single market and to remove the date for Britain’s exit from the EU.

Downing Street declined to comment on which amendments it would seek to send back. But the PM’s spokesman said: ‘There were amendments passed by the Lords which were unacceptable we will be looking to overturn.’