The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
May undeterred by humiliating defeat
COMMONS: PM vows to press ahead with talks despite Tory rebellion
Theresa May has made clear she will not be deflected from delivering Brexit by her humiliating defeat at the hands of Tory rebels in the House of Commons.
The Prime Minister told leaders of the remaining 27 EU states at a summit in Brussels that the UK remains committed to a smooth and orderly withdrawal and that she is personally keen to start talks on building a close and friendly future relationship as soon as possible.
Her comments came as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said the setback would not “for one second” stop the Brexit process being completed in a “very successful and very timely way”.
“I can’t believe for the life of me that Parliament will actually vote to stop or reverse the Brexit process or frustrate the will of the British people,” said Mr Johnson at a press conference in London. “That’s just not going to happen.”
Wednesday night’s Commons defeat, on an amendment requiring MPS to be given a “meaningful” vote on the final Brexit deal, was a serious reverse for the PM just days after she finally secured a breakthrough agreement on a divorce deal covering citizens’ rights, the Irish border and the UK’S £39 billion financial settlement.
But other EU leaders played down suggestions it had undermined Mrs May’s authority in Brussels, with Dutch PM Mark Rutte saying she still possessed “formidable stature here”.
But Luxembourg’s PM Xavier Bettel said it would “make life more complicated” for her by imposing further constraints on the time she has available to secure a deal.
With the EU27 expected to give the green light today for a move to the second phase of Brexit talks, dealing with the transition to a post-brexit relationship, Mrs May called for early agreement on an “implementation period” lasting around two years after the official date of withdrawal in March 2019.
In the face of predictions of lengthy and tough negotiations ahead, she said the successful conclusion of the first phase showed what was possible if both sides approached talks with commitment and perseverance.
Addressing fellow leaders in Brussels, Mrs May said she “makes no secret of wanting to move on to the next phase and to approaching it with ambition and creativity”.
She added: “I believe this is in the best interest of the UK and the EU. A particular priority should be agreement on the implementation period so that we can bring greater certainty to businesses in the UK and across the 27.”
She returned to the UK last night, leaving the EU27 to give their seal of approval in her absence to the agreement reached last Friday with European Commission president Jean-claude Juncker. Leaders including Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel left no doubt that the decision was no more than a formality.