Heseltine sacked for rebelling on Brexit
Conservative peer ousted as government adviser after backing Article 50 amendment in Lords
Lord Heseltine was sacked as a government adviser last night by backing an amendment to the Article 50 Bill in the Lords. The Tory peer lost his position after the Government suffered a second defeat in the space of a week, with Lords demanding MPs be given a “meaningful vote” on the final Brexit deal before Britain’s withdrawal from the EU.
THE former Cabinet minister Lord Heseltine was sacked as a government adviser last night for rebelling over Brexit by backing an amendment to the Article 50 Bill in the Lords.
The Conservative peer lost his position after the Government suffered a second parliamentary defeat in the space of a week, with peers demanding MPs be given a “meaningful vote” on the final Brexit deal before Britain’s withdrawal from the EU.
David Davis, the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, last night accused peers of trying to “frustrate” the process of triggering Brexit and insisted the Government would overturn the latest amendment.
Lord Heseltine said after his dismissal: “This is entirely the right of the Prime Minister and I’m sorry that the expertise which I have put at the Government’s disposal over the last six years has now come to an end.
“However, in the last resort, I believe, as I said in the House of Lords, the future of this country is inextrica- bly interwoven with our European friends. It’s the duty of Parliament to assert its sovereignty in determining the legacy we leave to new generations of young people.”
His departure comes after Lord Tebbit, who served alongside Lord Heseltine in Margaret Thatcher’s Cabinet, told the Telegraph last week that his former colleague should be “kicked out of the party he clearly loathes” for trying to “wreck the Brexit Bill”.
Theresa May is determined to throw out the amendment when the Bill returns to the Commons for its final reading next week. She believes her hand would be significantly weakened when she begins Brexit negotiations with the EU if Parliament had the power to stop her leaving without a deal.
Mrs May’s existing position is that no deal is better than a bad deal, meaning she will take Britain out of the EU even if MPs reject the deal offered.
Up to 20 Conservative MPs could vote in favour of the amendment, with rebels encouraging others to abstain.
They include Anna Soubry, the former business minister, who believes a “significant” number of Tories might defy the whip. The Government has a “Brexit majority” of around 30 MPs, double its normal working majority, because it can count on the support of a number of MPs from other parties.
The danger for Mrs May is that the Lords vote, in which the amendment was passed by 366 votes to 268, could encourage Conservative MPs representing pro-Remain constituencies to abstain. Thirteen Tory peers voted against the Government as a new record was set for the number of peers taking part in a vote, at 634. Downing Street insisted the vote would not derail the timetable for triggering Article 50 by the end of this month.
It came after a vote last week in which the Lords added another amendment that would guarantee the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, regardless of whether British citizens living in the EU were given similar guarantees.
Mr Davis said it was “disappointing” that the Lords had made further changes to the Bill. He said: “It is clear some in the Lords would seek to frustrate that process, and it is the Government’s intention to ensure that does not happen.”
Ms Soubry said: “I’m hoping a significant number of colleagues who may not be able to vote against their Government would consider abstaining, and recognise that their lordships have considered the Bill carefully.
“What do these hard Brexiteers fear? They wanted to restore parliamentary sovereignty, but suddenly they seem terrified of Parliament having a say, never mind sovereignty.”