Rebels will force legal advice to be published

THERESA MAY will be forced to publish the Government’s legal advice on the Brexit deal after a rebellion by DUP and Tory MPS.

She was left with little option after the rebel MPS backed a Labour motion calling for the publication of any legal advice on the withdrawal agreement plan.

David Lidington, the Cabinet Office minister, had initially promised a “full reasoned position statement” on the Government’s legal position with a Commons statement by Geoffrey Cox, the Attorney General, rather than the full advice.

However, it became clear during the debate the Government could not muster a majority to defeat the motion put forward by Sir Keir Starmer, Labour’s Brexit spokesman, who had demanded the final legal advice be “put to this House, for this House to consider it”.

Tory whips then told the party’s MPS to abstain, a move disclosed by Anna Soubry, a Remainer Tory MP, who said: “I don’t know why. I suspect it is because there isn’t a majority. If that’s the case, then who is running this country? This Government or the European Research Group?”

Dominic Grieve, the Conservative former attorney general and Remain supporter, had warned that publication would be a mistake, despite saying the Government appeared to be setting a “quite disgraceful timetable” to “bulldoze” MPS into backing the deal without enough information.

However, Sammy Wilson, the DUP Brexit spokesman, said the public should know the full implications.