Indicative votes ‘will leave us with an Auf Wiedersehen Pet Brexit’
THERESA MAY has been warned that she could end up with an Auf Wiedersehen, Pet Brexit deal that no one wants if she presses ahead with plans to give MPS a new round of so-called indicative votes.
The Prime Minister is preparing to hold the votes in the next fortnight if Brexit talks with Labour collapse, and wants to find a mechanism that would force Parliament to choose a way forward, rather than risking another stalemate.
One of the methods under consideration is to make MPS rank the alternative Brexit outcomes in order of preference, so that second and third preference votes are counted if no one option gets a majority.
But one Cabinet source compared the technique to a scene in the television comedy series Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, in which builders use it to settle a dispute over what colour they should paint their hut.
The source said: “There is a scene in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet where the builders pick a colour to paint their shed and end up with yellow. They are all baffled because no one voted for yellow, but it turns out that two people put it down as their second choice.
“So there is an issue with a ranking system, as it comes with the inherent danger that you end up with a result that no one wanted.”
Other alternatives include a knockout system, where the least popular options are dropped after each round of voting until only one option remains.
A senior Government source said: “There are several ways of doing it. If we can’t agree a Brexit deal with Labour we will move on to discussing a new round of indicative votes and how they could be done.”
Mrs May’s preferred option is to agree a deal with Labour that can be written into a Withdrawal Agreement Bill – the legislation needed for Britain to leave the EU with a deal – which would then be put to a vote by May 22, the eve of the European elections.
It would mean Mrs May could prove to voters that progress had been made, and that Britain will leave the EU by the start of August. Downing Street hopes that would temper the expected backlash against the Conservatives in the European elections, in which party officials fear the Tories will finish sixth.
But if the Labour talks fail, Mrs May’s plan B is to hold indicative votes, which would indicate the will of Parliament, rather than being legally binding.
Last month MPS voted on eight different alternative Brexit outcomes, including remaining in the EU, a no deal Brexit, a second referendum and a customs union with the EU, all of which were voted down.
Parliament came within three votes of agreeing Britain should leave the EU with a permanent customs union deal – seen as the most likely outcome of another round of votes.
Its supporters say it would solve the problem of the Northern Ireland border, but the Conservatives made a manifesto promise to leave the customs union and Brexiteers say any such deal would not be Brexit.
Talks with Labour resume on Monday, with neither side currently prepared to suggest an agreement is likely.
The Conservatives’ suggestion is a comprehensive customs arrangement that runs until the next general election, enabling the party that wins in 2022 to set the future course of Britain’s trading relationship with the EU.
However Labour wants a permanent customs union to be written into law to prevent a future Tory leader reversing the decision – a so-called “Boris lock”.
The two sides are understood to be close to an agreement on workers’ rights and regulatory alignment.
‘A ranking system ... comes with the danger of a result no one wanted’