PARLIAMENT SUSPENDED AS MPS SET TO REJECT SECOND CALL FOR SNAP ELECTION
BORIS Johnson has insisted he is committed to securing a new deal with Brussels ahead of Britain’s departure from the EU.
The Prime Minister, in Dublin for talks with Irish premier Leo Varadkar, said he believed it was possible to secure an agreement ahead of the UK’s scheduled withdrawal at the end of October.
However, Mr Varadkar said that while Ireland was open to alternative solutions to the Northern Ireland backstop, they had yet to see any “legally workable” proposals from the UK.
Mr Johnson’s insistence he wants to see a deal follows the resignation at the weekend of work and pensions secretary Amber Rudd, who complained she had seen little evidence ministers were trying to find an agreement.
Standing alongside Mr Varadkar, Mr Johnson said that a no-deal Brexit would represent a “failure of statecraft” by all concerned.
“I want to find a deal. I have looked carefully at no-deal. Yes, we could do it, the UK could certainly get through it, but be in no doubt that outcome would be a failure of statecraft for which we would all be responsible,” he said.
“I would overwhelmingly prefer to find an agreement. I do believe that a deal can be done by October 18 so let’s do it together.”
While he did not underestimate the “technical problems” involved in resolving the issue of the Irish border, he said the UK was ready to bring forward proposals to address the “full range of issues”.
They included the “electronic preclearance” of goods and the “unity” of the island of Ireland for agri-foods.
“Strip away the politics and at the core of each problem you find practical issues that can be resolved with sufficient energy and a spirit of compromise.”
Mr Varadkar said that he was willing to work with the Prime Minister as a “friend and ally” but said that Ireland was not prepared to accept the replacement of a “legal guarantee with a promise”.
“Avoiding a return to a hard border is the priority of this government,” he said.
“We are open to all alternatives legally workable but we have not received such to date.”
Asked about the situation in the Commons, the PM said: “We will come out on October 31, and I’m sure that parliamentarians will see the wisdom of doing that and respecting, honouring, the referendum result - the democratic referendum result.
“And, I’m absolutely undaunted by whatever may take place in Parliament.”
The comments came as Mr Johnson was expected to ramp up the pressure on MPs to back a snap general election or face five weeks of
watching the Brexit negotiations from the sidelines.
Parliament was scheduled to be suspended under the Prime Minister’s orders yesterday, in a move that would halt all business in the Commons until October 14.
But Mr Johnson was to present MPs with a way out of an enforced holiday by giving them another vote late last night on holding a general election before a final decision to prorogue is taken. MPs were expected to vote against that and so Parliament would be suspended.
An Opposition law, dubbed the Benn Bill after Labour MP Hilary Benn, that would extend the Brexit deadline until January 2020 was expected to have received Royal Assent before prorogation kicks in, but MPs would be thrown out of Parliament almost immediately afterwards and face a nervous wait to see whether Mr Johnson will obey the legislation.
Meanwhile, DUP leader Arlene Foster said she has been “encouraged” by Boris Johnson’s commitment to getting “a sensible deal”.
Speaking after the Prime Minister’s meeting with Leo Varadkar in Dublin, Mrs Foster said: “I hope the discussions in Dublin lay the foundation for a way forward.
“We want the referendum result implemented. To do otherwise would be to damage democracy but we have never been champions of exiting the European Union without a deal.
“To secure a sensible deal which
respects the economic and constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom will require pragmatic discussions on all sides.
“The Prime Minister has already ruled out a Northern Ireland-only backstop because it would be anti-democratic, unconstitutional and would mean our core industries would be subject to EU rules without any means of changing them.
“We will continue to work with the Government and will also use any discussions with the Taoiseach to encourage efforts towards a sensible deal.”
Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson accused Prime Minister Boris Johnson of being on a power trip and acting with arrogance.
Ms Swinson said: “The Prime Minister is on a power trip but the truth is he does not have unfettered power.”
She added: “There’s a sense of arrogance, he acts as if the rules don’t apply to him and I do not put anything past our Prime Minister on what he might engineer.”
Ms Swinson also said she believed that the EU would respond to a request for an extension of the Brexit deadline in good faith.
She said: “I think the EU in good faith are likely to respond to an extension request for a good reason, for example for a people’s vote.”
JOHN Bercow has announced that he will stand down as Commons Speaker at the end of next month unless an election is called beforehand.
In an impassioned speech Mr Bercow, who has held the influential post for just over 10 years, also said he would step down as MP for Buckingham.
The Speaker told the Commons he would resign last night in the unlikely event MPs vote for an early general election, but said if they did not he would stand aside on October 31.
As his wife Sally looked on from the gallery, an emotional Mr Bercow said: “At the 2017 election, I promised my wife and children that it would be my last.
“This is a pledge that I intend to keep. If the House votes tonight for an early general election, my tenure as Speaker and MP will end when this Parliament ends.
“If the House does not so vote, I have concluded that the least disruptive and most democratic course of action would be for me to stand down at the close of business on Thursday, October 31.”
He continued: “Least disruptive because that date will fall shortly after the votes on the Queen’s Speech expected on October 21 and 22. The week or so after that may be quite lively and it would be best to have an experienced figure in the
chair for that short period.
“Most democratic because it will mean that a ballot is held when all members have some knowledge of the candidates.
“This is far preferable to a contest at the beginning of a parliament when new MPs will not be similarly informed and may find themselves vulnerable to undue institutional influence.”
The Speaker added that he has “sought to be the backbenchers’ backstop”, and thanked his team in the Speaker’s House for their work behind the scenes.
Mr Bercow entered Parliament in 1997 and held several shadow ministerial positions before taking the Speaker’s chair on June 22 2009, promising to serve “no more than nine years in total”.
He abandoned that commitment ahead of the 2017 snap election, but allegations of bullying by former members of his staff, denied by the Speaker, led to fresh calls for him to quit.
In recent months he has also come under fire for a series of controversial rulings in the chamber which were widely considered to favour Remain supporters.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn praised Mr Bercow for being a “superb” Speaker, and said he had “totally changed the way in which the job has been done”.
“This Parliament is stronger for your being Speaker. Our democracy is the stronger for your being the Speaker.
“And whatever you do when you finally step down from Parliament, you do so with the thanks of a very large number of people,” Mr Corbyn said.
For the Government, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said it was clear Mr Bercow loved the House of Commons and democracy, adding: “Your commitment to your principles and to your constituents is unwavering and an example to others.”
Mr Gove joked that he hoped Mr Bercow would not take it personally when he votes for an early general election, adding: “It is the case that however controversial the role of the backstop may be in other areas, your role as the backbenchers’ backstop has certainly been one that’s been appreciated by individuals across this House.”
However, Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage tweeted “good riddance” in response to Mr Bercow’s announcement.
MPs made a number of tributes to Mr Bercow.
Labour MP Hilary Benn said: “When the history books come to be written, you will be described as one of the great reforming Speakers of the House of Commons.”
Ogmore MP Chris Elmore tweeted: “A sad day for the Commons & our democracy. Speaker Bercow has championed Parliament, the rights of MPs to represent their constituents & defended our democracy to the last.”
Cardiff West MP Kevin Brennan added: “He will be remembered as an important reforming speaker who refused to be bullied by the Executive – that in itself is a great achievement”.
Praise was also given for his moves to make Commons a more familyfriendly place.
Labour MP Lucy Powell and Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson, who was the first MP to take her baby into the Commons, said his reforms had been “truly important”.
Presiding Officer of the Welsh Assembly Elin Jones tweeted: “My admiration and thanks go to my fellow Speaker John Bercow for a job excellently done.”
Rhondda MP Chris Bryant is one of those understood to want the job.
Bookmaker Paddy Power has Lindsay Hoyle (5/6) as favourite, with Harriet Harman (4/1), Rosie Winterton (8/1), Chris Bryant, Charles Walker (12/1) and Eleanor Laing (12/1).