May’s Govt Found in Contempt of Par’lt over Brexit Legal Advice

British Prime Minister Theresa May has suffered embarrassing defeats at the start of an epic five-day debate over her plans to leave the European Union, which could determine the future of Brexit and the fate of her Government. Minutes before Mrs May rose to speak, MPs delivered a historic rebuke, finding her Conservative Government in contempt of Parliament for refusing to publish the advice it had received from the country’s top law officer about the Brexit deal. The reprimand, while largely symbolic, marks the first time a British government has been found in contempt of Parliament.

The 311-293 vote was backed by Opposition parties and the small Northern Irish party that props up the minority Government and demonstrated the fragility of Mrs May’s grip on power. Labour Party Brexit spokesperson Keir Starmer called the contempt finding “a badge of shame”.

The Government said that in light of the vote it would publish the advice from Attorney-General Geoffrey Cox. The main thrust of Mr Cox’s advice is already known — the Government released a 43-page document about it on Monday in a bid to fend off the contempt motion.

In another sign of the Government’s weakness, MPs also passed an amendment giving Parliament more say over the Government’s next steps if the assembly rejects the divorce deal in a vote set for December 11.

Many politicians saw the Government’s defeats as developments of huge significance — a tipping point in the EU saga.

“This feels like the fall of the ‘ancient regime’,” Stewart McDonald of the Scottish National Party said.