May to release Brexit plan
> British PM to publish ‘white paper’ for MPs to scrutinise
LONDON: British Prime Minister Theresa May said on Wednesday she would publish her Brexit plan in parliament so that MPs can scrutinise it, but insisted the government’s timetable was on track.
The announcement is a concession to lawmakers angered at what they say is the lack of detail so far in May’s proposals for leaving the European Union.
It also came a day after Supreme Court judges ruled against May’s government and said the prime minister must win parliamentary approval before starting formal talks to exit the bloc.
The Conservative leader said MPs would be presented with a “white paper” policy document outlining her negotiating strategy, though she did not say when it would be published.
“I recognise that there is an appetite in this house to see that plan set out,” she told parliament’s lower House of Commons in her weekly questions session.
White papers outline proposals for future legislation and form a basis for consultation and discussion.
“I can confirm to the house that our plan will be set out in a white paper published in this house,” May said.
However, the white paper was a “separate issue” from a draft law that will give MPs a vote on formally beginning the Brexit process.
Downing Street confirmed it will introduce the bill on triggering Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty – serving notice of Britain’s intention to leave – on Thursday.
May’s Downing Street office later said that the white paper would “be based on the speech” she gave last week, in which she announced Britain’s intention to leave the EU’s single market.
Tuesday’s Supreme Court ruling was a landmark judgment and a setback for May just before she flies to Washington to meet US President Donald Trump.
In angry exchanges in parliament with Jeremy Corbyn, leader of the main Labour opposition party, May said she would protect workers’ rights in leaving the EU and was “not afraid to speak frankly” with Trump.
The legal case on leaving the EU has revived divisions within Britain, splitting the country and presenting a potential constitutional crisis.
May had wanted to start the two-year Brexit process – invoking Article 50 – without a vote in parliament, but she failed to overturn a High Court ruling that said lawmakers must be consulted. – AFP