Momentum plots to force all Corbyn MPs to vote against Theresa’s deal

MOMENTUM is plotting a ‘major campaign’ to strong-arm all Labour MPs into voting down Theresa May’s Brexit deal.

At least a dozen of Labour MPs are expected to support the agreement that the PM brings back from Brussels, which could prove vital to getting it through the Commons.

Senior Labour figures with Brexit-backing constituencies, including ex-minister Caroline Flint, have suggested they would struggle to vote against something that prevents the UK from crashing out of the EU with no deal.

But Momentum is getting ready to launch an offensive to exert pressure on MPs not to defy Jeremy Corbyn by voting for the deal.

The hard-Left faction, which grew out of Mr Corbyn’s 2015 leadership campaign, has started building a ‘fighting fund’ so it can have maximum impact. The move will raise fears among Labour MPs that they will face efforts to deselect them by Momentum activists if they back the Brexit deal. In a message to supporters, the group said: ‘Reports are circulating that Theresa May will try to pressure centrist Labour MPs into propping up her government and backing whatever last-minute Tory Brexit deal she cobbles together. We’re preparing now to launch a major campaign, helping you make sure that Labour MPs vote with Jeremy.’

It sets out the results of a consultation of Momentum members. Of the 6,500 who replied to the survey, 92 per cent said they would like to see all Labour MPs vote it down. Asked about the possibility of a second Brexit referendum, just 17 per cent of Momentum members said they would not support holding another vote. Some 41 per cent said Labour should commit to holding a poll in all circumstances, while 40 per cent said they would support one if there was no general election.

Becky Boumelha, of Momentum’s national coordinating group, warned in The Guardian: ‘With increasingly vibrant, active local parties and a Labour membership of more than 500,000, any Labour MP who votes with the Government is going to have a hard time explaining themselves back in their constituencies.’