Tears, rows and a glass of wine ... the five-hour battle in Cabinet
YESTERDAY’S five-hour Cabinet meeting began with a warning from Theresa May that ministers would have to ‘confront’ a series of uncomfortable compromises. It ended with a convivial glass of wine.
In between the two, the tears and passions flowed as ministers argued back and forth with Mrs May about the downsides of a deal that could decide Britain’s course for decades.
At the centre of the drama was work and pensions secretary Esther McVey, a passionate Brexiteer, who was the only minister to tell the Prime Minister directly that she was opposed to the deal.
A tearful Miss McVey also repeatedly demanded a show of hands on the deal. Initially, Mrs May told her she would judge the ‘mood in the room’.
When the former TV presenter returned to the issue at the end of the meeting, it led to a row with Cabinet Secretary Sir Mark Sedwill and chief whip Julian Smith.
Sir Mark eventually produced a copy of the ‘Cabinet manual’ which governs proceedings in No 10 to prove it is the Prime Minister’s role to declare a majority if it is clear that one exists.
One source accused Sir Mark of ‘shouting down’ Miss McVey – a claim which was strongly denied last night. Another accused the pensions minister of ‘going mental’.
A third source in the room acknowledged that the row led to the meeting ending on a ‘sour note’. Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom is also said to have wiped away a tear as she warned the proposals had little chance of getting through Parliament.
But Brexiteer nerves were calmed by attorney general Geoffrey Cox, who told ministers that any bid to keep Britain in the controversial ‘Irish backstop’ indefinitely would lead to legal challenges.
He acknowledged there was a ‘balance of risk’ in the plans, but said: ‘The one risk I am not prepared to take is one that means we don’t end up delivering Brexit.’
Backing the proposals, he said it was time for the life raft made of ‘oil drums and a plastic sail’ to be released on to the open ocean. ‘It was a key moment,’ said one source.
Michael Gove was the only other Brexiteer minister to speak up for the deal.
Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab was said to be ‘sullen’, but friends last night dismissed rumours he would quit.
International development secretary Penny Mordaunt was more outspoken, urging Mrs May to ‘dig in and fight for more concessions from Europe’.
Miss Mordaunt, tipped as a minister who could resign, also called on Mrs May to allow MPs outside the Cabinet a ‘free vote’ on the deal. The request was met with a polite refusal from Mrs May.
Home Secretary Sajid Javid, seen as a pivotal figure, raised concerns about the ‘backstop’, saying he ‘could not see a way out’. But he ended up going along with the plans, acknowledging that ‘perfection is a pipe dream’.
Gavin Williamson was another senior figure to warn that the deal would struggle to get through Parliament.
The former chief whip warned there was little prospect of persuading Labour MPs to back the deal in large numbers.
Jeremy Hunt backed the Prime Minister but was said to be ‘despondent’ about the prospect of selling some of the compromises involved to Tory MPs.
Scottish Secretary David Mundell dropped a bombshell just before the meeting by signing a letter from Scottish Tories warning Mrs May against any backsliding on the pledge to restore Britain’s historic fishing grounds. But he said little during the meeting and offered his public support minutes after it broke up.
Senior Remainers Philip Hammond and Greg Clark spoke up strongly for the economic benefits of the deal.
The Prime Minister abandoned her usual style of taking the temperature of the meeting and then summing up. Instead, she fielded
‘Perfection is a pipe dream’
questions from ministers and engaged in debate.
She warned that Parliament would ‘take control’ of the process if the deal fell through, potentially leading to an agreement that was even less palatable. The meeting was due to last three hours but over-ran by two.
one source in the meeting said: ‘There were 30 of them in there and they all wanted to speak for ten minutes. Everyone wanted to get their views on the record.’ After five hours of talks, Mrs May finally emerged on to the steps of No 10 to declare ‘decisive’ progress.
‘There will be difficult days ahead,’ she said. But she had cleared a major hurdle.