PM’s gamble as Brexit vote goes to the brink

THERE’S no doubt it is a colossal gamble. But it’s one the Prime Minister had little option but to take.

By delaying the ‘ meaningful’ Commons vote on her Brexit deal until March 12 – just 17 days before Britain is due to leave the EU – she is unquestionably taking the decision to the very brink.

MPs on all sides will finally have to choose between Mrs May’s deal, No Deal, or effectively no Brexit. No more bluster. Just stark choices. And minds should be further concentrated if, as seems likely, a rehashed motion from Labour’s Yvette Cooper and Tory Nick Boles passes the chamber on Wednesday.

It says that if no deal is agreed before March 13 (note the timing), Article 50 – our formal departure from the EU – should be delayed, taking No Deal off the table.

But it has two huge drawbacks. It removes a crucial bargaining chip with Brussels. And while saying what Brexit shouldn’t be, the motion offers no viable plan for what it

should be. As the Mail has consistently pointed out, the only plan that is viable, honours the referendum result and averts No Deal, is Mrs May’s plan.

So can she get it through? The odds are daunting but there may be a way.

First, the EU must offer legally-binding assurances over the so-called backstop to satisfy the Democratic Unionist Party that Northern Ireland’s place in the UK is not under threat. Without that, the deal is dead – with potentially calamitous consequences for the whole of Europe.

If the DUP is assuaged, Tory hardliners in the European Research Group may be persuaded to back their leader – especially in light of the Cooper-Boles amendment which could stop Brexit altogether. True, some ERG members appear so opposed to the deal that almost nothing would change their minds.

But with Labour in open rebellion against its leader, some Opposition MPs – especially those from Leave-voting areas – may be prepared to defy the Corbyn whip and make up the numbers needed to push the agreement through.

To be realised of course, this requires good faith on all sides – something conspicuously lacking so far.

No one is totally happy with the deal but it provides a pragmatic compromise. Tory MPs especially need to rediscover the virtues of party loyalty and service to their constituents – and back it.

Frankly, Britain is tired of this tawdry Punch and Judy show. And as of yesterday, the clock is ticking louder than ever.