After the vote, it is time to unite

IT was the late Harold Wilson who coined the phrase that “a week is a long time in politics”. Well, if ever there was a week that proves his point, it has been this one. For many of us in Parliament his statement could perhaps even be revised to a day or even an hour is now a long time in politics.

While many people were busy preparing for the festive season, the Government began the week by taking the decision to defer Tuesday’s “meaningful vote” on the final Brexit deal in order to allow the Prime Minister to return to Brussels to secure additional reassurances over the proposed Irish backstop arrangement.

This decision was largely born out of pragmatism, to give the Prime Minister the opportunity to address the concerns expressed by many MPs over this issue, but who would otherwise support the deal that extensively delivers on the result of the referendum by returning control over our money, laws and borders.

What is clear, whatever the final agreement is, it must not risk reigniting the historic tensions between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland or jeopardise the progress we have made in the 20 years since the Good Friday Agreement.

Regrettably, and perhaps ironically, the decision to delay the “meaningful vote” to allow the Prime Minister more time to address concerns over the proposed backstop arrangement, led those in the Conservative Parliamentary Party who had called for negotiations on this matter to be reopened, to then trigger a vote of confidence in her leadership.

For so many reasons, not least her deep sense of public duty, there is no doubt in my mind that the Prime Minister remains the best person to lead our country, a fact which was confirmed by the many constituents who called and emailed me throughout Wednesday to urge me to support her in the confidence vote.

I was therefore delighted with the final result.

As I have previously said, I will not back a “People’s Vote” under any circumstance, as to re-run the referendum because some people did not like the original outcome would be fundamentally undemocratic.

However, those colleagues who lost the confidence vote on Wednesday evening but who are now advancing the argument that the Prime Minister did not win by a big enough margin, must reflect on their actions and understand that she secured 63% of the vote, which is a significantly higher percentage than the 52% who voted to leave the European Union in 2016.

In my view, both issues have been settled by a popular vote, the Prime Minister will quite rightly remain in place and we will leave the European Union on March 29 next year.

I understand that for many of you, what you increasingly see are politicians who have become so entrenched in their own idealistic visions of leaving or remaining; bogged down in technicalities.

If we as members of Parliament are to retain your faith in our democratic institutions and procedures, Parliament needs to get on with the job.

Now that the question of her leadership has been settled, we in the Conservative Party must unite around the Prime Minister in order to deliver Brexit as well as a robust domestic agenda and to tackle the real threat to our great nation, which is the prospect of a future Labour Government led by Jeremy Corbyn.

Finally, on a lighter note, I want to take this opportunity to wishes all readers of the Derby Telegraph a very happy and peaceful Christmas.