May planning manifesto ‘triple lock’ on Brexit to beat diehard Remainers

THERESA May will place a triple lock on Brexit in the Tory manifesto to stop obstruction by diehard Remainers.

Tory sources say she is set to include specific pledges to overcome opposition within her party and in the Lords.

The manifesto is expected to commit the party to ending EU free movement and pulling out of both the single market and European Court of Justice.

Senior Tories see the three measures as essential in delivering last year’s referendum result. One insider said Tory Remainers would be required to sign up to the package, ‘locking them in’.

Including the pledges in the manifesto will also make it much harder for peers to block Brexit.

Mrs May is expected to use the manifesto to ditch a number of high-profile policies from the Cameron era. Yesterday she left the door open to watering down – or even scrapping – Mr Cameron’s flagship vow to spend 0.7 per cent of national income on foreign aid.

Ministers refused to say whether the costly ‘triple lock’ on pensions will be retained, or whether the pledge to reduce net migration to the ‘tens of thousands’ will be kept when the manifesto is published in a fortnight.

Setting out her ‘Brexit prospectus’, Mrs May said: ‘When people voted to leave the EU they did vote to end free movement as it has been – they voted for us to have control of our laws so we are not subject to the ECJ.’

A Tory source said: ‘All Conservative candidates will have to stand on the manifesto – it will lock them in and provide a much stronger mandate. It will also send a message to the House of Lords that they cannot get in the way.’

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who will launch his campaign today, dismissed Mrs May’s argument that she needs a fresh mandate to deliver Brexit and taunted her over her refusal to agree to a live TV debate.

The Prime Minister singled out opposition to Brexit from Labour, the Lib Dems, the SNP and the ‘unelected’ House of Lords as her reason for going to the polls.