Corbyn challenges PM ... but is he facing defeat too?
JEREMY Corbyn finally tabled a no-confidence vote in the Government last night – despite warnings he is set to fail.
MPs will tonight get the chance to remove the Conservatives from power in a vote that could lead to a general election.
Just minutes after her Brexit deal was defeated, Theresa May challenged the Labour leader to put down the censure motion.
A snarling Mr Corbyn immediately confirmed he would launch his bid to oust the Government following what he branded the ‘catastrophic’ Brexit vote.
If more than half of MPs say they have no longer have confidence in the Government it will fall. But last night Mr Corbyn appeared unlikely to succeed as both the Tory rebels and the Democratic Unionist Party indicated they would continue to back the Government.
A Labour source said he planned to try again at a later date if he fails.
A Commons debate on whether the Government should remain in place will begin this afternoon following Prime Minister’s Questions. At 7pm a vote will be held.
Mr Corbyn told MPs after they rejected Mrs May’s deal last night: ‘This is a catastrophic defeat for this Government.
‘After two years of failed negotiations the House of Commons has delivered its verdict on her Brexit deal and that verdict is absolutely decisive. I hear the words of the Prime Minister but the actions of the past two years speak equally clearly.’
He added: ‘The most important issue facing us is that the Government has lost the confidence of this House and this country. I therefore inform you I have now tabled a motion of no confidence in this Government.’
Mr Corbyn had for weeks resisted demands to call a vote, insisting it would only happen when he thought he could win.
In December, he was urged by opposition MPs to table a vote after Mrs May’s postponed the vote on her Brexit deal. A letter signed by Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable, SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford, Green MP Caroline Lucas and Plaid Cymru’s Liz Saville Roberts was sent to the Labour leader arguing there was an ‘overwhelming’ case for a confidence vote, but he refused.
Many on Labour’s backbenches suspected his reluctance was based on a fear that he would find it hard to resist pressure from party members to push for a second referendum if an attempt to get a general election failed.
Under Labour’s plan on Brexit, as decided at its conference in September, it is policy for the party to seek a general election first.
If an election is not secured then it has promised to look at all options, including the possibility of a second referendum.
While polling suggests that a large majority of party members want Mr Corbyn to actively seek a new referendum, it would face a backlash from many voters in Labour’s heartlands.
Historically, losing a no-confidence vote would be a trigger for the Prime Minister to resign and call a general election. However, under the Fixed-term Parliament Act it starts a 14-day period in which both the Government and Opposition have the opportunity to form a coalition consisting of a majority of MPs.
If neither side can muster the numbers, an election is triggered.
The last time a government was defeated on a confidence motion was in 1979.
The Labour government led by Jim Callaghan lost the opposition motion on March 28 by just one vote, 311 to 310.
Mr Callaghan immediately announced the dissolution of parliament and a general election, which was subsequently won by Margaret Thatcher’s Conservatives, leading to 18 years of Tory government.
Since 1900 there have been only three occasions when a government has lost a vote of confidence – twice in 1924 and once in 1979.
There have not been any confi-
‘This is catastrophic’
dence motions formally tabled in the house of commons since 1993.
The most recent example was on July 23, 1993, when the conservative government of John major tabled a motion of confidence in itself, to shore up support following its defeat the previous day on the maastricht Treaty Social chapter. The government won the motion 339 to 299.
mr corbyn last night launched a fundraising drive ahead of a possible general election. In an email to party supporters, he wrote: ‘The Tories are getting ready, right now their millionaire donors will be reaching for their chequebooks.
‘We’re relying on people like you to help fight and win. your donation will give the country the government it desperately needs. An election is coming, and your support will help to win it.’