Support for May is creating a barrier between Scotland and Northern Ireland

I was disappointed that some Scottish Conservative MPS gave a vote of confidence in the Prime Minister, Mrs May, and thereby gave their support to theeu withdrawal agreement which she is promoting.

The Attorney General, Geoffrey Cox, QC, has made it clear that the agreement means that Scotland is essentially treated as a third country by Northern Ireland for goods passing from Scotland into NI and that this means regulatory checks would have to take place between NI and Scotland!

NI feels very close to Scotland – only 20 miles apart and four of my children attended school in scotland and one at glasgow University.

I do not want to see a backstop which results in a barrier between Scotland and Northern Ireland and I hope that will be the position of all in Scotland ,including its Conservative MPS.

LORD KILCLOONEY

Mullinure, Co. Armagh

Recent events have produced a baseline in the Brexit debate. Brussels got proof that Parliament won’t back the May deal as it stands, Parliament knows that, apart from some dabs of lipstick on its deal, Brussels isn’t budging, especially when they see“nob rex it” on the horizon, Mrs May is there for the duration and there’s no support forahardbrexit.

The time for party posturing is over. MPS should either back the May deal, have another referendum or leap into the dark and risk their seats in a general election.

By far the best speeches were by Margaret Becket, who methodically outlined the holes in the two agreements and Philip Hammond’s logical dismemberment of a WTO “no deal” scenario alongside a pragmatic, optimistic assessment of how to make the May deal work. My take in these two contributions was it’s not just the backstop that is the issue, but it is all do-able.

We saw the best of Parliament – Beckett, Hammond, et al – and the worst – the isolated ERG group, the whole of the SNP and some Labour back and front benchers who looked and sounded like rejects from Big Brother.

Mrs May needs to find out what it will take to get a majority in Parliament and put this to the EU.

How about inviting Barnier and Juncker to London to meet MPS, speak to the people, and round it off with a historic address to both Houses of Parliament?

And if that doesn’t get Parliament voting for the May deal there must be another referendum, the choice being May or Remain, the rationale for it being people know a lot more now than we did then.

Who, in june 2016, had heard of the need for a back-stop or a £39bn “divorce” bill, to name just two?

ALLAN SUTHERLAND

Willow Row, Stonehaven

Prime Minister Teresa May has now backed herself into an impossible situation with no way out, as the Brexit deal is now belly-up and unworkable with the EU refusing to any further changes in what has been agreed to date.

This leaves only two options open to her – either in accepting that a no deal exit is inevitable or to ask for a delay in implementation date.

The UK may well have to accept that no deal will be the outcome, but at least there will be no golden goodbye tot heeu of £39bn, which will be some comfort in tackling the many problems which will need to be addressed in March 2019.

DENNIS FORBES GRATTAN

Bucksburn, Aberdeen