USA TODAY International Edition
Attempt to oust May as Britain’s leader falls short
LONDON – British Prime Minister Theresa May survived a “no-confidence” vote in her government Wednesday after a stinging defeat in Parliament over her Brexit deal to leave the European Union. The result means she stays in power for now.
May won the attempt to oust her from power by 325 to 306 votes.
The motion was called by opposition parties attempting to break a deadlock in Parliament over the deal May negotiated with the EU to leave the bloc. Defeat would have probably led to her resignation and the triggering of a general election within weeks.
She has until Monday to devise a new Brexit plan acceptable to lawmakers. Her opponents have not ruled out calling further no-confidence votes.
In a short statement in the House of Commons after the vote, May said she would “continue to work to deliver on the solemn promise to the people of this country to deliver on the result of the referendum and leave the European Union.”
She said, “We must find solutions that are negotiable and command support.”
May lost Tuesday’s vote on the deal she made with the EU to leave the bloc by 432-202. Although the defeat was widely expected, the scale of the loss was not, and it was this – the largest parliamentary defeat of any British prime minister – that led to the calling of Wednesday’s vote by opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn.
He referred to her government Wednesday as a “zombie” administration.
Still, even though many members of her own ruling Conservative Party voted against the exit deal because they said it keeps the U.K. substantially tethered to the bloc, they still like and back May as leader.
For many British lawmakers, the most contentious part of May’s EU deal is the Irish “backstop,” a largely unresolved issue to do with the land border between Northern Ireland (part of Britain) and Ireland (part of the EU). Years of peace between Northern Ireland’s Irish Catholic community and its British Protestant one have been ensured by the free trade and travel across that border that EU membership allows.
All concerned want to avoid a return to a “hard border” between Northern Ireland and Ireland after Brexit. The “backstop” is a temporary measure to allow the border to remain open in the event that the U.K. and EU fail to reach a free trade deal.
Critics worry it could indefinitely maroon Northern Ireland outside the U.K., in the EU.
May and her counterparts in the EU have ruled out any major renegotiations on the deal that has been signed off on.
Michel Barnier, the EU’s top Brexit negotiator, said Wednesday that he is stepping up preparations for a chaotic “no-deal” departure of Britain from the 28-nation bloc.
“Whatever happens, ratification of the withdrawal agreement (May’s deal) is necessary. It is a precondition,” he said.
Barnier left the door open a little, saying there were “possible options” for further talks. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said “we still have time to negotiate” on Brexit, but the next move belonged to May.
She said she intended to hold “a series of meetings between senior parliamentarians and representatives of the government over the coming days.”