Brexit: Rebels force Theresa May to give parliament veto over her plans in case of no deal with Brussels
The
prime minister must now spell out the detail of her compromise within
days or risk a humiliating defeat
13
June, 2018
Rebel
Conservatives have forced Theresa May into a climbdown, handing
parliament greater control of Brexit if she fails to seal a deal.
After
the prime minister was threatened with what could have been a
damaging commons defeat, she promised key concessions in dramatic
last minute talks with pro-EU rebels.
It
is likely to mean her accepting a deadline by which she must secure a
deal with Brussels, if she wants to stay in the driving seat for
negotiations.
Her
ministers must now spell out the detail of her compromises within
days, with Tory rebels warning a failure to do so would reignite the
prospect of a major commons loss destabilising her leadership.
It
followed a day which started with the resignation of a minister and
passed into febrile commons debate that saw ministers bargaining
openly with rebels in the chamber.
Rebel
MP Nicky Morgan told The Independent: “The whole point of what has
come about is that we are going to have a process to this, something
which does not simply allow us to drift into a hard Brexit.”
The
row was precipitated by the Lords last month passing a plan that
would have given parliament the power to direct Ms May’s actions if
she failed to seal a Brexit deal later this year.
Ministers
were demanding Tory MPs vote it out of existence in the Commons on
Tuesday, but had also refused to consider a more palatable compromise
proposed by the former Conservative attorney general Dominic Grieve.
It
would have instead seen Ms May being tied into a strict timetable of
having to set out her own proposals if she failed to seal a deal by
November, and then gain parliamentary approval for them – the
stronger powers for MPs to direct her action would only come into
play if a deal had still not been reached by February.
But
Ms May’s tough approach was dealt a heavy blow when at 7am on
Tuesday she opened a resignation letter from junior minister Phillip
Lee, who quit because he said the government was overlooking
“parliamentary sovereignty” in its approach to Brexit.
As
government whips spoke with MPs it began to become apparent they were
heading for a defeat, which would have seen the commons enshrine the
tougher Lords plan in law, effectively stripping Ms May of her
executive power.
As
the need to compromise grew, solicitor general Robert Buckland
strenuously tried to persuade Tory rebels not to defy the whip and
reassure them the government was listening.
Chief
whip Julian Smith could also be seen darting in and out of the
chamber and between Tory backbenchers, before becoming locked in a
discussion with Mr Grieve.
But
with the result still hanging in the balance, Ms May then made a
personal last minute intervention to avert a disaster, calling around
17 rebels into her office shortly before the crunch vote.
One
MP said: “It was real last minute stuff, she knew she was going to
lose and had no choice.”
Another
said: “She promised to go along with the spirit of Dominic’s plan
– we will be looking for a set timetable, if not specifically by
November and February, then some kind of specific timescale by which
she must seek parliament’s approval for her plans in the case of no
deal being reached.
“If
we don’t get that by next week then we will be back where we are
today, and the government will be facing the prospect of the Lords
amendment being passed – there are enough of us to do it and they
know it.”
Senior
backbencher Sarah Wollaston said the prime minister had given way
because there was “a very strong possibility that the government
might lose the vote”
She
added: “We want to see parliament having the power to stop a hard,
walkaway, no deal Brexit.”
Mr
Grieve said the parts of his amendment he now expects to be brought
forward by ministers include the November deadline.
He
explained: “The prime minister agreed that the amendments we
tabled, and the issue that we had raised about parliament’s role in
the event of no deal, was an important one, and undertook to work
with us to put together amendments to present in the Lords which
would address those concerns.”
The
prime minister’s intervention mean rebel MPs allowed the government
to defeat the Lords plan last night, but it will now be returned to
the upper chamber where it is likely be approved again.
The
government can only avoid that if it now brings forward its own
proposals along the lines agreed between Ms May and the rebels on
Tuesday.
A
government source said ministers are likely to give way on a form of
the November deadline and agree to giving MPs the chance to veto her
plans, but could not agree to the idea of allowing parliament to
directly dictate them.
Following
the vote, shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said: “Facing
the prospect of a humiliating defeat Theresa May has been forced to
enter negotiations with her backbenchers and offer a so-called
concession.
“We
will wait and see the details of this concession and will hold
ministers to account to ensure it lives up to the promises they have
made to parliament.”
Liberal
Democrat Brexit spokesman Tom Brake said: “As has become a
tradition in Brexit negotiations, the Tories have been forced to
cobble together a compromise.
“Time
will tell as to whether this is just another attempt to buy off the
rebels or a real attempt at consensus.”
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