Crunch time for Brexit havoc

A negotiated Brexit was always going to be the best outcome after Britons voted to leave the EU in the June 2016 referendum. But with just a fortnight before the March 29 deadline, that looks unlikely following the House of Commons’ overwhelming rejection of Prime Minister Theresa May’s latest proposed deal. Even the staunchest EU opponents now fear potentially damaging economic and political disruptions from a no-deal Brexit.

For this, the Prime Minister must shoulder much of the blame. But so too must British MPs on all sides who have been quick to shoot down successive proposals, yet who have failed to build a sensible consensus for alternative deals that might have won agreement from parliament or the EU.

Boris Johnson, the most outspoken of the hardline Brexiteers, admits a no-deal Brexit will be “the most difficult road”. But he has offered no plausible alternative to Mrs May’s deal, with parliament now set to vote against a no-deal Brexit. As The Times wrote, “the fundamental difficulty is there is now no majority for any specific kind of Brexit in the Commons — and not a majority for a second referendum either”, which has been touted as a possible way out of the shambles.

Even postponing Brexit by getting the EU to delay the Article 50 mechanism for Britain’s withdrawal is an uncertain option, with Brussels wondering what purpose that would serve. The British parliament is in chaos, with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn demanding a general election that could propel him and his “former” Marxist comrades into Downing Street, with dire consequences, especially for the Five Eyes alliance.

Mrs May’s proposed deal had major flaws. But it deserved better than a death knell in the Commons. At least it would have prevented free movement across Britain’s borders, stopped large UK contributions to the EU’s budget and ended membership of the common agricultural and fisheries policies. It would also have enabled Britain to negotiate trade deals with other countries, such as Australia. Mrs May has pledged to bat on to secure a deal of some sort. But the prospects are bleak.