Brexit: Theresa May absent as vote fails

Theresa May was absent from the House of Commons when the Tories suffered another humiliating Brexit defeat.

Brexiteers demonstrate outside Downing Street before the vote. Picture: AFP

British Prime Minister Theresa May’s plans to return to Brussels with the backing of parliament to renegotiate the so-called Irish backstop have been shattered after the House of Commons dished out another humiliation.

Bewildered European leaders were surprised that a non-binding, seemingly, anodyne government motion intended to express MPs’ support for Mrs May as she continues an 11th-hour bid to renegotiate her Brexit deal was so roundly defeated early yesterday.

The motion, which acknowledged the support of the house to avoid a no-deal Brexit, was ­defeated by at 303 votes to 258. Sixty-five Tory MPs, mostly members of Eurosceptic Euro­pean Research Group abstained. Five Tories crossed the floor.

Only a fortnight ago Mrs May had reassured Europe that she had “a substantial and sustainable majority” behind her negotiations with Brussels after parliament called for the Irish backstop to be removed. MPs complained about a lack of trust in the executive as the motion appeared to take no-deal Brexit off the table.

But if Europe believed the mayhem was confined to the Tories, an earlier motion tabled by the Scottish Nationalist Party leader at Westminster, Ian Blackford, to extend Article 50 by three months was also crushed when the Labour frontbench abstained.

Mrs May was not in the Commons when the latest vote ­result was announced, frustrating ­Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

“The Prime minister is not even here to hear the vote,’’ he said. “She should come to dispatch box now and admit her strategy has failed and bring forward a coherent plan that can deal with the stresses and anxieties so many people feeling.’’

Commons Speaker John Bercow said Mrs May was not obliged to be present.

The Times reported that talks on the Irish backstop between the Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay and EU negotiator Michel Barnier this week centred on finding an “outcome” that was legally binding and that the form of the legal guarantees could be creatively done. But the Brexit department insisted Mr Barclay insisted the withdrawal agreement would have to be reopened, as ­parliament had insisted upon two weeks ago.

Attorney-General Geoffrey Cox is due to hold talks with Mr Barnier, while Mrs May is expected to meet with European Commission president Jean Claude Juncker next week.

European Council president Donald Tusk has been less inflammatory in his remarks since claiming there would be a special place in hell for those who promoted Brexit, but has been frustrated at the slow progress. He tweeted: “No news is not always good news. EU27 still waiting for concrete, ­realistic proposals from London on how to break #Brexit impasse”.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte claimed that Britain was a “more diminished country compared to two or three years ago”.

This week’s Westminster chaos has now focused attention on a February 27 vote, where cross party Remainers plan to table an amendment calling for parliamentary control of the Brexit process.

The amendment, possibly to be tabled by Labour MP Yvette ­Cooper and Conservative Oliver Letwin is expected to extend Article 50 if no agreement is passed by the Commons by March 13.

This then opens up further possibilities, including a second referendum and vote of no-confidence in the government.

Yesterday the government also agreed it will publish reports about how damaging a no-deal Brexit will be, which could strengthen support for the Cooper-Letwin amendment.

“’When the chips are down, (the Prime Minister) will actually prefer to do what some of my esteemed colleagues prefer, and to head for the exit door without a deal, which the secretary of state informed us is the policy of her majesty’s government in the event that her deal has not succeeded,” Sir Oliver said.

“That is terrifying fact.”

Downing Street said that while the Prime Minister hadn’t secured the support of the Commons yesterday, Mrs May continued to ­believe, and the debate itself indicated, that far from objecting to securing changes to the backstop that will allow Britain to leave with a deal, there was a concern from some Tory MPs about taking no-deal off the table at this stage.

“The motion on January 29 ­remains the only one the House of Commons has passed expressing what it does want — and that is ­legally binding changes to address concerns about the backstop,’’ Downing Street said. “The government will continue to pursue this with the EU to ensure we leave on time on March 29.”