Tuesday 2 April 2019

Brexit: Cabinet to meet after deadlock in Commons votes


Theresa May is preparing for five hours of cabinet talks after MPs again failed to agree on proposals for the next steps in the Brexit process.
MPs voted on four alternatives to the prime minister's withdrawal deal, but none gained a majority.
A customs union with the EU was rejected by three votes while a motion for another referendum got the most votes in favor but still lost.
The UK is due to leave the EU on 12 April but could yet seek an extension.
Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay told MPs that if they wanted to secure a further delay from the EU, the government must be able to put forward a "credible proposition" as to what it would do.
One suggestion has been the possibility of a general election - but former foreign secretary Boris Johnson told BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg that would likely "infuriate" voters.
Instead, Mr Johnson said he believed a new leader and "change in negotiation tactic" could "retrofit" the PM's "terrible" agreement with the EU.
The so-called indicative votes on Monday night were not legally binding, but they had been billed as the moment when Parliament might finally compromise.
That did not happen, however, and one Tory MP - Nick Boles, who was behind one of the proposals - resigned the whip in frustration.
He later tweeted that he would remain an MP and sit in the Commons as "an Independent Progressive Conservative".

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