May wins confidence vote, now to search for Brexit consensus : The Tribune India

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May wins confidence vote, now to search for Brexit consensus

LONDON: Prime Minister Theresa May''s government won a confidence vote in the British parliament on Wednesday, clearing the way for her to attempt to forge a consensus among lawmakers on a Brexit divorce agreement.

May wins confidence vote, now to search for Brexit consensus

Britain’s PM Theresa May speaks during Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons.



London, January 16

Prime Minister Theresa May's government won a confidence vote in the British parliament on Wednesday, clearing the way for her to attempt to forge a consensus among lawmakers on a Brexit divorce agreement.

Lawmakers voted 325 to 306 that they had confidence in May's government, just 24 hours after they handed her Brexit deal a crushing defeat that left Britain's exit from the European Union in disarray.

With the clock ticking down to March 29, the date set in law for Brexit, the United Kingdom is now in the deepest political crisis in half a century as it grapples with how, or even whether, to exit the European project it joined in 1973.

May pledged to work with senior politicians across parliament to find a compromise that would avoid a disorderly no-deal Brexit or another referendum on membership. But critics said she was not budging from a deal that had alienated all sides of the debate.

After her victory, May told MPs that 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 invited leaders of all parties to have individual meetings with her on the way ahead for Brexit, starting tonight, but called on them to approach them with a "constructive spirit".

"We must find solutions that are negotiable and command sufficient support in this House," she added.

May also reiterated a promise to return to the Commons on Monday to give MPs another vote on her plans.

"The House has put its confidence in this government," she said. "I stand ready to work with any member of this House to deliver Brexit and ensure that this House retains the confidence of the British people."

John McDonnell, finance spokesman for the opposition Labour Party, said May could eventually get a deal through parliament if she negotiated a compromise with his party. Labour wants a permanent customs union with the EU, a close relationship with its single market and greater protections for workers and consumers.

But her spokesman said it was still government policy to be outside an EU customs union while May, an initial opponent of Brexit who won the top job in the turmoil following the 2016 referendum vote, insisted Britain would leave the bloc as planned on March 29, leaving little time for a solution to be found.

Yet Tuesday's crushing defeat appears to have killed off her two-year strategy of forging an amicable divorce in which a status-quo transition period would be followed by Britain operating an independent trade policy alongside close ties to the EU, the world's biggest single market.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said she was now leading a "zombie government". Labour says its aim is to win power and negotiate Brexit on better terms. It has not ruled out tabling further no-confidence motions.

However, many Labour members want to see another referendum with an option to cancel Brexit, and the party says it is ruling nothing out if it fails to bring May down.

Britain is set to exit the 28-member European Union, which it joined in 1973, on March 29. With just over two months to go until the scheduled departure, Britain is still undecide on what to do. — Agencies


Possible scenarios: Where will the UK end up

Fudged deal

After defeat, PM May pledged to speak to senior parliamentarians to find a compromise, and financial markets are betting that lawmakers will cobble together a last-minute deal. With May’s Conservatives deeply split, the opposition party holds great influence over the eventual outcome of Brexit. It is difficult to see how any Brexit plan can pass the House of Commons without the support of some of Labour’s 256 lawmakers. But if May moves closer to Labour’s position, she risks losing the support of dozens of pro-Brexit Conservative lawmakers

No-deal Brexit

Despite strong opposition among a majority of British lawmakers and many businesses to leaving the EU without a deal, this remains the default option unless Parliament can agree on a Brexit plan. No-deal means there would be no transition so the exit would be abrupt, the nightmare scenario for international businesses and the dream of hard Brexiteers who want a decisive split. Britain is a member of the World Trade Organisation so tariffs and other terms governing its trade with the EU would be set under WTO rules

No Brexit

Since the 2016 referendum, opponents of Brexit have sought another vote they hope would overturn the result, but May has repeatedly ruled this out, saying it would undermine faith in democracy among the 17.4 million who voted in 2016 to leave. A new referendum can only be called if it is approved by Parliament and there is currently no majority in favour of one. The opposition Labour Party wants to push for an election and only if that is rejected will it consider another referendum. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is a veteran eurosceptic

The last time an international treaty was defeated by the British Parliament was in 1864, when an extradition treaty with Prussia was voted down.

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