Government announces next stage of crucial Brexit bill
2 min read
MPs will begin debating the committee stage of the EU withdrawal bill on 14 November, after parliament returns from recess, the Government has confirmed.
The key legislation, which will take powers back from Brussels to British legislatures, has a guaranteed eight days of scrutiny at the third stage, with the 15 November also earmarked for debate.
The announcement by Andrea Leadsom comes after she was forced to defend a delay in progressing from the second reading, which was initially expected earlier this month.
The Leader of the House said that with hundreds of amendments proposed, ministers were "taking a bit of time to have proper, thoughtful, well-considered responses".
The announcement comes amid Government fears that a number of Tories will rebel on some of the 400 amendments in question, threatening the Prime Minister’s fragile majority.
Former minister Nicky Morgan told David Davis this morning that she was “deadly serious” about backing colleague Dominic Grieve's attempt for clarity on parliament getting a final vote on the deal before leaving.
The warning comes after the Brexit Secretary yesterday sparked confusion by suggesting MPs might not get a vote until after Britain's exit.
Following the Government’s announcement, a spokesperson from the Department for Exiting the European Union said: "Nearly 400 amendments have been tabled and we are looking at those with the utmost seriousness.
"We look forward to continuing the debate and working with Parliament to ensure that we deliver a functioning statute book on exit day."
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