Labour confirms it will back move to delay Brexit by months in bid to avoid no-deal
2 min read
Labour is to back a bid to delay Britain's departure from the EU as a way of avoiding a no-deal Brexit.
The party announced that it will back an amendment in the name of Yvette Cooper, which seeks to extend the Article 50 process by up to nine months.
It would also give Parliament the power to direct Brexit policy if Theresa May is unable to get Commons support for her plan by the end of February.
The decision to back the amendment, which also has the support of many Conservative MPs, was taken at a meeting of the Shadow Cabinet this morning.
However, Labour also made clear that they would not want a nine-month extension to Article 50, preferring instead a delay of around three months.
A Labour source said: "We're backing the Cooper amendment to reduce the threat of the chaos of a no-deal exit. The Cooper Bill could give MPs a temporary window to agree a deal that can bring the country together.
"We will aim to amend the Cooper Bill to shorten the possible Article 50 extension."
Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell said: "Our position has always been to do everything we possibly can to prevent a no-deal because of the damage to the economy and people's everyday lives. It's a fallback amendment in case the Prime Minister cannot bring back a deal that's acceptable to the House, so it gives us the security of preventing a no-deal.
"The issue is how long the extension should be and the general view is as short as possible."
He added: "The general view is that nine months is too long. If there is to be time to renegotiate another deal it would be much shorter than that."
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