Theresa May refuses to rule out second Commons vote if her Brexit deal is rejected
3 min read
Theresa May has refused to rule out calling MPs back for a second vote on her Brexit deal if they reject it the first time.
The Prime Minister is battling to win support for her agreement with the EU amid signs she could be in for a hefty defeat when it comes before the Commons for a crunch vote next month.
But Mrs May today stopped short of rejecting the idea that MPs could be made to vote again on the agreement.
Asked by the BBC what would happen if the deal fell at the first pass, the Prime Minister would only say: "I’m focused on the vote that is taking place on 11 December. And I want everybody who is going to participate, all members of parliament, to focus on what this vote does."
Asked again whether she could rule out a second vote, Mrs May added: “I’m focusing on the vote in two weeks’ time.”
Scores of Mrs May’s own Conservative MPs - as well as the DUP who she relies on for a Commons majority - have publicly vowed to vote against the deal, while hopes of peeling off Labour rebels to her side also appear to be fading.
Asked whether she still believed the 11 December Commons vote could be won, Mrs May said: “Well obviously we’re talking to colleagues about this vote.
“But I think when it comes to the vote that people are being asked to make in the House of Commons, I think people should remember that we gave the vote to the British people as to whether or not to leave the European Union. People voted for Brexit. And I think it’s up to us to deliver Brexit.”
TRUMP PUSHBACK
Mrs May made her latest intervention on a trip to Buenos Aires, where she is set to meet fellow leaders from the G20 group of nations.
Speaking to ITV news in a separate interview ahead of the summit, Mrs May pushed back at US President Donald Trump’s latest criticism of her Brexit deal.
The American commander-in-chief has described the agreement with Brussels as “a great deal for the EU” and warned that it could mean Britain is not “able to trade with us”.
But Mrs May said: "I'm very happy to tell President Trump and others that we will have an independent trade policy. Because we will have an independent trade policy. We will be able to do trade deals."
She added: "It is expressly referenced in the deal we have negotiated with the European Union - it says we'll be able to do those trade deals and we'll be able to do them with the US and others.”
'ONLY POSSIBLE DEAL'
The Prime Minister’s defence of her Brexit deal came as EU leaders upped the pressure on MPs by once again insisting they will not be open to changing the agreement if it is voted down.
European Council President Donald Tusk said: "A few days before the vote in the House of Commons, it is becoming more and more clear that this deal is the best possible - in fact, the only possible one.”
He added: “If this deal is rejected in the Commons, we are left with - as was already stressed by Prime Minister May with an alternative - no deal or no Brexit at all. I want to assure you the EU is prepared for every scenario.”
Labour MP Ben Bradshaw, who is campaigning for a second referendum on Brexit, seized on the comments.
He said: "Anyone still pretending there is a ‘better’ Brexit available that could be negotiated, or that could meet the contradictory promises made by Brexit campaigners, is kidding themselves."
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