Theresa May says Tory and DUP MPs to blame as she asks Jeremy Corbyn to help save Brexit
2 min read
Theresa May has risked igniting a fresh Tory civil war after she blamed her own MPs and the DUP for the fact she is now seeking Jeremy Corbyn's help to deliver Brexit.
The Prime Minister has written a letter to every Conservative MP explaining why she will hold talks with the Labour leader in an attempt to break the Parliamentary deadlock.
Parliament has rejected Mrs May's own deal on three occasions, with Tory Brexiteers and the DUP - whose 10 MPs she relies on to prop up her government - repeatedly refusing to back it.
The Conservative leader announced on Tuesday that she was approaching Mr Corbyn in the hope they could jointly agree a way to break the Brexit impasse and present their plans to the Commons.
Initial talks between the pair will take place on Wednesday afternoon, with the Labour leader expected to demand that the Prime Minister sign up to his plans for a permanent customs union with the EU.
In her letter to Tory MPs, Mrs May said: "The question is how can we get Parliament to ratify the deal? The Government would have preferred to do so based on Conservative and DUP votes.
"But, having three times, it is clear that is unlikely to happen. So yesterday we agreed to take action to break the logjam. I offered to sit down with the leader of the opposition to try to agree a plan to ensure that we leave the European Union and that we do so with a deal."
One Conservative MP told PoliticsHome: "I predict that this is not going to end well."
Tory whip Nigel Adams - a close ally of Boris Johnson - resigned on Wednesday morning in protest at the Prime Minister's move, and there is intense speculation that more will ministers follow.
In his resignation letter, he said: "I and many others agreed with your previous position that no deal is better than a bad deal.
“It now seems that you and your Cabinet have decided that a deal - cooked up with a Marxist who has never once in his political life put British interests first - is better than no deal.
“I profoundly disagree with this approach and I have therefore decided that I must reluctantly tender my resignation.”
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