{"id":62555,"date":"2019-01-16T01:11:56","date_gmt":"2019-01-16T06:11:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=62555"},"modified":"2019-01-16T01:14:21","modified_gmt":"2019-01-16T06:14:21","slug":"british-prime-minister-theresa-may-suffers-devastating-defeat-as-house-of-commons-votes-against-brexit-deal-by-432-to-202","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dbsjeyaraj.com\/dbsj\/?p=62555","title":{"rendered":"British Prime Minister Theresa May Suffers Devastating Defeat as House of Commons Votes Against \u201cBrexit Deal\u201d By 432 to 202 ."},"content":{"rendered":"

By<\/p>\n

Heather Stewart and Daniel Boffey<\/strong><\/p>\n

Theresa May has pledged to face down a vote of no confidence in her government, after her Brexit deal was shot down by MPs in the heaviest parliamentary defeat of the democratic era.<\/p>\n

On a day of extraordinary drama at Westminster, the House of Commons delivered a devastating verdict on the prime minister\u2019s deal, voting against it by 432 to 202.<\/p>\n

The scale of defeat, by a majority of 230, was greater than any seen in the past century, with ardent Brexiters such as Jacob Rees-Mogg and Boris Johnson walking through a packed division lobby cheek-by-jowl alongside passionate remainers.<\/p>\n

As noisy protesters from both sides of the Brexit divide massed outside in Parliament Square, the prime minister immediately rose to accept the verdict of MPs \u2013 saying she would welcome a vote of no confidence in the government.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe house has spoken and the government will listen,\u201d she said. \u201cIt is clear that the house does not support this deal, but tonight\u2019s vote tells us nothing about what it does support.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a raucous Commons, the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, confirmed he had tabled a formal motion of confidence in the government, backed by other opposition leaders, which MPs would vote on on Wednesday.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Corbyn told MPs: \u201cThis is a catastrophic defeat. The house has delivered its verdict on her deal. Delay and denial has reached the end of the line.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Brexit-backing European Research Group (ERG) and the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) later announced that they would support the prime minister, making it unlikely Labour could succeed in triggering a general election.<\/p>\n

May said that if she survived the vote on Wednesday, she would hold meetings with senior parliamentarians from all parties to \u201cidentify what would be required to secure the backing of the house\u201d.<\/p>\n

The prime minister\u2019s spokesman later said May would be contacting Conservative and DUP MPs among others , but declined to say whether or not she would meet with Corbyn or the SNP leader, Ian Blackford.<\/p>\n

He cited the example of May\u2019s meetings with Labour MPs such as Caroline Flint and Gareth Snell about an amendment on workers\u2019 rights, although both of those MPs eventually voted against the government. \u201cWe will approach it in a constructive spirit,\u201d the spokesman said.<\/p>\n

May had no plans to head to Brussels immediately, No 10 said, implying that the prime minister first needed to test what would be acceptable to MPs.
\nDowning Street said May would approach the talks wanting to find a solution to deliver a Brexit deal that would honour the result of the referendum \u2013 suggesting she would not countenance talks with those pushing for a second referendum, or even a full customs union, which Labour has backed.<\/p>\n

She would then make a statement on Monday, setting out how she intended to proceed. MPs would get the chance to amend the statement, and were likely to take the opportunity to try to demonstrate support for their own favoured alternatives \u2013 including a Norway-style soft Brexit, and a second referendum<\/p>\n

Several cabinet ministers, including Amber Rudd, Philip Hammond and Greg Clark, had pressed the prime minister at Tuesday\u2019s cabinet meeting to pursue a cross-party solution if her deal was defeated. But Brexit-backing ministers, including Andrea Leadsom and Penny Mordaunt, urged her instead to seek revisions to the Irish backstop \u2013 and failing that, to pursue a \u201cmanaged no deal\u201d.<\/p>\n

The former foreign secretary Boris Johnson said the crushing defeat gave the prime minister a \u201cmassive mandate\u201d to return to Brussels and seek a better deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe should not only be keeping the good bits of the deal, getting rid of the backstop, but we should also be actively preparing for no deal with ever more enthusiasm,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday night Johnson was joined by other prominent Brexiter MPs, including John Redwood and Bill Cash, at a champagne celebration party at Rees-Mogg\u2019s house.<\/p>\n

Hammond moved quickly after the vote to quell business anger over the failure of May to get her deal ratified. The chancellor expressed his \u201cdisappointment\u201d at the result in a conference call at 9pm with main business groups, including the CBI and the British Chambers of Commerce, as well as dozens of chief executives.<\/p>\n

One source on the call said it was constructive and that Hammond\u2019s tone was \u201crealistic\u201d about the damage prolonged uncertainty around Brexit was inflicting on the economy. However, Hammond was hammered by business leaders over parliament\u2019s refusal to take a no-deal Brexit off the table. \u201cThis was the single biggest question he was asked,\u201d said the source.<\/p>\n

May said any plan that emergeed from the talks would have to be \u201cnegotiable\u201d with the EU27. She earlier rejected an amendment from the Tory backbencher Edward Leigh calling for the Irish backstop to be temporary, saying it was not compatible with the UK\u2019s legal obligations.<\/p>\n

In Brussels, Donald Tusk, the European council president, appeared to back a second referendum soon after the crushing result for the prime minister was announced, and urged her to offer a way forward.<\/p>\n

May was expected to return to Brussels within days to consult with Tusk and the European commission president, Jean-Claude Juncker. Officials said the EU was now in listening mode.<\/p>\n

In a statement, Juncker urged the British government to \u201cclarify its intentions as soon as possible\u201d, and warned that \u201ctime is almost up\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI take note with regret the outcome of the vote in the House of Commonsthis evening\u201d, he said. \u201cOn the EU side, the process of ratification of the withdrawal agreement continues\u201d.<\/p>\n

In a defence of Brussels\u2019 role in the negotiations, Juncker said that the EU and the bloc\u2019s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, had shown \u201ccreativity and flexibility throughout\u201d and \u201cdemonstrated goodwill again by offering additional clarifications and reassurances\u201d in recent days.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cThe risk of a disorderly withdrawal of the United Kingdom has increased with this evening\u2019s vote. While we do not want this to happen, the European commission will continue its contingency work to help ensure the EU is fully prepared.\u201d<\/p>\n

May, in Westminster earlier knowing that she faced a heavy defeat, made a heartfelt plea to MPs to support her, calling it \u201cthe most significant vote that any of us will ever be part of in our political careers\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cTogether we can show the people we serve that their voices have been heard, that their trust was not misplaced,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Earlier in the day, as one Conservative backbencher after another stood up toattack her painstakingly negotiated withdrawal agreement in the House of Commons, it became clear that few had changed their mind.<\/p>\n

May had embarked on a last-ditch charm offensive on Tuesday, holding meetings with MPs including the ERG\u2019s Steve Baker, who said the pair had held a \u201cconstructive and substantial conversation about the future\u201d.<\/p>\n

Corbyn, speaking just before the vote , saidMay had \u201ctreated Brexit as a matter for the Conservative party, rather than the good of the whole country\u201d.
\nHe called the government\u2019s efforts to steer Brexit through parliament \u201cone of the most chaotic and extraordinary parliamentary processes\u201d he had experienced in 35 years as an MP. The attorney general, Geoffrey Cox, told his colleagues that if they did not accept the prime minister\u2019s deal, they risked condemning the UK to the chaos of a no-deal Brexit.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be the height of irresponsibility for any legislator to contemplate with equanimity such a situation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Corbyn would come under intense pressure to throw his weight behind a second Brexit referendum if May wins on Wednesday; but his spokesman said Labour did not rule out tabling another no-confidence motion at a later stage.<\/p>\n

Labour MPs were joined by 118 Conservative rebels in voting down the prime minister\u2019s deal, including erstwhile loyalists such as the chair of the backbench 1922 committee, Graham Brady. <\/p>\n

That was one more than the number who had backed a no-confidence vote in May\u2019s leadership of the Conservatives in December. Under party rules, the prime minister\u2019s victory in that vote means she cannot be challenged for party leadership again within the next 12 months.<\/p>\n

Courtesy:The Guardian<\/em><\/p>\n

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By Heather Stewart and Daniel Boffey Theresa May has pledged to face down a vote of no confidence in her government, after her Brexit deal was shot down by MPs in the heaviest parliamentary defeat of the democratic era. On a day of extraordinary drama at Westminster, the House of Commons delivered a devastating verdict …<\/p>\n

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