Brexit plans been thrown into chaos after British Prime Minister abruptly pulled a parliamentary vote on the deal, admitting that she faced a rout. The future is now even more uncertain.
One possibility is a disorderly Brexit with no deal. Another possibility is to hold a second referendum on European Union membership. Or, a last-minute renegotiation of May’s deal.
“If we went ahead and held the vote tomorrow the deal would be rejected by a significant margin,” Theresa May told parliament, adding that she was confident it was the right deal.
“We will therefore defer the vote scheduled for tomorrow and not proceed to divide the House at this time,” May said, adding that the United Kingdom would step up planning for a no-deal Brexit.
As reported by the Reuters news agency, May accepted there was concern among lawmakers about the Northern Irish ‘backstop’, an insurance policy aimed at avoiding a return to border checks between the British province and Ireland that could threaten a 1998 peace accord.
Her critics, both supporters of Brexit and its opponents, have rejected the open-ended backstop, which could require Britain to accept European Union rules indefinitely, long after it gives up any say in drafting them.
She said the broader question was whether parliament wanted to deliver on the will of the people for Brexit, or open up the divisions in the world’s fifth largest economy with another referendum.
In related news, the European Parliament’s Brexit pointman Guy Verhofstadt issued a statement directed to the Irish. He said the EU “will never let the Irish down”.
“I can’t follow anymore. After two years of negotiations, the Tory government wants to delay the vote. Just keep in mind that we will never let the Irish down,” he said. “This delay will further aggravate the uncertainty for people and businesses. It’s time they make up their mind!”
