In a fresh blow of sorts to PM Theresa May, British MPs took control over the stalled Brexit process. She was defeated by 329 votes to 302, by MPs who wanted to wrest control of the Brexit timetable from the government.
The move came after May conceded that Parliament would defeat her twice-rejected divorce deal with the EU again if she put it to a third vote. The move highlights lack of trust in the government and how its assurances and pledges for future steps are treated by parliamentarians.
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Richard Harrington, who resigned as a junior business minister, accused the government of “playing roulette with the lives and livelihoods of the vast majority of people in this country” by failing to resolve Britain's Brexit impasse.
The government said it was disappointed by the vote, claiming it “upends the balance between our democratic institutions and sets a dangerous, unpredictable precedent for the future.”
The PM was forced to acknowledge that her withdrawal deal still did not command the necessary support to get it through the House of Commons. As of now, if no deal comes through, then MPs will have time till April 12 to come up with alternative routes forward. And this is agreed, then Britain will exit EU on May 22.
The government conceded that the new votes might be a way to break the months-long Brexit gridlock. May said she would “engage constructively” with the results of the process, though she said she was sceptical that it would produce a decisive result.
With the Brexit withdrawal agreement lacking Parliament's approval, European leaders agreed to a postponement last week to avoid a chaotic cliff-edge departure that would be disruptive for the world's biggest trading bloc and deeply damaging for Britain.
However, the EU granted a shorter delay than May sought.
