British MPs debated government’s Brexit bill on Tuesday, in an initial two-day debate in the House of Commons.
Our readers have been discussing the vote, the speeches of individual MPs on both sides of the debate, and the likely outcome of Wednesday’s vote, which is expected to send the legislation on to its next parliamentary stage.
Below, we compile a selection of their comments.
Remainers need to accept the result of the referendum
Having the debate before the white paper is ridiculous
Ridiculous to have the debate prior to the publication of the white paper, as though MPs could in good conscience (I know, I know...) vote to trigger the process before they see whether there is any sensible plan in place. This is a strong indication that the white paper will contain no substantive content whatsoever, just like May's speech about her (non-existent) 'plan'.
Labour are betraying the economic interests of the working class
Let me get this right:
Corbyn supporters originally voted him in as a leader because they were tired of establishment politicians and the essentially Tory-lite New Labour, a faceless party that would do essentially anything to secure votes and win elections. They wanted to return to a 'real' Labour and not the pale centre-consensus politics that predominated.
Corbyn supporters are now rallying behind their flailing leader who is voting with the Tory's in order to cynically appeal to the widest voter base. Brexit goes against every traditional Labour policy going - it is a betrayal of the economic interests of the working class - but Corbyn and co. are obsessed with connecting with the most voters and becoming 'electable'.
Is this meant to be funny?
Parliament is throwing away its right to decide
This is almost a bigger disaster than Brexit itself. The Supreme Court ruled that Parliament had a right to decide, and now here they are throwing that right away. Labour and the Tories more or less lock-step in activating Article 50 according to Theresa May's delusional arbitrary timeframe, based upon a plan for the hardest, most economically damaging Brexit possible.
We must leave the EU, that is what the referendum specified, and I do agree that has to happen. But that is all the referendum specified. So now here we are with the government saying we're also pulling out of the single market, the customs union, even the goddamn nuclear energy research community. None of those things were on the ballot paper in June. There is no will of the people for any of those serious and incredibly damaging decisions. Yet Labour have basically acquiesced to everything the government have demanded.
The pro-Leave public will eventually discover that the sunlit uplands of Brexitannia are a ludicrous fairy story with no basis in reality, and when they do they'll be angry at the false prophets that led them blindly down this path. Now the ire which could have been directed at purely the Tories and UKIP will be equally directed at Labour.
A Conservative of the old school
Tremendous respect for Ken Clarke, even though I've rarely found myself agreeing with him. A Conservative of the old school, politically wise, informed, eloquent and with integrity and the courage of his convictions - the gulf between the likes of him and what the Tory mainstream have become is staggering.
I have a feeling this speech may well be the epitaph for his time in the Commons.
At least Brexit MPs are voting with integrity
The irony of the situation is that a large majority of MPs are against Brexit, believing that it will have disastrous consequences--that is, unless they've mysteriously changed their minds since the referendum. Obviously there have been times when Parliament has made disastrously wrong decisions, but this is surely the first time that they have voted knowingly and overwhelmingly for something they believe to be wrong. At least the long-term Brexiteers are voting with integrity.
When the full consequences of Brexit hit us, it will be the Remainers who lacked the courage to stand against it who will be the most to blame.
The future generations will suffer the consequences of this vote
It is a pity that there aren't many more MPs with the moral courage of Ken Clarke to speak out against the insanity of Brexit. Amongst many other good points in his excellent speech he made an important comment that leaving the EU was a very bad move for our children and grandchildren. The young people of Britain - including those who do not yet have the vote - and future generations are those who are going to suffer worst as the disastrous consequences of Brexit unfold in the months and years to come.
This is a ludicrous farce
"The British people did not vote to make themselves poorer by pulling ourselves out of the greatest free trading single market the world has ever seen.
The British people most certainly did not give a mandate to the government to indulge in this ludicrous, sycophantic farce we’ve seen in recent days in which this government - having burnt every bridge left with our friends in Europe - rushes across the Atlantic to sidle next to a US president, who they don’t seem to be aware whose nativism, whose isolationism, whose protectionism is diametrically opposed to the long-term strategic interests of the United Kingdom."
Well said Nick Clegg. Cometh the hour, cometh the man.
This Brexit is making for strange alliances, isn't it? Today I, a Labour member of decades, find myself in common cause with Nick Clegg and Ken Clark.
We share values and identity with the EU. But we failed to persuade, we lost the referendum. Yes, the result was close, yes, there were lies and half-truths - none worse than the false promise of 350 million a week to the NHS.
Yes, technically the referendum is not legally binding but the result was not technical - it was deeply political. And politically the notion that the referendum was merely a consultation exercise to inform parliament holds no water.
When I was imploring people up and down the country to vote in the referendum and vote to remain, I told them their vote really mattered, that a decision was going to be made. I was not inviting them to express a view.
And although we’re fiercely internationalist, fiercely pro-European, we in the Labour party are, above all, democrats.
Sir Keir Starmer absolutely spot-on.