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The Independent UK

Politics

Benjamin Kentish, Lizzy Buchan

Brexit news - live updates: Theresa May offers MPs chance to vote on delaying Article 50 if no deal agreed with EU

Theresa May has told MPs that parliament will be given a vote on whether or not to opt for a no-deal Brexit if her proposed withdrawal plan is rejected next month.

The prime minister said that, if MPs again vote down her proposed deal, the Commons will be given a say on whether to approve or reject a no-deal outcome. If they choose to reject it, another vote would be held on whether to extend the Article 50 period.

Ms May was responding to numerous Remain-backing ministers threatening to quit if she failed to give parliament the right to block a no-deal Brexit.

She insisted she did not want to see Article 50 extended and refused to be drawn on how long any extension might be, saying only that she would want it to be "as short as possible". She also declined to say how Tory MPs would be ordered to vote on the matter of whether to accept a no-deal Brexit or delay leaving the EU.

Please allow a moment for the liveblog to load...

2019-02-26T08:22:30.553Z

Welcome to The Independent's politics liveblog, where we will be bringing you all the latest updates throughout the day.

2019-02-26T08:55:15.000Z

MPs are gearing up for a day of Brexit drama, with a Commons statement later today. But the news dominating this morning is from Labour after Jeremy Corbyn FINALLY shifted towards backing a second referendum if his party's Brexit plan is voted down.

It sounds a bit techy but it marks an important shift in the Brexit process.

Read our full take here:

Major boost for fresh Brexit referendum as Jeremy Corbyn gives Labour's backing

2019-02-26T09:09:36.006Z

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer confirmed that if Theresa May's deal got through parliament, Labour's policy was for it to be put to a referendum - with remaining in the EU as the alternative option.

"We specifically agreed yesterday, as the Labour Party, that if the Prime Minister's deal gets through, that deal should be subject to the lock, if you like, of a public vote in the way that Jeremy (Corbyn) spelled out yesterday," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Sir Keir, who said he would vote to remain in the EU, rejected claims from anonymous sources who had briefed that shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry "misspoke" when she set out the position on the referendum.

Asked if advisers to Mr Corbyn did not agree with the position, Sir Keir said: "I don't know who said what. What I do know is you have got elected politicians on your programme, you had Emily Thornberry out last night, setting out what the position is we agreed as the Labour Party."

Asked about a potential Labour revolt over a referendum, Sir Keir acknowledged: "I'm well aware of different views across my own party and across Parliament on pretty well all Brexit issues."

2019-02-26T09:30:59.000Z

Today's cabinet meeting has just started and it is expected to be a stormy one, with Eurosceptic ministers likely to be furious at reports that Theresa May could give MPs the chance to delay Brexit.

The prime minister is said to be on the verge of giving Parliament the opportunity to choose between a no-deal Brexit and an extension to Article 50 if her revised withdrawal plan is voted down again next month.

She will present her proposal to the Commons later, but first has to convince her divided ministers to support it...

2019-02-26T09:48:59.000Z

Keir Starmer has slapped down Jeremy Corbyn's aides over the issue of what would be on the ballot in any second referendum

Keir Starmer slaps down Corbyn aides over second Brexit referendum ballot question

Shadow Brexit secretary insists 'elected politicians' decide policy, saying: 'If Theresa May’s deal goes through, it is subject to the lock of a public vote'

2019-02-26T10:09:59.000Z

No 10 has said Geoffrey Cox, the attorney general, will travel to Brussels after today's cabinet meeting for further talks as the government continues to try to secure changes to the Northern Ireland backstop.

2019-02-26T10:30:36.000Z

↵

There is a big row going on in Labour circles over the party's policy on a second referendum. Last night, Emily Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, said the party would support a referendum that asked voters to choose between Theresa May's deal and Remain.

In response, a Labour source suggested this was not the case. They suggested the option of no-deal could also be on the ballot.

Ms Thornberry hit back, tweeting:

She was backed by Tom Watson, the party's deputy leader:

2019-02-26T10:51:36.000Z

Labour has put a Final Say back on the table - here's how a second referendum could work, writes Sean O'Grady...

Opinion: Labour has put a Final Say back on the table – here’s how a second referendum could work

It is too early to declare victory. But Corbyn appears, after all, to have honoured his sovereign Labour conference decision to hold a popular vote once a general election was no longer a realistic option

2019-02-26T11:09:36.000Z

There are no urgent questions today, meaning Theresa May's highly anticipated Brexit statement will take place around 12.30pm.

2019-02-26T11:24:36.000Z

Nigel Farage has said he would boycott a second Brexit referendum and instead 'go on holiday'

Nigel Farage threatens to boycott second Brexit referendum, saying he would 'rather go on holiday'

Ex-Ukip leader says it would be an 'outrage' if Remain was on ballot paper for fresh vote

2019-02-26T11:38:28.233Z

MPs will vote tonight on government proposals to ban Islamist group Hezbollah. Mike Gapes, who quit Labour last week to join The Independent Group, suggests Labour may not order its MPs to vote for the motion.

2019-02-26T11:54:10.000Z

Rich people are getting richer while the poor are getting poorer, according to new government figures

The rich are getting richer while poor are getting poorer, official figures show

Incomes of richest fifth of households grow by 4.7 per cent – while poorest fifth of households suffer a 1.6 per cent fall

2019-02-26T12:15:10.000Z

Theresa May will deliver her statement in the Commons in the next few minutes.

We're expecting her to announce plans to give MPs two votes if her deal is rejected next month: one on whether to pursue a no-deal outcome and another on whether to ask the EU to extend the Article 50 process.

The prime minister is seeking to quell a potential rebellion by Remainer ministers, who are demanding that she take no-deal off the table and pledge to delay Brexit if she cannot get a deal through Parliament by 29 March.

2019-02-26T12:36:15.980Z

Theresa May is now up...

2019-02-26T12:39:04.526Z

Theresa May says she and Geoffrey Cox, the attorney general, are making "good progress" in talks with the EU, including a "constructive" meeting she held with Jean-Claude Juncker.

She says the EU and the UK have "agreed to develop a joint work stream" to look at using "alternative arrangements" to maintain an open border in Northern Ireland - potentially removing the need to implement the backstop.

2019-02-26T12:41:52.020Z

Theresa May says the government is also working to ensure there will be no lowering of workers' rights and environmental protections after Brexit.

She says the government will ensure Parliament has a vote on whether to follow suit "whenever the EU standards in areas such as workers' rights and health and safety are judged to have been strengthened".

New papers outlining the impact of a no-deal Brexit will be published today, she says, while insisting the UK would "make a success" of such an outcome.

2019-02-26T12:46:13.390Z

Theresa May makes three commitments:

1. "We will hold a second meaningful vote by Tuesday 12 March at the latest."

2. "If the government has not won a meaningful vote by Tuesday 12 March, then it will...table a motion to be voted on by Wednesday 13 March asking this House if it supports leaving the EU without a withdrawal agreement...."The UK will only leave without a deal on 29 March if there is explicit consent in the House for that outcome."

3. If MPs reject a no-deal Brexit, "The government will, on 14 March, bring forward a motion on whether Parliament wants to seek a short, limited extension to Article 50."

If MPs vote for this, May says, she will seek an extension from the EU. She does not want to see this happen, she adds, saying "our absolute focus" should be on approving a deal before 29 March.

She says an extension to Article 50 would not take no-deal off the table.

2019-02-26T12:49:18.996Z

Story: Theresa May forced to give MPs vote on delaying Brexit in major climbdown

Theresa May forced to give MPs vote on delaying Brexit in major climbdown

MPs will be given a vote on delaying Brexit if they reject Theresa May’s deal next month, in a humiliating government climbdown. The prime minister vowed to pressure to allow the Commons to decide on extending Article 50 – to head off mass ministerial resignations. The pledge was given in a statement to MPs, despite numerous occasions on which Ms May vowed that the UK would

2019-02-26T12:54:42.490Z

Jeremy Corbyn is now speaking.

He says he has lost count of the number of times May has had to come to the Commons to explain a further delay. He says the latest is "grotesquely reckless", adding:

"This is not dithering, it's a deliberate strategy to run down the clock."

The Labour leader says the "real life consequences of the prime minister's cynical tactics are being felt across the country", in lost jobs and investment.

He adds:

"The responsibility for this lies exclusively with the prime minister and her government’s shambolic handling of Brexit. Even now, with just one month to go before our legally enshrined exit date, the prime minister is not clear what she wants in renegotiations that have now dragged on since it became clear in December that her deal was not even backed by much of her own party, let alone Parliament or the country."

2019-02-26T12:55:04.780Z

Announcing the guarantees in the Commons, Ms May said: "They are commitments I am making as prime minister and I will stick by them, as I have previous commitments to make statements and table amendable motions by specific dates."

She added: "Let me be clear, I do not want to see Article 50 extended. Our absolute focus should be on working to get a deal and leaving on March 29."

The confirmation that MPs would be given a vote on no-deal was enough for some potential rebels, with one of the main architects of a plan to force the government to guarantee a Commons vote saying he was "satisfied" there was no longer any need for the amendment.

Former minister Oliver Letwin said Ms May's offer "does what is needed to prevent a no deal exit on 29 March and enables MPs to forge a cross-party consensus on a new way forward if the PM's deal does not succeed on 12 March". There was now "no need" for the motion he was due to table with Labour's Yvette Cooper, he added.

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