MPs overwhelmingly rejected Theresa May’s divorce deal with the EU on Tuesday evening, plunging the Brexit process into chaos.
The defeat was widely expected, but the scale of the House of Commons’ vote – 432 votes against the government and 202 in support – was devastating for Ms May’s fragile leadership.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn put forward a confidence motion in the aftermath of the crushing loss, which made history as the biggest ever government defeat on the floor of the House of Commons.
The defeat by 230 votes easily beat the previous record of 166 votes, set in 1924 by the minority Labour government of Ramsay MacDonald.
Parliament finally delivered its verdict on the prime minister’s withdrawal agreement after months of debate, as crowds of both Leave and Remain protesters gathered outside parliament to express their anger.
Ms May insisted she intended to stay on, setting out plans for talks with senior parliamentarians in the hope of finding “genuinely negotiable” solutions which she can take to Brussels.
But she faces another crucial vote on Wednesday after the Labour leader moved to table a formal motion of no confidence in her government.
Senior ministers reportedly told top business leaders that a motion to delay the Article 50 process of leaving the EU is being prepared in a conference call following the vote defeat.
To follow events as they unfolded, see our live coverage below:
The Brexit debate will recommence at 1245 today and the votes are expected at 1900.
The voting is likely to last at least two hours as MPs issue their verdict on a number of amendments before finally deciding whether to back Theresa May's Brexit deal.
The speaker John Bercow will reveal which amendments he has selected for a vote as the final day of debate. It is also possible that MPs could decide to drop their amendments and new ones may emerge.
So what are the notable amendments tabled so far?
- Amendment A: Labour's bid to reject Mrs May's deal and "pursue every option" to prevent the UK leaving the EU with no deal. The Liberal Democrats have tabled an amendment to this proposal, which seeks to include a second referendum as one of the options.
- Amendment K: The SNP wants to reject the Brexit deal. It also calls on the UK Government to "respect the will" of the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly in rejecting the Brexit deal.
- Amendment O: Former minister Sir Hugo Swire, along with fellow Tories, wants to ensure parliamentary approval on either extending the transition period or triggering the backstop - should a trade deal not be concluded by the end of 2020. It also aims to push the UK Government to secure further assurances from the EU to limit the backstop to 12 months.
- Amendment P: A Labour backbench amendment to bolster workers' rights and environmental standards.
He said that since he had originally tabled his amendment in December, MPs had voted for a no deal amendment to the Finance Bill "which is a clear and very welcome indication of MPs' opposition to no deal".
"All these developments mean that the House will soon have the opportunity to make it clear that it rejects no deal and so offer reassurance to the many businesses and their workers who are very anxious about the disaster that a no deal Brexit would represent.
The former Brexit secretary, who quit the post in November, said the EU had played "a smart game of hard ball" and said it was time for the UK to do the same, he told BBC Radio 4's Today.
I made clear when I resigned that there were three aspects that needed to be addressed.The backstop is clearly one of them and I want to see very clearly the Withdrawal Agreement linked to a best-in-class free trade agreement.If we could do those two things, someone like me would say that actually we could vote for it.
He added: "What I don't think should happen is the EU, through this intransigent stubbornness and, to some degree, bullying, should stop us leaving in March 2019, and that is crucial."
I don't know whether or not we'll win, I'm not an astrologer.
She told Today: "I cannot believe that any responsible government or former minister would want to put the people of this country through that."
Mrs Morgan, who now chairs the Treasury Committee of backbench MPs, dismissed the idea that Mrs May should quit if she loses the vote on Tuesday night.
The Loughborough MP, who will vote for Theresa May's Brexit deal, said:
I cannot see that actually changing Prime Minister at this stage would do the country any good.
There are millions of people in this country watching Westminster and Parliament very anxiously today.
Many, many of them are supporting the PM's deal, not that it is perfect, ... but saying 'a deal is important to have, we would like you to support this deal'.
He told Today that Labour was readying a vote of no confidence in the Government, but declined to say exactly when, adding: "The timing will be down to Jeremy Corbyn but he has already indicated that it will be soon."
He reiterated the Labour position that it wanted the vote to be followed by a general election, adding:
In the end it comes down really to: is there going to be a general election? That is one option. Is there some form of deal that people can coalesce around or should there be a public vote or a second referendum?
"We need to create the space for that discussion about the credible alternatives.
Pressed on his preference, Mr Starmer added: "We can't have no-deal and therefore we need to find a majority for something else.
"Our party conference set out the option of a public vote, a second referendum, and obviously that has got to be discussed."
The Independent has launched its #FinalSay campaign to demand that voters are given a voice on the final Brexit deal.
Sign our petition here
