Johnson plows on after speaker blocks Brexit deal vote
LONDON _ British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Conservative government on Monday plowed on with its plan to conclude Brexit by Oct. 31, despite being blocked by the parliamentary speaker from from holding a vote on its Brexit deal.
Jacob Rees-Mogg, Johnson's leader in the Commons, parliament's elected main house, told lawmakers that the government plans to pass a withdrawal agreement bill by Thursday, with a key vote on the bill and any amendments on Tuesday.
Pete Wishart, the Scottish National Party (SNP) leader in the Commons, said the short time given to the bill was "totally unacceptable."
"Three days to consider a bill. Somebody suggested it's 100 pages. How on Earth are we going to have the chance to assess that properly?" Wishart said, adding that the government had provided "no economic impacts."
The bill is designed to pave the way for the provisions of Johnson's Brexit withdrawal agreement, which has the status of a draft international treaty, into British law.
_ dpa
