Theresa May has paved the way for a Brexit climbdown that could get her deal past MPs but risk terminally splitting her party.
In a message filmed at Chequers, the PM signalled she was prepared to compromise on Labour ’s demand for a customs union, admitting there were “some things we agree on”.
She said: “Can we find a way through this that ensures that we can get a good deal and a deal agreed through Parliament? It’ll mean compromise on both sides.”
Michael Fabricant, a former Tory whip, predicted “open revolt” in the party and among Leave voters if Mrs May backed the soft Brexit plan.
But Commons leader Andrea Leadsom said: “We can’t be purist about it. We’re now at the point of Brexit slipping away altogether. We have to face what’s in front of us.”
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Mrs May’s message marked a shift in tone after talks between the Government and Labour seemed to be on the verge of collapse on Friday.
Labour’s Rebecca Long-Bailey, who has helped the negotiations, said while it was “disappointing” the PM had not shifted on her red lines, she was “hopeful that will change”.
The two teams are expected to meet today to find a way ahead before Mrs May returns to Brussels on Wednesday to beg EU leaders for another delay.
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She has asked for an extension to June 30, but the EU is expected to grant a one-year delay with the option of the UK leaving sooner if the deal gets through.
But it would unleash a new Tory backlash with Cabinet minister Liz Truss warning the “flextension” plan was like “purgatory”.
Ms Leadsom said the idea of the UK holding European elections because it was still in the EU in May was “utterly unacceptable”.
She said a no-deal Brexit on Friday would be “not nearly as grim” as many believed.
But Mrs May said MPs faced a choice between leaving the EU with a deal or Brexit not happening at all.
Peers will today debate the final stages of backbench MPs’ plan to block a no-deal departure.
