Dozens of ministers ready to quit over no‑deal Brexit
Amber Rudd,
the work and pensions secretary, has demanded that all Tory MPs are allowed a
free vote on plans that would clear the path for extending Article 50 — the
mechanism by which Britain leaves the European Union.
Richard
Harrington, the business minister, confirmed yesterday that he would resign if
the government pursued a no-deal Brexit.
Margot
James, the culture minister, and Tobias Ellwood, the defence minister, were
among those said to be considering their positions. Mr Ellwood used Twitter
yesterday to call for an extension to Article 50.
Ms Rudd’s
intervention suggests that her position could be in doubt if she is barred from
voting for the amendment, although her office refused to say whether she would
regard it as a resignation issue. Those who are considering resigning include
cabinet ministers, junior ministers and ministerial aides.
David Gauke,
the justice secretary, who said last month that it would be “very difficult” to
remain in the government if it pursued a no-deal Brexit, is standing by Theresa
May and is not looking at standing down.
One source,
who backs the plan to block no-deal, said: “For too long parliamentarians have
shouted from the peanut gallery about what they won’t support. Now is the time
for them to get on the stage and show what they would support. If done properly
this could help the prime minister to go to Brussels in a stronger position.”
Amber Rudd’s
brother, Roland Rudd, a prominent supporter of a second Brexit referendum,
backed her warning that ministers were determined to stop a no-deal exit.
Mr Rudd,
chairman of the People’s Vote, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme that he
thought that the current manoeuvres by backbenchers would lead to another
referendum and that there were many ministers who “feel very strongly” about
the need to avoid no-deal.
“Nobody
voted for no deal,” he said. “People thought they voted to take back control —
whatever that meant.” He said that a new referendum was the “least worst
option”.
His
intervention comes amid rising cabinet tensions over Mrs May’s strategy to
force her withdrawal agreement through parliament.
Deal or no
deal: the UK’s Brexit options
From a
comprehensive partnership to an agreed ‘no deal’, there are various
eventualities for Britain’s exit from the European Union
A majority
of her senior team back her efforts to bring Brexiteer rebels and the DUP back
on side by securing changes to the Irish backstop.
Philip
Hammond, the chancellor, led calls for Mrs May to be “realistic” about what
Brussels was prepared to offer in the way of concessions in a cabinet
conference call on Sunday.
Gavin
Barwell, Mrs May’s chief of staff, is urging her to keep cross-party talks open
to soften Brexit — a stance that is creating tension with the chief whip,
Julian Smith.
Mrs May
indicated in the Commons yesterday that she was likely to reject the request,
leading to a stand-off within the party. She said that she could not take a
no-deal Brexit off the table because an approved alternative was yet to emerge
and that the EU would be unlikely to postpone Britain’s exit date — determined
by the Article 50 withdrawal notice — without an exit plan.
Mr Smith
will decide at the end of the week whether to give MPs a free vote.
The
suggestion that it should be allowed also triggered a backlash. One cabinet
member said: “This is clearly against government policy as set out from the
dispatch box.”
Mrs May told
the Commons that she was trying to achieve a parliamentary consensus to return
to Brussels and seek changes to the Northern Ireland backstop — which is
designed to prevent a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic —
in an attempt to win the approval of Tory and DUP MPs for her deal.
Stephen
Barclay, the Brexit secretary, insisted that the stand-off between MPs unhappy
with the backstop and the EU’s opposition to reopening the withdrawal agreement
was not hopeless, telling BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning that “we
have seen movement over the last 24 hours — people are willing to compromise,
willing to move”.
He added:
“We have legislation to pass following a meaningful vote to ratify it [the
withdrawal agreement] so it’s not in government’s interest to run down the
clock . . . we do need to get on with it.”
Ms Rudd told
Mr Barwell that the government should offer a free vote on the issue as a way
of forcing all Tory MPs to show their view on Brexit issues. One Tory source
said: “If they don’t do this there will be resignations. Two ministers have
told No 10 they will resign.”
The
amendment to the prime minister’s plan would ensure that there is Commons time
for MPs to debate a bill instructing the government to table a motion extending
Article 50 until the end of the year if agreement cannot be reached by a
specified date. It is being brought by Yvette Cooper, the former Labour cabinet
minister. Ms Rudd’s spokesman and No 10 declined to comment on the Cooper plan.
Last night
it was claimed that Mrs May’s chief Brexit adviser had privately cast doubt on
her chances of re-opening the withdrawal agreement to make legal changes to the
Irish backstop. Olly Robbins is said to have texted the chancellor during a
cabinet conference call on Sunday to express scepticism about the EU’s
willingness to compromise. The Telegraph quoted a source claiming that the text
from Mr Robbins had made clear that renegotiating the backstop was “for the
birds”. A government source said that the text had been “misinterpreted”.
Iain Duncan
Smith, former Tory leader, told Today that Crawford Falconer, chief negotiator
for the Department of International Trade, should be sent into talks with
Brussels.
He noted
that “as you would in business, get the expert and they do the negotiations”,
before adding that it was “agreed among most experts” that the backstop could
be shelved.
He said that
the actions of MPs trying to steer the Brexit process would “open the door to
mayhem in the Commons” and that if they believed that parliament could take on
the functions of government “they are living in cloud cuckoo land”.
