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Since her agreement failed in Parliament, Theresa May has been confronted for months with a choice: to reconcile with the non-agreement, as her Brexiter party wanted; or to a gentler Brexit, as the rest of the Parliament would prefer. For months, as much as possible, she avoided taking sides. But last night, in her statement after the cabinet meeting that lasted all day (full text here), she clearly cleared the fence. In proposing to negotiate a Brexit compromise with Jeremy Corbyn, she opted for a Brexit soft rather than not agreeing.
Or at least, she seemed. Nothing has been very definitive in this process, and we still have no idea where this will end.
Here is our summary of the story overnight.
This morning Stephen Barclay, secretary of Brexit, granted interviews. Here are the main points.
- Barclay said that the "ruthless logic" of the House of Commons pushed the UK towards a milder Brexit. He told the Today program:
It is undesirable, but it is the immutable logic of the House of Commons figures. The Prime Minister's agreement will not be concluded and no agreement in law will be withdrawn from the table. The consequence is a mild Brexit or no Brexit at all.
And he used the phrase a second time too.
It is unfortunate that what we have been saying has come to fruition for several months, but it is ruthless logic not to support the Prime Minister's agreement. Because the alternative is to ask for votes from the opposition judiciary because 35 of my own colleagues would not support the Prime Minister's agreement.
- He hinted that the government was resigned to Bill Yvette Cooper, which would force the prime minister to seek an extension of Article 50 to avoid a Brexit without a transaction, which would become law. He said:
The Prime Minister can not ignore the law and Parliament will seek to pbad a law on the issue of non-agreement. He has already voted in favor of deleting the agreement. That is the reality and if this is the legal position adopted by Parliament, ministers can not ignore it.
- He added that the May talks with Corbyn did not exist. But that does not mean that the government is offering him a "blank check," Barclay said, noting that he had found the idea of a "highly undesirable" customs union. He also said that the idea of a second referendum would be "very difficult" for the government.
- He said that. if the May / Corbyn negotiations did not result in a compromise agreement, MEPs could be invited to participate in more indicative votes on the way forward. But the new votes could be binding, he said.
Barclay will tell us more in a moment, because he is testifying before the Brexit committee.
Here is the agenda of the day.
9:15: Stephen Barclay, Secretary of Brexit, testifies before the Commons Committee on Brexit.
9:45: Michael Gove, secretary of the environment, testifies before a committee of Lords about a Brexit without a transaction.
10 am: The Citizen Vote campaign is holding a press conference.
12h: Theresa May faces Jeremy Corbyn at the Married Quarters.
After 13h: MEPs debate the business motion reserved for the debate on Yvette Cooper's bill, which obliges the Prime Minister to ask for an extension of Article 50 to avoid an uncompromising Brexit. An amendment also says that next Monday should be reserved for another debate on indicative votes.
13h30: The Council of National Police Chiefs briefs on police preparations for Brexit.
After 17h: MPs need to start debating the Cooper bill (baduming the commercial motion is pbaded). The second reading vote would take place at 7 pm and the final vote at 10 pm
Afternoon: May must meet Corbyn to discuss Brexit.
Today, I will focus exclusively on Brexit and I will cover the latest news as you go, while providing you with the best feedback, comments and badysis from the web.
You can read all the latest Guardian articles on politics here. Here is Politico Europe's summary of this morning's political news. And here is PoliticsHome's list of the 10 best readers today.
If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I'm on @AndrewSparrow.
I'm trying to monitor BTL comments but it's impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, include "Andrew" in it somewhere and I'm more likely to find it. I try to answer the questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and respond to ATL, although I can not promise to do it for everyone.
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