Dozens of Tory MPs will rebel against Theresa May to force her to publish full legal advice on Brexit
Angered by her refusal to publish the Attorney General's full legal verdict on Brexit, dozens of MPs are preparing to rebel against Theresa May until she decides to publish the findings in full
DOZENS of Tory MPs will today rebel against Theresa May to force her to publish the full legal advice about any Brexit deal.
The hardline Brexiteer European Research Group tabled their own Commons bid late last night to supersede an attempt by Labour to defeat the Government.
Jeremy Corbyn’s party earlier pledged to use an ancient Parliamentary procedure, known as a humble address, to exact the promise from the Government.
The PM has angered Cabinet ministers by only offering them a summary of Attorney General Geoffrey Cox’s legal verdict on any final exit deal.
MPs from across the political divide have insisted seeing the full document is vital so they know what obligations the UK is really signing up to.
The ERG’s amendment is tabled in the name of Its chairman Jacob Rees-Mogg, his deputy Mark Francois and another Tory backbencher Robert Courts.
Mr Francois told The Sun: “We all appreciate the convention that the Attorney General’s advice is not usually published.
“However, this is potentially so important that it could effect the destiny of this country. So to make an informed decision, it’s critical Parliament sees the same legal advice as the Cabinet.”
The ERG were last night confident of more than 40 of their backbench Tory members backing the bid.
Labour and the DUP’s 10 MPs are likely to now row in behind the ERG, either inflicting an embarrassing defeat on the PM or forcing her into a painful climb down.
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The powerful show of Commons force will serve as a sharp reminder for Mrs May over how precarious the final vote on any Brexit deal will be without a majority.
Labour’s Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer said earlier: “It’s simply untenable for the Government to put forward any Brexit deal to Parliament without providing the legal advice on what’s been agreed.
“At this critical stage, MPs can’t be kept in the dark nor can we risk Parliament being bounced into a decision without having all of the facts available. Ministers should accept this motion and allow MPs to have an informed debate about the UK’s future relationship with the EU after Brexit.”
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