Jacob Rees-Mogg could help Theresa May save her Brexit deal by winning round Tory rebels
The top Brexiteer has suggested he could work with the PM after her massive Commons defeat
JACOB Rees-Mogg today emerged as an unlikely Brexit peacemaker - hinting he could help Theresa May save her deal.
The top Tory admitted he may end up backing the withdrawal agreement rather than risk losing Brexit altogether.
It comes as senior MPs tell the PM her deal could succeed if she ditches the hated Irish backstop plan.
Mrs May is desperate to save her career and avoid a snap election by finding a way forward on Brexit.
More than 100 Tories rebelled against her on Tuesday night to vote against the withdrawal agreement she thrashed out with Brussels.
Today Mr Rees-Mogg extended an olive branch to the PM, offering to work with her on Brexit.
"The biggest obstacles within the Prime Minister’s current deal are the backstop and the £39billion we currently propose to give to Brussels but for which we get nothing in return.
";If Mrs May can persuade the EU to show flexibility on these, we could get the deal through the Commons."
Even Mrs May’s deal would be better than not leaving at all
Jacob Rees-Mogg
After the crunch vote on the deal, Mr Rees-Mogg hosted a party for the pro-Brexit European Research Group that he leads.
"Wobbly, deeply flawed, and virtually friendless, the agreement might none the less be the only bridge left standing that can lead us to freedom.
"All we need to do is make the backstop explicitly temporary. We don't need the whole agreement reopened, just a legally binding codicil that prescribes an end date or allows one or both sides to leave it unilaterally."
Ex-Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab called on the Government to return to Brussels and demand changes to the backstop.
Ministers are reportedly hoping to strike an agreement on the backstop directly with Ireland's government. But sources in Dublin have insisted any talks must involve the EU as a whole.
Mrs May's aides have also floated a last-ditch plan which would see the PM announce her departure date in a bid to win over MPs who want to see her gone by the summer.
Tomorrow she will make a statement in the House of Commons underlining the next steps following her record defeat on Brexit.
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