BREXCRUCIATING!
MPs vote to DELAY Brexit giving desperate Theresa May another three months to land deal
The House of Commons voted against a bid to hold a second referendum on Brexit which would keep Britain in the EU
BRITAIN is set to stay in the EU for at least three more months after MPs tonight voted to delay Brexit.
The House of Commons endorsed Theresa May's plan to ask Brussels for an extension to the Article 50 process.
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The move means Britain WON'T quit the EU on March 29 - as the PM has promised for the past two years.
Tonight's vote to delay our departure - by 413 votes to 202 - comes after MPs blocked a No Deal Brexit yesterday.
But in a blow to Remainers who want us to stay in the EU permanently, an amendment calling for a second referendum fell to a landslide defeat.
Mrs May will next week bring her Brexit deal back to the Commons for a third meaningful vote.
She says that if it passes, she will then ask the EU for a "short technical extension" until the end of June, to give Parliament the time to force through the necessary legislation.
But if the deal is defeated again, the PM has warned that Britain will have to stay in the EU beyond the summer and take part in European Parliament elections.
It is still possible for EU leaders to block Mrs May's request for a delay when they meet in Brussels next week.
But most have signalled they will accept a relatively brief extension as long as Britain is still on track to leave with a deal.
A spokesman said tonight: "We take note of tonight's votes. A request for an extension of Article 50 requires the unanimous agreement of all member states."
Before voting to back a delay, the Commons defeated a Remainer plot to seize control of Brexit entirely by taking the parliamentary timetable out of the Government's hands.
By a margin of just two votes, Mrs May saw off the revolt which would have been an unprecedented power grab by backbench MPs.
Nearly two thirds of Tories voted against delaying Brexit even though the PM and most of her closest allies were in favour of an extension.
Seven Cabinet ministers went against Mrs May in opposing the delay - Brexiteers Stephen Barclay, Liam Fox, Chris Grayling, Andrea Leadsom and Penny Mordaunt, plus leadership hopefuls Liz Truss and Gavin Williamson.
Ms Mordaunt said tonight: "We must deliver the result of the referendum, and hurry up about it!"
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Top Eurocrat Donald Tusk warned earlier today that the delay could end up lasting a long time, saying: "I will appeal to the EU27 to be open to a long extension if the UK finds it necessary to rethink its #Brexit strategy and build consensus around it."
Ireland's foreign minister Simon Coveney added: "If you have a long extension of Article 50, that opens up the debate in a much broader way to the overall approach that the United Kingdom takes to Brexit."
His boss Leo Varadkar called on Britain to stay in the EU's single market and customs union.
Tory veteran Ken Clarke, known for his Europhile views, added: "I think we should suggest to the Europeans a good, long delay."
As well as the main motion, the Commons voted on a string of Remainer amendments after Speaker John Bercow infuriated Brexiteers by blocking an anti-second referendum motion.
More than 100 MPs from three different parties signed up to a proposed amendment calling on the Government to respect the result of the 2016 referendum.
After Mr Bercow - who voted against Brexit - refused to select the motion, he was accused of being biased as Bernard Jenkin asked, "What are we to conclude of your own views on these matters?"
He picked four different amendments all tabled by Remainer MPs - including one calling for a second referendum and another giving the Commons total control of Brexit.
Mrs May plans to hold another "meaningful vote" on her deal next week. She hopes Brexiteers will be bounced into backing the deal for fear of an endless postponement.
The DUP is currently locked in talks with ministers as the PM ramps up her charm offensive to try and win over the Unionists.
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What does this mean for Theresa May?
By Natasha Clark
TONIGHT'S vote mean Brexit's probably going to be delayed no matter what happens, and we won't be leaving the EU in 15 days' time as the PM has been promising for the last two years.
It's another blow for the PM as she's been forced to go back on her word.
And even though it was technically a free vote so everyone could vote how they liked, seeing 188 of her own Tories go against what she opted for tonight makes her look incredible week.
BUT, BUT, BUT
Actually, tonight's votes could strengthen her.
She's effectively telling her Brexiteers that she's going to have to kick Brexit into the long grass if they don't back her deal.
Many of them will be afraid of a long extension to Article 50 which would effectively give enough time for a general election or a second referendum.
The PM now plans to bring back her deal next week in another attempt to push it through.
If she gets it rejected yet again she'll go to the EU and ask for an extension to Article 50 at the Council meeting at the end of next week.
If it passes, she'll ask for a short extension to get everything sorted.
There's no guarantee that they will say yes to an extension unless they know exactly what we want. If it's just to legally cross the is and dot the ts, it will probably get voted through.
COULD THERE BE ANOTHER REFERENDUM?
As it stands, not now.
MPs tonight voted against a second Brexit vote, saying it wasn't the "right time" to push for it.
But even if Labour had decided to back it, then it still wouldn't have passed, meaning it's unlikely to ever get through the Commons at the current time.
However, if the EU force Britain into a long delay you can be sure the People's Vote campaigners will be out in force again campaigning to overturn the 2016 result.
ARE WE STAYING IN THE EU?
Yes, for now.
Any extension means things will stay exactly the same until we sort out what's going on.
And even if the PM's deal goes go through, things will be the same until the end of 2020 during a transition period, so we can get a trade deal sorted.
We'll technically be out of the EU but will still pay them some money and have to abide by many of their rules.
IS BREXIT STILL HAPPENING?
Yes. It's still law that we're leaving on March 29, no matter what happens.
Unless MPs pass a bill to stop that, or Theresa May revokes Article 50 before then, we leave without a deal.
Mrs May could only ask for an extension to put that date back by a few weeks or months, but there's no guarantee that they will say yes.
WILL THERESA MAY STAY AS PM?
It would be a terrible time to boot her out now, in the middle of all this mess.
But we shouldn't rule anything out.
The PM did manage to dodge a few bullets this evening - including to stop MPs taking control of the process, for a second Brexit vote, or for Labour's alternative plan.
She came very close to losing but just managed to get it in the bag.
Leader Arlene Foster said: "When you come to the end of a negotiation that's when you really start to see the whites of people's eyes, and you get down to the point where you make a deal - and we want to see a deal."
And Remainer Tories including Boris Johnson's brother Jo were summoned to 10 Downing Street for negotiations today.
The PM will attend a European Council summit next Thursday where she'll officially request an extension to the Article 50 process.
The Government said this morning that if a deal is still not agreed by then, Mrs May will have no choice but to ask for a delay of several months.
That would mean Britain taking part in the European Parliament elections in May.
Opening today's Commons debate, deputy PM David Lidington promised that if there's still no deal by the time of the European Council, MPs would get two weeks to vote on a wide range of Brexit options and decide what they prefer.
But Brexiteers warned that any delay will be nothing more than a smokescreen to block our EU exit completely.
In a video message to followers, ex-minister Esther McVey blasted: "It could mean that Brexit is defeated, the democratic will of the people is thrown away and we end up remaining."
One of the PM's former top allies today called on her to quit as soon as a Brexit deal is secured.
The Sun Says
IT is surely now obvious to Tory Brexiteers that defeating Theresa May’s deal again will be a disastrous act of self-harm.
IT is surely now obvious to Tory Brexiteers that defeating Theresa May’s deal again will be a disastrous act of self-harm.
Some are waking up to it. Too many are holding out for something better.
It’s not coming.
Mrs May’s shock victories last night leave her battered agreement as still somehow the only viable option, even if she has been humiliatingly reduced to asking the EU for a short delay.
Kill it again next week and that’s it.
The PM will be ordered to beg a long delay, swallowing any conditions Brussels wants to impose.
Remainer MPs will take back control, as they failed to do last night by only two votes, and Tory support will collapse.
Brexiteers should listen to Donald Trump dangling the carrot of a UK-US trade deal of “unlimited” scope. It is only even remotely possible under May’s deal. Remainers will prevent No Deal.
Corbyn, meanwhile, plumbed pitiful new depths of dishonesty last night.
Having helped send the “people’s vote” crashing to a deserved defeat — to avoid offending his Leave voters — he absurdly reaffirmed his support for it to avoid offending Labour Remainers.
Give it up, Jezza. No one is buying it.
MOST READ IN POLITICS
George Freeman blasted: "This chaos can’t continue. Something has to give. We need an orderly Brexit on March 29.
"If, to get the votes for that, the PM has to promise that she will go after the Withdrawal Treaty is secure, to allow a new leader to reunite the country and oversee the next stage, she should."
And ultra-Brexiteer Christopher Chope even suggested he would vote to bring the PM down entirely and trigger a snap election if Jeremy Corbyn tabled a fresh no-confidence vote.
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Esther McVey warns the EU will grow to be a superstate if Brexit is cancelled
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