Following the Government’s defeat in the second “meaningful vote” on Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, the House of Commons voted by 321 to 278 against leaving the EU without a deal. MPs now face a further vote to see whether they wish the UK to seek to extend Article 50 beyond 29 March.
- MPs voted to reject no deal under any circumstances
- A short extension is only likely if a deal is in place
- A long extension would mean the UK has to take part in European elections
“The impasse can only be solved in the UK” (Michel Barnier)
Following the Government’s defeat in the second “meaningful vote” on Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal, the House of Commons voted by 321 to 278 against leaving the EU without a deal. MPs also voted by 312 to 308 in favour of a non-binding amendment explicitly rejecting a no-deal Brexit under any circumstances.
MPs now face a further vote to see whether they wish the UK to seek to extend Article 50 beyond the current Brexit date of 29 March. This request would have to be granted unanimously by all 27 EU member states. If an extension is not granted and Article 50 amended, the UK will still leave the EU on 29 March as planned.
Following the vote, Mrs May reminded MPs that “the legal default in UK and EU remains that the UK will leave the EU without a deal unless something else is agreed”. She warned that “a short technical extension” to Article 50 was only likely to be granted if a deal were in place. Otherwise, a much longer extension is likely to result, meaning that the UK will have to partake in European elections if the extension goes beyond 22 May. Moreover, an extension to Article 50 is no guarantee that a fresh agreement will be reached. Meanwhile, Chief EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has said: “The EU has done everything it can … The impasse can only be solved in the UK”.
