Live update: Govt threatens to pull Brexit bill if MPs vote down timetable
The Prime Minister has urged MPs to back his Brexit bill to ensure the UK leaves the EU by 31 October, saying it will allow the country “to heal”.
Speaking in the Commons for the first time since he was forced to send a letter requesting an extension, Boris Johnson bemoaned the passing of the amendment put forward by Oliver Letwin, which had prevented the House from backing the deal through a meaningful vote.
Johnson told colleagues they had an “opportunity to put all that right” by backing the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, through which “we can get Brexit done and move on”.
The Prime Minister said: “If we pass this bill tonight we will have the opportunity to address priorities, not just of our relationship with EU, but people’s priorities at home…
“We can turn the page, allow this country and our people to begin to heal.”
Johnson spoke as Number 10 indicated that the government would abandon its Brexit bill if it was defeated on the programme motion – setting out the timetable for its debate – tonight.
MPs are widely expected to block this timetable amid concerns that it does not allow for sufficient time to scrutinise the 110-page bill.
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A Number 10 spokesman said: “Voting down the programme motion has serious implications. It means the legislation can drift on and on. That is not in the interests of the UK or the EU. It’s time to get this done, and to move on.”
He added: “If MPs have voted finally on a deal they can support, the public would expect them to get on with this and get Brexit delivered on 31 October.”
Voting to block the timetable would be “handing control of the process to the EU – there is no guarantee the EU will grant an extension”, he added.
Behind closed doors the Downing Street machine has been working overnight to try and win over wavering MPs after it became clear yesterday that the programme motion would be the focus of today’s parliamentary battle.
This morning independent MP Richard Benyon, who lost the whip when he voted against the government last month, indicated he would back the bill and the programme motion.
“Whether you had three days, three weeks or three months debating this, you would not hear one original argument that we hadn’t otherwise heard in this process,” he said, adding he was “willing to do almost anything” to get a deal over the line.
But if the programme motion is defeated, and an extension granted by the EU, the government will seek an election for a third time under the Fixed Term Parliament Act, which requires a two-thirds majority.
So far Labour has refused to agree to go to the polls, arguing that they will only do so “once the threat of a no deal Brexit is off the table”.
Main image: Getty