uk politics Archives - Daily Concord https://dailyconcord.com/tag/uk-politics/ The Concord of African Journalism Wed, 27 Mar 2019 22:37:12 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.4.3 https://dailyconcord.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/cropped-DailyConcordIcon-32x32.png uk politics Archives - Daily Concord https://dailyconcord.com/tag/uk-politics/ 32 32 Commons has NOE clue: MPs reject EVERY Brexit alternative as they vote down all eight different proposals as plan to leave the EU descends to a new level of chaos https://dailyconcord.com/commons-has-noe-clue-mps-reject-every/ Wed, 27 Mar 2019 22:37:02 +0000 https://dailyconcord.com/?p=14060 MPs rejected every alternative Brexit voted on tonight as Brexit descended into a new level

The post Commons has NOE clue: MPs reject EVERY Brexit alternative as they vote down all eight different proposals as plan to leave the EU descends to a new level of chaos appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
MPs rejected every alternative Brexit voted on tonight as Brexit descended into a new level of chaos.

On a dramatic night inside and outside the Commons, a second referendum narrowly won the most votes tonight – losing 295 to 268. A permanent UK-EU customs union won almost as much support and had fewer votes against – defeating it 272 to 264.   

No Deal was rejected by 400 to 160, while MPs voted 273 to 184 against cancelling Brexit altogether. A soft Brexit plan to join EFTA and the EEA lost 377 to 65, while a similar Norway-style plan lost 283 to 188. Jeremy Corbyn’s plans lost 307 to 237.

The Brexiteers’ favoured plan to negotiate a two-year standstill deal with the EU suffered the worst defeat 422 to 139.   

At the second meaningful vote on March 12, Mrs May’s deal was defeated 391 to 242 – a weaker performance than a second referendum and a permanent customs union. 

MPs voted against a backdrop of Mrs May announcing she will quit as PM if MPs back her deal – which was not on the menu tonight. Her deal still appears doomed after the DUP said they would vote against it again.

Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said the failure of MPs to find a consensus undermined the need for MPs to back Theresa May’s ‘compromise’ deal. He said failure to do so meant ‘there are no guarantees on where this process will end’.  

He warned there was ‘no simple way forward’ and told the Commons ‘there are no easy options here’.  

The Commons was suspended for 30 minutes so MPs could fill in a green ballot paper, answering yes or no to each of the eight proposals.   

The most favoured options are due to go through to a second round vote next week. If there is a firm conclusion then, MPs will then try to pass new laws forcing Theresa May to adopt their favoured option, before Britain will leave the EU on April 12 assuming the Brexit deal does not pass this week. 

Labour led the charge for a second referendum and a soft Brexit as Jeremy Corbyn orders his MPs to vote for watering down the Government deal that has been crushed twice already.

Mr Corbyn was expected to face a raft of resignations from Labour frontbenchers opposed to a public vote. In the event, shadow housing minister Melanie Onn was the only one to quit – though 27 Labour MPs rebelled overall. 

Amid deep Tory splits, most Conservative MPs will get a free vote across the board, except for the Cabinet who will be told to abstain. The move will avoid a dozen or more junior ministers resigning tonight. 

This is how MPs voted on the eight Brexit options tonight

+6

Tory MP Oliver Letwin (pictured in the Commons today) began today's proceedings after his amendment on Monday night tore up the usual Commons agenda to allow tonight's votes

+6

A second referendum narrowly won the most votes tonight – losing 295 to 268. A permanent UK-EU customs union won also as much support and had fewer votes against – defeating it 272 to 264.

Brexiteer Tory MP Michael Fabricant tweeted a picture of his indicative vote ballor tonight.He endorsed plans for a No Deal on April 12 and negotiating a two-year 'standstill' deal with the EU

+6

Brexiteer Tory MP Michael Fabricant tweeted a picture of his indicative vote ballor tonight.He endorsed plans for a No Deal on April 12 and negotiating a two-year ‘standstill’ deal with the EU

+6

Three ministers were among 10 Tory rebels who voted to revoke Article 50 and stay in the EU to avoid a no-deal Brexit.

Foreign Office ministers Sir Alan Duncan and Mark Field were joined by health minister Stephen Hammond in voting for the motion tabled by the SNP’s Joanna Cherry, which was defeated by 293 votes to 184.

They were joined by ex-Government figures and Remainer rebels including ex-chancellor Ken Clarke, ex-education secretary Justine Greening and former attorney general Dominic Grieve.

Mr Clarke was also the only Tory to back a motion by Jeremy Corbyn which would back it’s alternative Brexit plan, which includes a closer relationship with the EU than Theresa May’s deal.

His own motion, that would have backed a Brexit plan with a customs union, was defeated by eight votes after a dozen Labour Leave-supports MPs voted against it.

They included John Mann and Denis Skinner and mostly represented seats in the north which voted to quit the EU

Read more at:

The post Commons has NOE clue: MPs reject EVERY Brexit alternative as they vote down all eight different proposals as plan to leave the EU descends to a new level of chaos appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
The DUP crushes May’s hopes hours after her leadership sacrifice for Brexit: Allies won’t back PM’s deal despite offer to stand down by May 22nd IF Tories support her. . . and Boris couldn’t wait to take her up on it! https://dailyconcord.com/the-dup-crushes-mays-hopes-hours-after-her/ Wed, 27 Mar 2019 22:27:25 +0000 https://dailyconcord.com/?p=14057 The DUP crushed Theresa May’s hopes of saving her Brexit deal tonight as they rejected

The post The DUP crushes May’s hopes hours after her leadership sacrifice for Brexit: Allies won’t back PM’s deal despite offer to stand down by May 22nd IF Tories support her. . . and Boris couldn’t wait to take her up on it! appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
The DUP crushed Theresa May’s hopes of saving her Brexit deal tonight as they rejected her offer to resign in return for rebel votes.

DUP leader Arlene Foster said her party still could not support the deal because it ‘poses a threat to the integrity of the UK’. A party statement said ‘we will not be supporting the Government if they table a fresh meaningful vote’ – with Westminster leader Nigel Dodds vowing to vote No.

The hammer blow came hours after Mrs May sensationally promised to quit Downing Street in return for Tory Brexiteer rebels passing her deal as she admitted her time as Prime Minister was almost over.

Mrs May rolled the dice in a final desperate effort to try and get the Brexit deal across the line. She needed all of the DUP, most Tory rebels and some Labour MPs to have any chance – and looks doomed to fail on all three counts.

To win on her deal, Mrs May must find 75 more votes. Without the DUP, she needs every one of the 75 Tory rebels from the second vote on March 12 to return or make up the difference with Labour rebels. At least 50 Tory MPs are thought likely to stay away. 

Amid the drama at the top of Government, MPs rejected eight different Brexit plans in the Commons as an indicative vote on plans ranging from No Deal to a Second Referendum to Cancelling Brexit all failed.  

The PM’s promised resignation was tied to the successful passage of the deal at the third attempt this week. No 10 sources said the Prime Minister would resign once Britain was outside the EU – due to be May 22 if the deal gets agreed by MPs later this week. She had previously only said she would go before the 2022 election. 

It is deeply unclear what Mrs May will do if her deal fails again and No 10 sources said it would be a ‘whole different ball game’. ERG sources earlier told MailOnline the deal would ‘100 per cent’ still fail. 

Mrs May could attempt to cling on and navigate Britain through a No Deal – or could leave much earlier because Brexit appears set to be delayed for months or even years. 

Whenever she finally goes, tonight’s announcement publicly fires the starting gun on a Tory leadership race that is already being furiously fought behind the scenes.  

Boris Johnson – a leading contender to replace her – immediately switched to back the deal if there is a third vote.  

Since her deal was crushed a second time on March 12, Brexiteer rebels have insisted she must be gone before UK-EU trade negotiations begin if they will ever consider backing the deal.  

And a packed meeting of the 1922 Committee tonight Mrs May finally gave in: ‘I know some people are worried that if you vote for the Withdrawal Agreement, I will take that as a mandate to rush on into phase two without the debate we need to have. I won’t – I hear what you are saying.

‘But we need to get the deal through and deliver Brexit.’ 

She added: ‘I am prepared to leave this job earlier than I intended in order to do what is right for our country and our party.

‘I ask everyone in this room to back the deal so we can complete our historic duty – to deliver on the decision of the British people and leave the European Union with a smooth and orderly exit.’  

The Prime Minister set no date for her departure and No 10 sources said she would see through legislation to implement her deal, if it passes.

The trade talks phase of Brexit is expected to begin in the autumn – suggesting the she plans to be gone before the Conservative Party conference in late September at the latest. 

Mrs May’s voice ‘cracked’ during her speech, MP Pauline Latham told reporters outside the meeting. 

+33

Theresa May (pictured returning to Parliament tonight) sensationally promised to quit Downing Street in return for Tory Brexiteer rebels passing her deal tonight as she admitted her time as Prime Minister was almost over

Mrs May swept out of Parliament tonight after meeting her MPs

+33

Mrs May made her final gamble to try and get the Brexit deal across the line by promising to leave No 10 if Tory Brexiteer rebels finally back down

In a huge blow for the Prime Minister, DUP leader Arlene Foster (pictured tonight on Sky News) said her party still could not support the deal because it 'poses a threat to the integrity of the UK'

+33

In a huge blow for the Prime Minister, DUP leader Arlene Foster (pictured tonight on Sky News) said her party still could not support the deal because it ‘poses a threat to the integrity of the UK’

Read more at:

The post The DUP crushes May’s hopes hours after her leadership sacrifice for Brexit: Allies won’t back PM’s deal despite offer to stand down by May 22nd IF Tories support her. . . and Boris couldn’t wait to take her up on it! appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
Britain will enter ‘zombie world’ if MPs don’t back May’s Brexit deal warns minister as hardline Brexiteers give her three tests she must pass to win their support https://dailyconcord.com/britain-will-enter-zombie-world-if-mps-dont-back/ Sun, 03 Mar 2019 22:21:40 +0000 https://dailyconcord.com/?p=13892 Delaying Brexit would leave Britain stuck in a ‘zombie world’ without knowing which direction it

The post Britain will enter ‘zombie world’ if MPs don’t back May’s Brexit deal warns minister as hardline Brexiteers give her three tests she must pass to win their support appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
Delaying Brexit would leave Britain stuck in a ‘zombie world’ without knowing which direction it was heading in, a minister warned today.

Prisons Minister Rory Stewart lashed out at mooted plans to keep the UK in the EU past March 29, saying it opened up other outcomes that were not good for the country.

He urged MPs to back Theresa May’s Brexit deal after hardline Tory Brexiteers presented Theresa May with ‘three tests’ any agreement will have to pass in order for them to support it.

Jacob Rees-Mogg’s European Research Group presented peace terms to Geoffrey Cox, the Attorney General, in the latest sign that all but the most diehard eurosceptics are prepared to accept a deal.

Because if you think that through, extension to Article 50, which is going to be a vote which would effectively give lets say a couple of month’s extension, would resolve nothing.

‘It would put us in a world in which we were still in a zombie world, not knowing where we were going.

‘And it would increase the chance of other options. It increased the chance either of people pushing for general elections which wouldn’t solve everything, for another referendum … or it would push people towards a customs union which would stop us trading with the rest of the world.’

In private talks the ERG called for a legally binding mechanism to escape the backstop, with a clear exit route and an unambiguous rewrite of the language in the Government’s legal advice, the Sunday Times said.

It comes after senior eurosceptics appeared to dramatically soften their insistence that the Withdrawal Agreement must be rewritten to remove the Northern Irish border backstop provision.

Read more at:

The post Britain will enter ‘zombie world’ if MPs don’t back May’s Brexit deal warns minister as hardline Brexiteers give her three tests she must pass to win their support appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
Storm Freya batters Britain: Weather warnings in place as 80mph winds down trees and powerlines as the M4 is among roads closed – with SNOW in Ireland expected in the UK tomorrow https://dailyconcord.com/storm-freya-batters-britain-weather-warnings-in-place/ Sun, 03 Mar 2019 22:07:25 +0000 https://dailyconcord.com/?p=13886 Britain is in the grips of Storm Freya tonight as winds of up to 80mph

The post Storm Freya batters Britain: Weather warnings in place as 80mph winds down trees and powerlines as the M4 is among roads closed – with SNOW in Ireland expected in the UK tomorrow appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>
Britain is in the grips of Storm Freya tonight as winds of up to 80mph batter the south west of the UK and forecasters issue a ‘danger to life’ warning. 

As the increasingly ferocious winds hit the country, fallen trees, falling debris and power lines have caused roads to be closed and left hundreds of homes without power.  

The strong gusts have also caused a section of the M4 at the Briton Ferry Bridge in Wales to be flooded in both directions and seen gusts of around 70mph recorded at South Uist in Scotland. 

As the severe gales continue to gather strength, two crashes have already been reported on the M4 this afternoon and highway officials have had to shut down a five-mile stretch of the A465 due to a burst river bank at Hirwaun, South Wales.

In Ireland, drivers were left tackling the deteriorating weather conditions as snow and sleet hit the N7 in Dublin and caused severe travel disruptions.

As Britain braces itself for the severe weather, partial road blocks were also seen in Cornwall and Devon after trees and power lines fell into the road.

Land’s End in Cornwall also shook to gusts of nearly 70mph as the storm whipped in from the Atlantic as darkness fell. 

At one point, police in the Duchy of Cornwall took six wind-related emergency calls in the space of 15 minutes. 

A person carries their shopping bag through snowy conditions in Rathcoole, Dublin, as Storm Freya sweeps over the nation

+30

A person carries their shopping bag through snowy conditions in Rathcoole, Dublin, as Storm Freya sweeps over the nation

Road users try to tackle the severe weather conditions  in Rathcoole, Dublin, as winds of up to 80mph sweep over the country

+30

Road users try to tackle the severe weather conditions in Rathcoole, Dublin, as winds of up to 80mph sweep over the country

A person travelling through the A465 in Wales shows the heavily flooded roads caused by Storm Freya as the ferocious winds continue to sweep across the UK

+30

A person travelling through the A465 in Wales shows the heavily flooded roads caused by Storm Freya as the ferocious winds continue to sweep across the UK

The severe weather led to a car crashing on the M4 between Bridgend and Pencoed. South West Police later released the picture and wrote: 'Please slow down in wet conditions. There is more rain on the way this afternoon.'

+30

The severe weather led to a car crashing on the M4 between Bridgend and Pencoed. South West Police later released the picture and wrote: ‘Please slow down in wet conditions. There is more rain on the way this afternoon.’

Storm Freya hits the south coast of the UK today at the 35 metre-high Longships Lighthouse at Land's End, Cornwall. Gigantic waves as the wind whips up the sea towards shore

+30

Storm Freya hits the south coast of the UK today at the 35 metre-high Longships Lighthouse at Land’s End, Cornwall. Gigantic waves as the wind whips up the sea towards shore

Waves smash against the North West coast at Blackpool with Storm Freya set to hit later this afternoon as Met Office issues weather warnings

+30

Waves smash against the North West coast at Blackpool with Storm Freya set to hit later this afternoon as Met Office issues weather warnings

Fierce waves crash against the harbour wall at Porthcawl, Wales, as Storm Freya brings strong winds of up to 80mph to the UK 

+30

Fierce waves crash against the harbour wall at Porthcawl, Wales, as Storm Freya brings strong winds of up to 80mph to the UK 

Superintendent Ian Drummond-Smith tweeted ‘The storm has arrived in Cornwall! Going to be very windy for next few hours

‘Six emergency calls in last 15 minutes regarding trees and power cables down! To the locals – best stay indoors and have a cup of tea.

‘Emergency services going to be very busy for the next few hours.’  

The worsening conditions, which will see winds of up to 80mph hit the nation, are expected to continue causing travel disruptions to England and Wales today.    

In Derby, a fallen tree outside a YMCA centre has left those trying to travel into the city centre having to find alternative routes. 

Earlier today, spectators braced the strong winds and were swamped by a big wave as they tried to capture Storm Freya on their mobile phones at Newquay, Cornwall. 

The storm also saw fierce waves crash against the harbour wall at Porthcawl in Wales.

Forecasters have predicted the storm will be severe enough to risk injuries and danger to life from flying debris and large waves, and there could also be damage to buildings and trees, with road hazards and power cuts possible.

The Met Office has issued a severe weather warning, which runs from 3pm on Sunday to 6am on Monday, and predicted possible blizzards in the Peak District.

Read more at:

The post Storm Freya batters Britain: Weather warnings in place as 80mph winds down trees and powerlines as the M4 is among roads closed – with SNOW in Ireland expected in the UK tomorrow appeared first on Daily Concord.

]]>