Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

The Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd has appeared to rule out the option of a no deal Brexit.

Ms Rudd said Parliament would block any attempt to leave the EU without a deal.

But her stance appears at odds with that of the prime minister, who has warned that if her deal is voted down, there will either be no deal or no Brexit.

Mrs May has also repeatedly warned that she believes no deal is better than a bad deal.

This morning, however, Ms Rudd - a leading figure in the Remain campaign - said: "It is my view Parliament, the House of Commons, will stop no deal.

"There isn't a majority in the House of Commons to allow this [no deal] to happen."

One thing is for certain - Ms Rudd's intervention is sure to infuriate ardent Brexiteers who have urged MPs to reject the deal and leave the EU without a deal on World Trade Organization terms.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Image source, EPA

Amber Rudd says cabinet colleagues will vote through Theresa May's withdrawal agreement, or have to "very carefully consider their position".

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, the work and pensions secretary defended the prime minister's plan, although she conceded the government "has got to do more to pursuade some of the MPs that it is the right outcome".

She said it was a practical approach, adding: "I don’t think cabinet colleagues are going to vote against this.

"The practical purpose is they will have to take a careful look at this and either decide that they are content with it or they will have to consider very carefully what their position is.

"This is going to be the government position and I hope it will be the right one for people to rally around, support and get the withdrawal agreement through."

She also said that despite doubts, she believed the deal will be voted through by all sides of the House.

“It’s my view that parliament, the House of Commons, will stop no deal," said Ms Rudd.

"There isn’t a majority in the House of Commons for [no deal] to take place.”

She added: "If [the deal] doesn't get through, anything could happen. The Brexiteers might lose their Brexit, there will be different amendments that will be followed up on, and that is not going to be good for the country.

"We voted to leave the European Union. I think this is the right approach to it."

Katya Adler
Europe Editor

Why is Theresa May rushing to Brussels on Wednesday when she has a fair few political headaches to contend with back home, and when she's due back here in just a few days for the seal-the-deal Brexit summit of EU leaders?

The answer: the prime minister wants to show she is fighting until the very last moment to get the best Brexit deal possible out of the EU.

Her Wednesday afternoon visit to see Jean-Claude Juncker, the head of the European Commission, provides her with a floodlit platform to do so.

Now, the plan had been for the two leaders to discuss a draft text of the political declaration on post-Brexit EU-UK relations.

Read more from Katya here.

Laura Kuenssberg
BBC political editor

The prime minister has been pretty clear in public that the deal that has been agreed with the EU is, essentially, ready to be signed off.

That's so much the case that she is planning to go to Brussels for a Kodak moment with Jean-Claude Juncker.

We know some of her ministers are pretty grumpy about it and won't exactly be waving her off or welcoming her back with bunting at the Eurostar terminal. But those who, for now, have stayed rather than quit are not in the mood to walk out the door.

That's partly because they seem to believe the conversations happening around the edges of cabinet at the moment, seeking out ways of carrying out nips and tucks to the agreement, are real.

Read more from Laura here.

Image source, EPA

Good morning and welcome to another busy day in this critical week in the Brexit process.

Last night, the government chose to accept Labour and SNP amendments to its Finance Bill rather than risk facing another abstention from the DUP - the Northern Ireland party which Theresa May relies on to have a Commons majority in key votes.

Plans to try and oust the prime minister seem to have stalled, according to many of Wednesday's front pages, but expect leading Brexiteers to continue to call for Tory MPs to put in letters of no confidence against Mrs May.

And after facing the Commons for Prime Minister's Questions at noon, Mrs May will be heading to Brussels for a meeting with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker where they will be seeking to help finalise the 20-page declaration on future relations between the UK and the EU.

This is the second part of the Brexit 'deal' due to be agreed on Sunday - the bit we have been focusing on mostly so far has been the 585-page withdrawal agreement which was published last week and which - amongst other things - included a pledge that the UK would pay around £39bn, gave a guarantee for UK/EU expat citizens' rights and a guarantee to avoid the return of manned checks on the Northern Ireland border.

The political declaration was supposed to have been agreed by the EU on Tuesday in Brussels but there appear to be issues with the French - on fishing rights - and Spain - on Gibraltar - both raising issues with it.

For the first time in almost a week, Brexit doesn't lead all the morning's papers.

But those that do, perhaps inevitably, pick up on suggestions that an attempted revolt against Theresa May by MPs, which appears for now to have stalled, was right out of a Dad's Army script.

This came after leading rebel Jacob Rees-Mogg let it be known that he was a fan of the classic wartime sitcom.

Scotland's first minister says the latest Brexit agreement draft asks people to "take a blindfold leap off a cliff".

The Brexiteer urges Tories to topple the PM now or face her leading the party into a 2022 election.

It comes after a DUP MP accuses NI businesses of being government puppets over Theresa May's Brexit deal.

Ministers say a law to protect the Welsh powers is no longer needed after a deal with the UK government.

Another day of political jousting in Westminster over the Brexit withdrawal agreement has rolled on - so what have you missed so far?

The DUP has continued to express its displeasure at Theresa May's plan. After abstaining on votes for the Finance Bill last night, the BBC understands it will do the same this evening.

And in a warning to No 10, the party's deputy leader Nigel Dodds said: "The government will require DUP support to deliver its domestic agenda. We will continue to use our influence for the good of everyone across the United Kingdom."

Scotland's First Minister headed down to London for meetings with Westminster's opposition parties - and the prime minister.

Nicola Sturgeon met with Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn, with the meeting described as “constructive”.

She then went on to meet the Lib Dems, the Green Party and her Westminster SNP representatives, where they discussed the “growing momentum” behind a fresh referendum on the deal.

She is also meeting the PM.

The Brexit-backing European Research Group launched their own vision of an alternative to Mrs May’s deal this morning – though most of the questions focused on where the 48 letters were calling for a vote of no confidence in Mrs May.

The group’s leader, Jacob Rees-Mogg, said more MPs could come out of the woodwork calling for the PM to resign after the Commons vote next month - and he warned his colleagues this could be their final chance to get rid of her before the next election, scheduled for 2022.

And it wasn’t all sugar and spice in the EU today either.

Ministers from the 27 other EU member states are meeting to discuss their future relationship with the UK, and Spain’s PM has threatened to vote against any document if it isn’t clearer about Gibraltar.

There is a long way to go until Sunday’s emergency EU summit it seems.

Opposition parties should try to agree an alternative Brexit plan, Plaid leader Adam Price says.

Emma Vardy
Daily and Sunday Politics reporter

The Chancellor Phillip Hammond will give a speech at the DUP conference in Belfast on Friday evening.

Boris Johnson will attend on the Saturday, and will also address delegates with a speech.

SNP leader and Scotland first minister Nicola Sturgeon told the BBC's political editor about building a "coalition of opposition" to Brexit.

The First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones, tweets: "Today I have given an update to #Brexit to the AMs in the heart of the worst political crisis I've ever seen.

"We are still not smarter about how we will have relationships in the future with our main trade partner."

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

Ireland's deputy prime minister says the withdrawal agreement for the UK's exit from the EU is not open for renegotiation.

Simon Coveney said the agreement was not a draft and it was "not going to be re-opened".

Speaking in the Dail - the Assembley of Ireland - Mr Coveney said: "This is a text that has been agreed between the negotiations teams, it has been agreed by the British government.

"So to that extent, it is not a draft text, it is now the text, and it is not going to be reopened."

The only document that would change was the political declaration around the future relationship, he added.

Ministers from 27 EU member states are in Brussels discussing that document this week before an emergency EU summit on Sunday.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says Spain will reject the draft deal without clarification on Gibraltar.