Summary

  • MPs continue debate on the government’s Brexit deal

  • They will vote on whether to approve the deal next Tuesday

  • MPs usually debate private members' bills on a Friday

  1. Labour MP urges his frontbench to 'stop this notion of constructive ambiguity'published at 17:22 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Chris LeslieImage source, HoC

    Labour MP Chris Leslie urges the government and his own party to "stop prevaricating" over Brexit, "we cannot just kick the can down the road".

    "The time has come for the Labour party to make some decisions and stop this notion of constructive ambiguity," he says. "The politics should come second to the national interest."

    The withdrawal agreement is "wrong for the country", he says, adding that "it is full of warm promises about what might be agreed, it doesn't actually agree many things".

    He urges an extension of Article 50, with a 'People's Vote' to follow.

  2. 'The fight for Brexit is not yet over'published at 17:10 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Andrea JenkynsImage source, HoC

    Tory MP Andrea Jenkyns says that in May last year, as a PPS, she was the first to "resign to fight for Brexit...the fight is not yet over".

    "This deal is a bad deal for our country," she says. "This deal is a sell out for those who voted to leave, it is therefore impossible for this House to unite behind this deal."

    The decision to postpone the vote was a mistake that has only led to more division, she says.

    "It is time to put the ball firmly in our courts and take the upper hand in the negotiations," she says, urging the government to prepare to leave on WTO terms. "I have no doubt the EU will come back running to us in the 11th hour."

  3. 'With every day that passes it shows just what a disaster this is' - SNPpublished at 16:55 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Stephen GethinsImage source, HoC

    The SNP's Europe spokesperson Stephen Gethins says that this is a "weak and unstable government that is clearly the most incompetent in living memory".

    "With every day that passes it shows just what a disaster this is," he adds.

    "This situation is going to make us poorer," he states, and he asks what kind of government actively pursues policies which will make their citizens poorer.

    The Bank of England have warned that "crashing out" will be worse for the UK economy than the 2008 financial crisis, he warns.

    The government has "disgraced itself" in its reactions to immigration, he says.

    He adds that Labour have been "exceptionally weak," stating that Jeremy Corbyn has "washed his hands of any kind of leadership" over Brexit.

    He says that the decision over Brexit should be given back to the British people.

    Brexit "is the wrong thing to do", he states.

  4. New amendment accepted by governmentpublished at 16:36 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

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  5. Tory MP calls for House of Commons to 'take back control'published at 16:32 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Andrew MitchellImage source, HoC

    Conservative MP Andrew Mitchell says he has tried to approach the whole Brexit process with the view that as a government backbencher, his job is to "support and assist" the government.

    He says he has "great sympathy" for the prime minister, but has been "astonished" that she would bring back to MPs a deal she knows there is no chance of getting through, with no apparent plan B.

    "The government is accountable to Parliament," he says. "The House of Commons has got to be very clear now that if the deal does not go through...then the House of Commons has got to take back control."

    He says "with the greatest regret" that he cannot support the deal, which he calls "the worst possible common denominator, that perpetuates the toxic, radioactive afterlife of the referendum".

    The government must go back to Brussels and renegotiate, he says, warning that failure by the EU to compromise would sour relations between both sides for decades.

  6. 'Death threat' to no-deal bill MPpublished at 16:11 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    The Grantham and Stamford MP was one of 20 Conservatives who rebelled in a Brexit-related vote.

    Read More
  7. 'Nothing has changed' in 30 days - Labourpublished at 16:09 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Sir Keir StarmerImage source, HoC

    Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer says "nothing has changed" with the PM's deal since the so-called 'meaningful vote' on it was pulled last month.

    He says the only way to avoid a hard Irish border is through a "customs union and single market deal", as proposed several times by the Labour party.

    He adds that "some of us" were expecting the Theresa May to make a statement in Parliament on Monday, but "she didn't come".

    Referring to the EU withdrawal agreement, he tells MPs: "I think I'm right in saying that this does not contain any new commitments".

    He says that the last 30 days were "wasting" time and have been "regrettable".

    "It wasn't until June last year that we even had a Chequers plan...so the clock has effectively been run down," he adds.

  8. Tory MP reveals he received a death threat following Brexit votepublished at 16:08 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    BBC Radio 5 Live

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  9. Barclay: We will 'respond rapidly' to Brexit debatepublished at 15:36 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Steve BarclayImage source, HoC

    Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay says that "whatever the outcome of the debate", the government will "respond rapidly" to give as much security as possible.

    He questions the plausibility of Jeremy Corbyn's plan to have a general election, a new deal with the EU and pass the legislation all before 29th March.

    He warns MPs: "WTO is not the land of milk and honey."

    The backstop is "uncomfortable for the EU", and so there are "incentives to get this moving", he says.

    He says the government will accept an amendment to its approval motion from the Tory MP Sir Hugo Swire, to give MPs "much more of a say" on the Irish border backstop.

    The amendment would give Parliament a vote on whether the transition period should be extended, or the powers to implement the backstop should be approved.

    Noting that it is not enough for MPs simply to say what they don't want, he calls on them to decide which "withdrawal agreement with the backstop" they can unite around.

  10. Reality Check: Can Parliament stop a no-deal Brexit?published at 15:14 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    Cross-party MPs have tabled an amendment to make a no-deal Brexit more difficult.

    Read More
  11. MPs begin Withdrawal Agreement debatepublished at 14:35 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    MPs now move on to the first of five days of debate on the EU Withdrawal agreement.

    The debate will continue for eight hours this evening before resuming tomorrow, and will conclude with the meaningful vote next Tuesday evening.

  12. Government defeated on Grieve amendmentpublished at 14:29 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019
    Breaking

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Motion

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    MPs have voted in favour of the Grieve amendment.

    308 voted for the amendment, with 297 against.

    The amendment will now be added to the timetabling motion for the debate on the EU Withdrawal Act.

    It means the government will be required to return to Parliament within three sitting days if the deal is voted down next Tuesday.

  13. 'Anti-Brexit car sticker belongs to my wife'published at 14:28 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    The speaker hits back at an MP who questions his partiality by pointing out his wife is not his property.

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  14. What time will the debate end tonight?published at 14:23 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

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  15. Rumours of move against Speakerpublished at 14:10 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

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  16. MPs voting on Grieve amendmentpublished at 14:10 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    EU Withdrawal Agreement Motion

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    MPs are voting on Tory MP Dominic Grieve's amendment to the timetabling motion for the debate on the EU Withdrawal Agreement.

    The amendment would require the government to return to Parliament within three sitting days if the deal is voted down.

  17. Tory MP seeks to derogate armed forces from international human rights lawpublished at 14:09 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    Ten Minute Rule Bill

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Leo DochertyImage source, HoC

    Points of order arefinally concluded, and Tory MP Leo Docherty tables his Armed Forces (Derogation from European Convention on Human Rights) Bill as a ten minute rule motion.

    This would seek to ensure that the UK sought derogation from international human rights law, when it deployed troops abroad, to avoid them being taken to the international court, later on.

    He says the bill aims that the armed forces are protected from legal pursuit and to ensure that the power of the military to carry out action is "undiminished".

    "Soldiers do not want to be above the law," he says, "they just want to be protected by the correct laws."

    There has been a "catalogue of injustices" involving soldiers since the adoption of the European Convention on Human Rights, he explains. Ten countries have taken themselves out of parts of the ECHR to prevent this, he says, and calls on the UK to do the same.

    The bill proceeds without division.

  18. Bercow questioned on Brexit sticker in his wife's carpublished at 14:03 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    Point of Order

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Conservative MP Adam Holloway says members have noticed a sticker in the Speaker's car in recent months "making derogatory comments about Brexit".

    "This is a serious point about impartiality," he adds, asking the Speaker if he has driven that car while the sticker has been in there.

    John Bercow says Mr Holloway's statement is "factually inaccurate" as "that sticker on the subject of Brexit happens to be in the windscreen of my wife's car."

    "I'm sure the honourable gentleman wouldn't suggest for one moment that a wife is somehow a property or chattel of her husband," he adds.

    "She is entitled to her own views, that sticker is not mine."

  19. 'The referee of our affairs is no longer neutral'published at 13:59 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

    Point of Order

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Crispin BluntImage source, hoc

    Conservative MP Crispin Blunt says that John Bercow has broken his pledge to only serve nine years as Speaker.

    "The uncomfortable conclusion Mr Speaker and the implications about the precedent you have set with this ruling today, is that for many of us we now have an unshakable conviction that the referee of our affairs is no longer neutral," he says.

    Mr Blunt asks the Speaker to "reflect" on the implications of his decision.

    The Speaker says: "I have always been scrupulously fair to Brexiteers and Remainers alike, as I have always been to all members on a range of other views - this is what the record shows."

    He adds that he was re-elected unanimously to the House on 14 June 2017, and is supported by a majority of the Commons.

  20. Brexit gamechanger?published at 13:49 Greenwich Mean Time 9 January 2019

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