LONDON: British Prime Minister Theresa May narrowly avoided a defeat in parliament at the hands of pro-EU legislators from her own party yesterday, fending off a rebellion that had threatened to deepen a crisis over her Brexit strategy.
Parliament voted 307 to 301 against an amendment to trade legislation in a vote that had been closely followed by currency markets, and was seen as a test of May’s ability to deliver a British exit from the European Union and keep her job.
The amendment would have required the government to try to negotiate a customs union arrangement with the EU if, by January 21, 2019, it had failed to negotiate a frictionless free trade deal with the bloc.
But there was no guarantee the matter of retaining a form of customs union – which pro-EU MPs see as vital to preserving industrial and commercial supply chains – would not resurface.
The legislation was technical in nature – focusing on converting trade deals between the EU and third countries into bilateral deals with Britain.
However, the government did suffer an unexpected defeat on a separate amendment, which means it will now be required to seek an agreement that allows Britain to have continued participation in the European medicines regulatory framework.
l May cancelled an attempt yesterday to end parliament early and give legislators an extended summer holiday, as MPs criticised the move as a ploy to ease pressure on her leadership. The government had taken the unusual step on Monday of proposing to bring forward the closure of parliament for the summer to July 19 from July 24.