Brexit

Saturday

The Spectator

The Tories have squandered Brexit – they must not waste the extension too

For many people, next Friday was supposed to be a celebration. Boris Johnson spoke about an ‘independence day’ marking the beginning of a new era of national self-confidence. But as we approach 29 March, not even ardent Brexiteers can claim that there is anything to celebrate. Theresa May has been reduced to asking, or rather begging, the EU for an extension to Article 50 — something that the EU has said it will grant only if Britain can provide a good reason for needing the extra time. So far, the Prime Minister has not provided one, apart from the prolonging of every-one’s agony. When parliament voted to enact Article 50

Charles Moore Charles Moore

The problem with Westminster is that politicians don’t do their jobs

The trouble with Mr Speaker, even when he makes the right decision, is his motives. Fame is the spur and so is his love of hurting the Conservative party which nurtured him. However natural these feelings, they are completely wrong for the Speakership. The occupant of the chair is supposed to be a pillar of the constitution, not its talking gargoyle. A sad feature of the Brexit story has been how so many people with important official roles have not seemed to understand or, in some cases, even to care, what those roles entail. The Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Governor of the Bank of England are supposed to

Friday

Siva Thangarajah

The Spectator Podcast: is Brexit a national humiliation?

This week opened with the cautious optimism of a third meaningful vote passing, and ends, as our cover depicts, with Theresa May begging the EU for an extension. After John Bercow’s ruling that May’s Brexit deal cannot be voted on a third time, unless with ‘substantive changes’, the chances of May passing her deal before March 29 seemed further than ever. Now, this week has shown that Brexit is dictated at home by warring factions in the Commons, and dictated abroad by the EU. Even though the EU has given May a third chance at her deal, these past weeks lay bare the government’s inability to run the government, and

Robert Peston Robert Peston

Theresa May’s third meaningful vote might now be cancelled

All the talk among Cabinet ministers – who as usual in Theresa May’s government know next-to-nothing about what the PM is actually going to do – is that the bloomin’ meaningful vote won’t be held next week after all. “The DUP don’t look as though they are coming on board,” said one. “It looks as though she’ll lose by a bit more than last time,” said another. “Why would she do that to herself?” If they are right and she does not bring her Brexit deal back for ratification by MPs, then dead too (probably) is the idea she’ll imminently announce the date of her resignation as PM. According to

Robert Peston Robert Peston

Not even God knows what happens to Brexit now

After yesterday’s historic negotiations between EU leaders here in Brussels – while Theresa May was out of the room – here is what we now know about Brexit. We are not leaving the EU on 29 March 2019, the Brexit day that was supposedly set in stone. We may yet leave on 22 May this year, but only if next week MPs finally – at a third time of asking, and probably on Tuesday – vote for Theresa May’s widely derided Brexit plan. We could leave without a Brexit deal on the new Brexit day, 12 April – if the PM’s vote is lost. Or we could leave at an

Katy Balls Katy Balls

It’s getting harder for Theresa May to pass her deal next week

After eight hours of talks between EU leaders, Theresa May has been granted an Article 50 extension. If the Prime Minister can pass her deal next week, there will be technical extension until 22 May. If the deal fails to pass, Article 50 will be extended only until 12 April so that the UK can set out its next steps – and potentially apply for a longer extension. This offer appears to give backbenchers time to try and – once again – seize control of the process if May fails to pass her deal. The Prime Minister’s problem is when it comes to meeting the first condition of the 22

Cindy Yu Cindy Yu

The EU has just given parliament more time to take control of Brexit

Last night, the EU27 unanimously rejected Theresa May’s request for a June Brexit extension and told her 22 May at the latest – or 12 April if she couldn’t pass her deal). This pushes the cliff edge back by just a little, and makes nothing easier for her. If her deal doesn’t pass, she would have to choose a no deal, or a long extension and agree to hold European parliament elections. But that’s assuming that she will still be in control of the process at that point. Crucially, the extension gives time for MPs to take control of Brexit in the next three weeks. If her deal is rejected

Thursday

The Spectator

Barometer | 21 March 2019

The march of time If we leave the EU on 29 March, with which historic events will that date be shared? 845 A Norse fleet sailing up the Seine reached Paris, sacking the city and extracting a ransom from Charles the Bald. 1461 The Battle of Towton, just south of Tadcaster, one of the bloodiest battles fought on English soil, with more than 20,000 men estimated to have been killed. Yorkist victory confirmed Edward IV as king. 1871 Royal Albert Hall officially opened. 1936 Hitler wins plebiscite to annex the Rhineland. 1945 Last recorded strike of a V1 bomb on Britain. Where are you safe? The mosque attacks in Christchurch were

James Kirkup James Kirkup

MPs must not use May as an excuse to walk into Brexit disaster

Theresa May has united Westminster. Right across the political spectrum, politicians and journalists agree that her televised statement from No. 10 last night was an epic misjudgement, that seeking to pin public blame on MPs for the failure to agree a Brexit outcome has made it even less likely that they will now reach such an agreement. The PM’s awful statement, it is said, has driven away the very MPs she needs to pass her Withdrawal Agreement next week. Consensus like that deserves scrutiny, because it’s often a cloak under which people can hide inconvenient facts. Consider the assertion that May has alienated MPs who will not now vote for

Katy Balls Katy Balls

Theresa May’s No. 10 intervention backfires

Theresa May heads to Brussels today to plead for an Article 50 extension. The expectation is that EU leaders will only grant one on the condition her deal passes next week on a third vote. This is looking increasingly hard to do following May’s No. 10 statement last night. In an address to the nation, the Prime Minister attempted to lay the blame on MPs – rather than herself – for the fact that it is now very unlikely the UK will leave the EU at the end of March. May said it was a matter of deep ‘personal regret’ to her and went on to add: ‘All MPs have

Jeff Noon

Making Brexit thrilling

The long gestation period of Brexit has allowed authors to plan and write and publish novels in time for the big day. Alan Judd’s Accidental Agent (Simon & Schuster, £12.99) is a spy thriller set during the EU negotiations. Charles Thoroughgood is the head of MI6. The secret service is forbidden from spying on the EU, but when an EU official volunteers information about the negotiations, it seems too good an opportunity to miss. The trouble is, the mole — known only by the code name Timber Wolf — might not actually be real. Thoroughgood investigates the veracity of the source, taking the place of Timber Wolf’s usual contact, and

Wednesday

Isabel Hardman

Jeremy Corbyn makes pointless Brexit meeting all about him

This evening, Jeremy Corbyn walked out of a meeting between opposition party leaders and the Prime Minister about Brexit. The reason for his angry protest had nothing to do with what was being discussed, but his distaste for one of the attendees. Former Labour MP Chuka Umunna was there to represent the Independent Group, and this, according to those present, was too much for the Labour leader to stomach. Labour has since said the the terms of the meeting had changed and that this wasn’t what Corbyn had agreed to when he said he would meet the Prime Minister in her office. But this is an impressive own goal, even

James Forsyth James Forsyth

May says little new in statement as she again attacks MPs for failing to make a decision

Theresa May’s statement tonight wasn’t particularly dramatic. She had no new policies to announce or arguments to make. Rather, she once again attempted to frame the choice before MPs as her deal, no deal or no Brexit. She tried to position herself as the defender of the referendum result and attacked MPs for failing to take a decision. As a political journalist my reaction to the statement was, is that it? But the question is whether the attack on MPs for the endless motions and amendments and for not talking about anything else will resonate with the public, and lead to them putting pressure on their MPs to back the

James Forsyth James Forsyth

What Theresa May revealed to Boris Johnson

In the House of Commons today, Theresa May indicated that she would quit as Prime Minister if the UK hadn’t left the EU by the 30th of June. She was, in effect, suggesting that if MPs vote down her deal again next week, they’ll be making her departure from Downing Street more likely. But this is the opposite of the promise many Tories want her to give. A growing number of senior figures in the party believe that May should say that she’ll go if her deal passes. In other words, vote for the deal and then you can pick a new Prime Minister. They believe that this carrot might

Lloyd Evans Lloyd Evans

‘Weak, weak, weak’ – May battered from both sides at PMQs

The Brexit kerfuffle has been so much fun that she wants three more months of it. That was the PM’s message to parliament today. At the start of this rowdy session some members seem to think they could terminate May’s career live on TV. Pete Wishart, the first member called, laid into her mishandling of Brexit and flung three blunt syllables at her, ‘weak, weak, weak.’ This struck the wrong note. Too brutal. And rather cheap to use a phrase coined by Tony Blair to undermine John Major. There was a hint that the PM wishes to retain control of her destiny. She laid special emphasis on her official rank

Katy Balls Katy Balls

May tries to avoid Tory meltdown by only requesting short Brexit delay

After much speculation, a furious Cabinet and the threat of another backbench rebellion, No. 10 has finally confirmed what type of Article 50 extension Theresa May will seek at Thursday’s EU council summit. Downing Street has said May will not ask for a long delay. Instead, the Prime Minister will seek a brief extension of a couple of months. The source added that May shares the public’s ‘frustration’ at the failure by Parliament to ‘take a decision’. May’s decision comes after her position looked increasingly under threat were she to seek a long extension – potentially of up to two years. At Cabinet on Tuesday, ministers made clear their displeasure

Tuesday

James Kanagasooriam

Why Remainers were shocked by the referendum result, but Leavers less so

When I quit investment banking in search of daylight in 2014 I thought my life was going to be little easier crunching numbers for political campaigns. It wasn’t to be. Over the last few years, I’ve worked on the Scottish independence referendum in 2014, the 2015 general election, the Scottish Holyrood election in 2016, the EU referendum and the 2017 snap election. What I’ve never been able to wrap my head around through all these campaigns is why we’ve seen so many political upsets. Just why has the political consensus been wrong so often these past five years? When I worked on the Remain campaign, the upending of the consensus

Robert Peston Robert Peston

Cabinet ministers clash over length of Brexit extension

The PM presented choices to the Cabinet for the letter she is expected to write to the EU’s President Donald Tusk requesting a Brexit delay – without nailing down precisely what she will do. That said, her ministers think she will request a delay until 30 June, predicated on her somehow getting her deal ratified by MPs – with an option of an extension to the end of 2020 in the event she ever concedes her own Brexit plan is definitely an ex-parrot (or dead, for the few of you too young to remember Monty Python). May’s hope is that if this delay schedule is agreed as a legally binding

James Forsyth James Forsyth

Why the DUP are worried about Tory succession | 19 March 2019

It is the morning after the Bercow before, and it seems pretty much certain that there won’t be a meaningful vote 3 until after the European Council. Whatever is decided there on an extension, should be enough for the government to say that the package is different enough to justify bringing it back for another vote. But there is no point in the government bringing it back for another vote unless it has a chance of winning that vote, and it won’t have that without the DUP. I understand that these negotiations are going relatively well. But one of those familiar with DUP thinking tells me that one concern they

Monday

James Forsyth

May should pledge to resign – it’s not too late to save her legacy

Allies of Theresa May have long talked about how she wants her legacy to be about more than Brexit. But the brutal truth is that there is no such legacy available to her. Rather, her choice is between being the Prime Minister who got a withdrawal agreement through or the one who had to ask for a long, humiliating extension. If May wants to increase the chances of the former being her legacy and not the latter, then she is going to have to promise to go at some point before the next meaningful vote. Earlier today, one office holder in the ERG told me that if May said she