House of Lords to attempt to rush through bill to prevent no-deal Brexit
The House of Lords will this morning debate a bill to stop Britain crashing out of the European Union without a deal, after it was voted through the House of Commons last night by only one vote.
Read more: Brexit delay wins MPs' support by a margin of a single vote
The bill, which would instruct Prime Minister Theresa May to seek an extension of the leaving period to provide more time for other options, was yesterday rushed through a process that can take months, even years, in only six hours.
This morning the upper chamber will attempt to repeat the feat, debating and approving the bill in just a day so that it can become law. The Lords will begin the debate at 10.30 am.
The government opposed the bill in the Commons last night, saying it had already said it would request an extension.
Yesterday also saw the Prime Minister meet with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in Downing Street after she pledged to find a new way to get her deal through parliament by appealing to the opposition.
Corbyn said after the first round of talks that May had not moved as far as he had hoped.
“There hasn’t been as much change as I expected,” Corbyn said. He said he had pushed for a customs union with the EU and access to the single market, ideas which are anathema to some Tory Brexiters.
The Labour leader said: “I also raised the option of a public vote to prevent crashing out or leaving on a bad deal.” This was a cautious formulation of words from a leader under pressure from his party membership to fully support a second referendum on any deal.
He added yesterday evening: “We will have further discussions tomorrow to explore technical issues.”
Defending May’s decision to enter talks with the Labour leader, health secretary Matt Hancock said on BBC Breakfast this morning: “It is important sometimes in life to compromise.”
“The Prime Minister has done everything she possibly can to get that deal through, and so the only option left open to her is to seek Labour votes,” he said.
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As wrangling over Brexit continued, the EU announced that Britons visiting the bloc for under three months would not need a visa so long as the UK was prepared to offer the same arrangement.
The system would apply regardless of whether Britain left the EU with a deal or without one.