Brexit: When will MPs vote on Boris Johnson’s deal?
Parliament will gather today for its first Saturday sitting in 37 years as MPs meet for a crunch vote on Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal.
What time will Parliament sit?
The House of Commons will sit at 09:30 BST with the finish time currently unknown.
Peers will sit in the House of Lords at 10:00 with a finish time of 15:00
What will happen first?
Proceedings will begin with a statement from Prime Minister Boris Johnson who will likely field a number of questions on his Brexit deal from MPs.
This will likely take around two hours before the main debate on the deal follows.
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Commons Speaker John Bercow will then reveal which amendments have been selected.
An as of yet unconfirmed government minister will then open the debate.
What time will the vote on the Brexit deal begin?
The vote on Johnson’s Brexit deal is likely to begin after 14:30.
Votes on any amendments selected by the Speaker will be held first, so it is not clear when the Prime Minister’s deal will be voted on.
It’s likely things will become clearer throughout the morning.
What happens if MPs vote for Johnson’s Brexit deal?
If the motion is passed without any amendments it will be the first stage of the government making it into law.
The withdrawal amendment bill could then be presented to parliament early next week as the government move quickly to meet the 31 October deadline.
If it is passed with amendments then a delay to Brexit becomes more likely.
What happens if MPs reject the Brexit deal?
If the deal is rejected then there may be a chance to vote in favour of a no-deal Brexit, which is currently listed as a second government motion on Saturday’s order paper.
Having previously outright rejected the idea of this and formed the Benn Act – requiring the Prime Minister to request an extension to Brexit – it is unlikely to pass.
Johnson will then have to write to the EU asking for an extension beyond 31 October to be granted.
What are the proposed amendments?
Three amendments have been tabled by MPs so far, but Bercow will select which are debated.
The SNP have tabled two, with one seeking to revoke Article 50 and another requesting an extension to Brexit.
Read more: Emmanuel Macron says he will veto a Brexit delay if MPs do not vote for Johnson’s deal
A third with cross-party support is more likely to be selected and was tabled by former Tory MP Oliver Letwin.
His amendment is seeking to withhold House of Commons approval of the deal until the legislation to implement the agreement is passed.
It has backing from Labour’s Hilary Benn, Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson and Plaid Cymru’s Westminster leader Liz Saville Roberts, as well as former ministers David Gauke and Philip Hammond.
The purpose is to prevent a no-deal Brexit should MPs change their mind as the legislation passes through parliament and would require Johnson to seek an extension until 31 January regardless of it being voted for or not.