DUP abstain from key votes sending Brexit warning to Theresa May

Theresa May has suffered a fresh blow tonight as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) abstained on several key Finance Bill votes, breaking a voting deal and sending a warning to the government.

Just hours earlier DUP leader Arlene Foster had said May should demand a better Brexit deal.

The confidence and supply agreement negotiated by Foster kept May in number 10 after her Conservative party failed to secure a majority at last year's general election.

But the DUP's 10 MPs abstained on two votes on the Finance Bill and eight then voted against the government on an amendment put forward by Labour in a clear threat to the future of the agreement.

Earlier this evening Foster said May's draft Brexit deal could undermine the integrity of the UK.

“I appreciate the concerns people have about a no deal but should not be a binary choice,” she said in a statement.

“It is absolutely clear that it is time to work for a better deal.”

Speaking at the CBI annual conference earlier today, the Prime Minister stood by her draft withdrawal agreement urging the public to listen to businesses who “want a good deal”.

She said: “We have in view a deal that will work for the UK and, let no one be in any doubt, I am determined to deliver it.

“We are not talking about political theory but the reality of people's lives and livelihoods.

“While the world is changing fast, our geography is not: Europe will always be our most proximate goods market, and ensuring we have free-flowing borders is crucial.”