LONDON - Prime Minister Theresa May set
out on Tuesday a "new deal" for Britain's departure from the
European Union, offering sweeteners to opposition parties in her
fourth attempt to break an impasse in parliament over Brexit.
Three years since Britain voted to leave the EU and almost
two months after the planned departure date, May is mounting a
last bid to try to get the deeply divided parliament's backing
for a divorce deal and leave office with some kind of legacy.
The odds do not look good. Despite offering what she
described as "significant further changes", many lawmakers,
hardened in their positions, have already decided not to vote
next month for the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, legislation which
implements the terms of Britain's departure.
Speaking at the headquarters of PricewaterhouseCoopers, May
appealed to lawmakers to get behind her deal, offering the
prospect of a possible second referendum on the agreement and
closer trading arrangements with the EU as incentives.
"I say with conviction to every MP or every party: I have
compromised, now I ask you to compromise," she said.
"We have been given a clear instruction by the people we are
supposed to represent, so help me find a way to honour that
instruction, move our country and our politics and build the
better future that all of us want to see."
By offering the possibility of holding a second vote on her
deal and a compromise on customs arrangements, May hopes to win
over opposition Labour lawmakers, whose votes she needs to
overcome resistance in her own Conservative Party.
But she has infuriated Brexit-supporting lawmakers, who have
described a customs union with the EU as no Brexit at all.
Simon Clarke, a Conservative lawmaker, said on Twitter he
had backed her deal during its third failed attempt in
parliament, "but this speech from the PM means there is no way I
will support the Withdrawal Agreement Bill".
"So if we pass the Withdrawal Agreement Bill at 2nd reading,
we allow a Remain Parliament to insist upon a 2nd referendum and
a Customs Union? This is outrageous," he said.
CONCESSIONS
May's movement towards what many describe as the "Remain"
lawmakers, who want to stay in the EU, is a shift for a prime
minister who has long said she is against a second referendum
and staying in a customs union with the bloc.
She may be counting on the fact that parliament has yet to
vote in favour of a second referendum and that a "temporary"
customs union might just be weak enough for some in her party to
accept.
But it signals how her earlier strategy, to keep Brexit
supporters on board, has failed and the last-ditch attempt to
get Labour on board, some lawmakers say, is simply too little,
too late.
Earlier, John McDonnell, Labour's finance policy chief, cast
doubt on whether it could win the party's support, saying what
he had seen so far "doesn't inspire confidence, and I don't
think that many of our members will be inspired by it".
Brexit-supporting Conservatives were equally unconvinced.
David Jones, a former minister, described the speech as
"unacceptable" and predicted that the move just before
Thursday's elections to the European Parliament would only buoy
support for veteran eurosceptic Nigel Farage's Brexit Party.
"I believe more Conservatives will vote against it," he told
Reuters. "Regrettably, it will probably also boost the Brexit
Party vote on Thursday."
May wants to get her withdrawal deal, agreed with the EU
last November, through parliament so she can leave office, as
promised, having at least finalised the first part of Britain's
departure and prevented a "no deal" Brexit, an abrupt departure
that many businesses fear will create an economic shock.
Finance minister, Philip Hammond, rammed the point home in
parliament on Tuesday when he said a no-deal Brexit would leave
Britain poorer. He is expected to send the same message to
business leaders in a speech later in the day.
"The 2016 Leave campaign was clear that we would leave with
a deal," he will say, according to advance extracts.
"So to advocate for 'no deal' is to hijack the result of the
referendum, and in doing so, knowingly to inflict damage on our
economy and our living standards. Because all the preparation in
the world will not avoid the consequences of no deal."