Brexit veto bid defeated by MPs

Brexit - PA

A bid to give Parliament a veto on Theresa May's final Brexit deal was defeated last night - despite a mini Tory rebellion.

MPs voted 326 to 293 against an attempt by Labour's Chris Leslie to give the Commons and House of Lords a vote on the agreement the Prime Minister returns from Brussels with.

The comfortable government victory came despite seven Conservative MPs voting with the opposition and some others - including former chancellor George Osborne and former education secretary Nicky Morgan - abstaining.

Brexit minister David Jones had earlier appeared to offer a significant concession by confirming MPs will be given a binding vote on Mrs May's deal before the European Parliament passes its own judgement on the agreement.

But Downing Street later insisted he had merely been re-stating the Government's existing position, and that the vote would not force the Prime Minister back to the negotiating table, as Labour had been demanding.

"What the minister has said today is confirmation of what we've always said - we would offer parliament more certainty and clarity on the approach to exiting the EU," said a spokesman.

"It will be a choice between accepting a deal that has been agreed or leaving the EU without a deal."

To the astonishment of many of his colleagues, Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer hailed the Government move as "a significant victory for parliament".

He added: "Labour has repeatedly said that Parliament must have a meaningful vote on any final Brexit deal – that means MPs are able to vote on the final deal before it is concluded; that the Commons has a debate and vote before the European Parliament does; and that the vote will cover withdrawal from the EU as well as our future relationship with the EU.

"This eleventh hour concession is therefore welcome, but it needs to be firmed up as the Bill progresses through both Houses."

One senior Labour MP told Holyrood's sister site PoliticsHome: "All of us sitting behind him were left scratching our heads. He ended up defending the Government's concession more than the Government were."

Nicky Morgan - who was seen having a row with Tory chief whip Gavin Williamson while the vote was going on - made clear her unhappiness on Twitter. "Govt did make a concession but for No 10 to then brief there was no change & Minister to undermine it makes no sense," she said.

SNP International Affairs spokesperson, Alex Salmond MP said the Government's majority was shrinking as the process went on.

"If it hadn't been for the government concession of a Commons vote on a deal before the European Parliament then things would have been tighter yet. On this basis, the House of Lords would be perfectly entitled to insist on that concession being incorporated onto the face of the Bill.

“Opposition is growing to a hard Tory Brexit and this vote combined with the overwhelming vote in the Scottish Parliament today against invoking article 50 shows that the UK government is not as secure on this issue as their arrogance would suggest."