May vows to see her Brexit deal through

Theresa May remains defiant as she vows to see her Brexit deal through, while speculation grows that cabinet minister Michael Gove is considering quitting over it.

It is understood Gove rejected May’s offer to make him Brexit secretary because she would not let him renegotiate the deal.

Dominic Raab quit the role on Thursday over "fatal flaws" in the agreement.

May told LBC on Friday morning that she believed this was "truly the best deal for Britain".

Meanwhile, Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson has said another EU referendum is now "more likely" than it has ever been before.

He claimed the chances of a "people's vote" have risen as a result of the chaos which has hit May's attempts to get Brexit through Parliament.

A YouGov survey of 1,153 Britons taken overnight suggests the Prime Minister’s claim that her terms would “take back control” from the EU has been firmly dismissed by the public.

A majority now want a fresh public vote if the government deal is voted down, with a choice on the ballot paper to keep Britain’s place in the EU rather than crashing out with no protection, the survey suggests.

Key findings of the poll, which was commissioned by the People’s Vote campaign for a second referendum, show that voters have changed their minds about Brexit and would now vote to stay in the EU, with 54 per cent voting Remain, versus 46 per cent Leave.

The government unveiled its long-awaited draft withdrawal agreement on Wednesday, which sets out the terms of the UK's departure from the EU.

Answering callers' questions about the plan on LBC radio, May said her job was to persuade MPs from all parties that the agreement was in their constituents' interests.

Former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab and Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey both quit on Thursday over the agreement.

May is facing opposition across the political spectrum, with one of her own backbenchers, Mark Francois, warning that it was "dead on arrival" and would never get the backing of MPs.

The draft agreement has also upset leading Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg, who said he and others had submitted letters of no confidence in Mrs May to the chairman of the Conservatives' backbench 1922 Committee.

Forty eight letters are needed to trigger a confidence vote.

Former Culture Secretary John Whittingdale has become the latest Tory MP to submit a letter.