The Brexit deal has been rejected three times and there currently is no other deal agreed with the European Union. Parliament failed to
find a majority against any separation deal. The direction of Brexit continues
to be up in the air. In response to the rejection, the lawmakers tried to pass
four last minute alternative Brexit options, all
of which were defeated. The only option that came close was keeping
Britain in a Customs Union with the EU, however it was defeated by three votes.
Brexit minister Steven Barclay said that the default
position was still that Britain would leave the EU on April 12th
without a deal. Barclay explained that Britain could try and put their deal up
for a fourth vote and hope that it passes -- otherwise it will be a nightmare for
many international businesses. Due to the stall in the Brexit the sterling fell
almost 1 percent, which is already showing negative effects.
3 comments:
With so many alternatives being proposed, which shows there is still strong resistance to Brexit amongst the U.K.’s parliament, it is not a surprise that there are already starting to be negative effects on their sterling. Perhaps the date for departure being moved back to April 12th will give lawmakers for time to devise new alternative policies. Whatever the case, the date is fast approaching and many around the world will be holding their breaths after its’ enactment to watch how the U.K. fares outside the reach of the European Union.
Bri,
While I may not be as rehearsed on this topic as others, these deadlocks seem to be unnecessary. Again, I do not know the parliamentary/EU procedures or regulations regarding Brexit, but there seems to be a lack of communication in Britain. Since the first defeat, Theresa May should have gone to the members of Parliament to hash out a deal - what it would take for them to sign off on it. These delays could have demonstrated too much leniency on the EU's part as well as a lack of cohesiveness for Britain.
Prime Minister May sits in the precarious position of not being able to reach a deal agreeable to a majority of Parliament. In 2017 Prime Minister May called a snap election thinking she could increase the Conservative Majority in the House of Commons only to discover that she was bumped out of a majority to a mere plurality by the opposition labor party winning a larger share of the vote than they had in 16 years. Thus requiring May to agree to a Confidence and Supply agreement with the Democratic Unionist Party, an ultra-Protestant Northern Irish Party. All of May's proposals have effectively left Northern Ireland in the E.U. and have created a border within the country which the DUP has opposed. Thus effectively leaving May in power but without enough votes to get her proposal through.
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