- Up to 30 Labour MPs that have hinted they could back Boris Johnson’s new Brexit deal.
- The Sun reports that Mr Johnson believes he can get the Tory rebels below 10.
The Sun is revisiting the news that had been circulating prior in the week with respect to there being up to 30 Labour MPs that have hinted they could back Boris Johnson’s new Brexit deal to help the Prime Minister force the proposal through Parliament.
The Sun reports that Mr Johnson believes he can get the Tory rebels below 10, while the DUP have also backed his deal. The Prime Minister needs 320 votes for a Commons majority.
“Mr Johnson yesterday set out proposals that would in effect keep Northern Ireland in the EU single market for all goods while following UK customs rules.
He claimed the compromise allowed a “meaningful Brexit” without the need for physical checks on the border.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn blasted the plan saying: “It’s worse than Theresa May’s deal.”
He ordered Labour MPs to frustrate Mr Johnson’s “reckless” attempt to take the UK out of the EU.
However Labour MP Stephen Kinnock last night said up to 30 of his colleagues could be persuaded to back the plans – if Mr Johnson can strike a deal with Brussels.
Mr Kinnock said: “If Dublin and Brussels are happy, then we’re happy”.
Fellow Labour MPs Gareth Snell and Ruth Smeeth, who represent Leave-voting seats, also suggested they would support Mr Johnson’s deal.
Five Labour MPs voted for Theresa May’s deal when she tried to force it through Parliament at the third time of asking: Kevin Barron, Jim Fitzpatrick, Rosie Cooper, Caroline Flint and John Mann.
Other Labour MPs who could rebel against Mr Corbyn include Melanie Onn, Sarah Champion and Emma Lewell-Buck.
Mr Corbyn said today that “no Labour MP could support such a reckless deal that will be used as a springboard to attack rights and standards in this country”.
He described it as a “Trump-deal Brexit that would crash our economy and rip away the standards that put a floor under people’s rights at work, that protect our environment and protect our consumers.”
However Mr Johnson’s proposals have been rejected by the Irish government and left EU leaders “unconvinced”.
Irish Premier Leo Varadkar said the Brexit plan “falls short in a number of aspects” while his deputy Simon Coveney said “if that is the final proposal, there will be no deal”.
And Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, said he told Boris Johnson “we remain open but still unconvinced” during talks today.
Jean Claude-Juncker last night praised his “determination to make progress” and commitment that Northern Ireland will align with all relevant EU rules.
But Mr Juncker warned there were “problematic points” over Mr Johnson’s vow to give Stormont a rolling veto.”
This article follows the news at the start of the week where the Telegraph reported that a so-called “rebel alliance” emerged from a cross-party meeting riven by infighting, having failed to agree on a strategy to prevent Mr Johnson from delivering Brexit by Oct 31.
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