Letter from Parliament: Tony Lloyd MP

I have been an elected politician for many years now, but the last two weeks have been the most extraordinary time in Parliament that I can remember. The government have lost three votes in the Commons, as well as withdrawing a major debate in order to prevent yet another defeat, but it is difficult to get across the real human drama of these past two weeks by the written word.

Everything was there in Parliament, arrogance, stubbornness, betrayal, as well as those who genuinely seek to fight for our national interest and clashing egos in conflict with those who seek to serve our nation. But like all human institutions, Parliament is like that, but rarely on display so rawly.

Last week began with the government receiving real pressure from all parties in the Commons, including large parts of its own party, to publish the Attorney General’s legal advice on the EU Withdrawal Bill. Some weeks back the House of Commons had voted that that legal advice should be made public.

In a bizarre twist, whilst the government argued that the advice should not be published, it refused to vote against Labour’s motion to publish which was then carried unanimously and was therefore the will of the British people exercised through its Parliament and a very clear instruction to Theresa May.

In fact, her government had got something to hide and still refused to publish. So, in a procedure that I’ve never seen before and in what was genuinely a historic moment, the government was found ‘to be in contempt of Parliament’. It is true to say that there was a lot of anger over the government’s contempt (from across Parliament and indeed, across the country) which is why so many MPs of all parties voted for this motion.

Later, when the government finally published the legal advice, it was obvious that there were no state secrets in the documents, but it was hugely embarrassing for Theresa May. This is because it revealed that the so-called ‘Irish backstop’ could be there permanently. The backstop is the name which has been given to the section of the Withdrawal Agreement which keeps Northern Ireland in a permanent customs agreement with the EU, if we fail to agree a long-term deal on time.

Then, a Conservative MP, Dominic Grieve, moved an amendment that would give Parliament the chance to vote on an alternative withdrawal plan, should Mrs May’s Brexit deal be rejected. This really is important as most people think that Theresa May’s deal cannot win a majority in our Parliament. The amendment was voted on and the government lost.

Parliament then began what was meant to be a five-day debate on the deal (eight hours of continuous debate each day) and for three days, speaker after speaker from across the Commons, with the rare exception of those supporting Theresa May, made their real unhappiness clear about the Prime Minister’s proposal that she had brought back from Brussels.

Rumours began to circulate over the weekend that the government were planning to postpone both the debate and the vote on the deal. This is so unusual that at first these rumours were laughed off. But the rumours persisted, and we saw Government ministers being trotted out over the weekend and up until early Monday morning to deny that this was their plan. But sure enough, at around 11.30am came the announcement that this was indeed the case and the government had cancelled the debate. In a bizarre twist it seems that Mrs May had told EU colleagues that this was her strategy, before she even told her own Cabinet members. She really does keep her cards close to her chest and doesn’t trust her colleagues. I was due to speak Monday evening to wind up the debate on behalf of the official opposition, but that speech, I suspect, will now never get to be heard.

Theresa May claims she is taking the time now to gain better assurances from the EU regarding the backstop, but very few people believe that she’ll come away with any real changes and that the plan is still doomed.

By Wednesday, when the Prime Minister came to face Parliament at Prime Ministers Questions, her critics from the Conservative party had slapped down a vote of no confidence. This vote had been anticipated for weeks, as it is crystal clear that the Conservative party is bitterly divided, from hard line Brexiteers, government loyalists and those who fear we could slide into a no-deal Brexit. And let’s not forget those like Boris Johnson whose main aim is to promote himself.

I will say one thing about Theresa May, as she stood at the Despatch Box (where Prime Minister’s stand in the Commons), and took question after question from her party critics, she looked scarcely affected. Mrs May is resilient, stubborn her critics would say, but even at this moment where her political weakness was on display, she looked unmoved.

The result of the no confidence vote came in late in the evening, and as most people expected, the Prime Minister won a majority. However, what was a surprise and is significant is that over a third of her MPs voted against her and do not have confidence in her abilities to negotiate a credible deal. She can no longer command a Parliamentary majority on a regular basis which is the only basis for strong and stable government.

So where does this leave us? Well, Labour pressed and will continue to press for this debate to be brought back to Parliament quickly so that we can have the meaningful vote which we demanded. I had hoped this would come before Christmas because uncertainty is one of the consequences we are suffering from as a nation. Our businesses cannot plan for the future and time is running out. However, the government has now told us that the vote won’t come until January.

I still firmly believe that the Prime Minister’s Brexit agreement will be defeated heavily but only then can we move on. At that point Mrs May has a choice and it’s a tough one for her. She can reach out to the hard-line Brexiteers and face certain defeat. Or she can put country before party by reaching out to Labour and other opposition parties and win a majority on this one issue. Yes, she would have to agree to a permanent customs agreement for the whole of the UK as well as the same standards on employment, environmental and consumer rights as people enjoy across the EU. That’s what can build a majority in our Parliament as well as bringing the country back together.

It is her choice now but it’s the only way she can win. If she refuses, it is hard to see how she can go on. But Parliament will have to seize control and prevent a no deal outcome, which would be so nationally disastrous.