The British Parliament has voted with a majority of 30 in favour for the next stage of passing the Withdrawal Agreement Bill, but has given the government a defeat on the timetable for passing the bill into law.
A majority of 14 voted against the short time-frame the government planned to get the bill through Parliament in time for the UK to leave the EU by October 31st.
In response, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that he would “pause” the bill’s passage through Parliament until a decision is made by EU member states regarding an extension to Article 50.
The votes in Parliament now make Britain’s exit from the EU on October 31st very unlikely.
It also marks the first time that MPs have backed a deal at any stage for leaving the European Union.
Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Opposition, said “the Prime Minister is the author of his own misfortune” and offered to work with him to arrange a reasonable timetable for the bill.
It was widely expected that the second reading of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill would pass the House of Commons, with 19 Labour MPs rebelling against the party to back the government’s bill.
Instead of debating the Brexit bill, the House of Commons will now debate the Queen’s Speech, a major vote for the Government. Should they lose, there will be extreme pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to call a vote of no confidence in the Government or call for a general election.
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