‘Worst Deal in History’: Mass Exodus of Ministers over May’s Brexit Betrayal

Seven MPs have resigned from their posts in response to the prime minister’s draft agreement with the EU, deemed the “worst deal in history” by Brexit leader Nigel Farage.

Breitbart London lists the ministers who have resigned on Thursday, November 15th, in response to May’s draft Brexit deal with the European Union:

Rehman Chishti, Tory Party Vice-Chairman

The MP for Gillingham and Rainham said the deal did not deliver the promises made to the British people in the Tory party’s manifesto – that leaving would mean leaving the Customs Union and the Single Market.

In his resignation letter, Mr Chishti wrote: “The terms of the backstop in effect amount in my view to a hybrid membership of the EU customs union and single market and further the EU would have a veto over our ability to exit.

“The UK in effect will be a part of a system where it will be a rule taker without any say on the rules.”

Ranil Jayawardena, Parliamentary Private Secretary

Writing in his resignation letter to the prime minister Thursday afternoon, Mr Jayawardena said: “I cannot agree, in the cold light of day, that the deal in front of us today is right for our country. It does not deliver a good and fair Brexit.”

“This is not taking back control,” he added.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan, Parliamentary Private Secretary

Ms Trevelyan wrote Thursday morning: “I cannot agree to a deal in which my country will have its unique innovative spirit crushed by removing the great opportunity of competitive advantage for decades ahead.”

Suella Braverman, Brexit Minister

Ms Braverman has resigned over objections to the Northern Ireland backstop which she writes “is not Brexit,”  saying it threatens to “break up our precious union.”

“These concessions do not respect the will of the people… we must not let them down,” she added.

Esther McVey, Work and Pensions Secretary

The minister also resigned over the Northern Irish issue, writing that the deal struck with the EU “threatens the integrity of the United Kingdom.”

“The British people have always been ahead of politicians on this issue, and it will be no good trying to pretend to them that this deal honours the result of the referendum when it is obvious to everyone it doesn’t,” she added.

Dominic Raab, Brexit Secretary

The Northern Ireland issue is a sticking point, also, for the second Brexit secretary to have resigned under May. Raab wrote that he could not support the regulatory regime proposed for Northern Ireland, which he said “presents a very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom,” nor the backstop arrangements.

Shailesh Vara, Northern Ireland Minister

Mr Vara tended his resignation just an hour before Raab, telling the BBC on Thursday morning that “I quit because I don’t believe that this is the right agreement for our country.”

And here are the prior resignations made in response to May’s Chequers plan and handling of Brexit:

Jo Johnson, Transport Minister, Resigned 9 November

The Remain-supporting brother of Boris, Jo resigned claiming the Prime Minister had left the UK facing a choice between “vassalage and chaos” — and backed calls for a so-called “people’s vote” on the terms of the deal.

Guto Bebb, Defence Minister, Resigned 17 July

The Welsh minister resigned, saying that “the Brexit that is being delivered today could not be further from what was promised” and backed a second referendum on the terms of the deal.

Boris Johnson, Foreign Secretary, Resigned 9 July

Mr Johnson resigned in response to May’s soft Brexit plans, writing that “That dream [of Brexit] is dying, suffocated by needless self-doubt” and that the UK is “truly headed for the status of a colony [of the EU].”

David Davis, Brexit Secretary, Resigned 8 July

The resignation came the day after the prime minister revealed her soft Brexit Chequers plan at her country retreat in July.

Mr Davis wrote in his resignation letter that the plan “hands control of large swathes of our economy to the EU and is certainly not returning control of our laws in any real sense”.

Steve Baker, Brexit Minister, Resigned 8 July

Mr Baker’s resignation followed swiftly on from that of Mr Davis’s, saying: “The reality here is that leaving the European Union is a very difficult process; one of the issues is that… the establishment in this country does not want to leave the European Union.”

Philip Lee, Defence Minister, Resigned 12 June

The defence minister resigned and accused the government of trying to “limit” Parliament’s role. He also called for another referendum, and claimed that Brexit would hurt business.

Other resignations

A number of Parliamentary Private Secretaries have also resigned in recent months, including Leaver Andrea Jenkyns, who resigned May, to focus on Brexit. Ms Jenkyns then said in July that “Theresa May’s premiership is over” and called for her to be replaced.

Other PPSs to resigned were Scott Mann, Robert Courts, Conor Burns, and Chris Green who resigned in July in response to May’s Chequers plan. Conservative Party vice chairmen Ben Bradley and Maria Caulfield also resigned in July over the proposal.