Let Parliament Vote on Deal This Week So There is Time to Change it, Says Brexiteer Davis

Former Brexit Secretary David Davis has said Parliament should be allowed to vote on Theresa May’s Brexit proposal as early as this week.

The leading Brexiteer said the early vote would help avoid a Tory civil war and allow the Prime Minister the time needed to push for a better deal before the official divorce date in March 2019.

Many Brexiteers want a guarantee that the UK will be able to leave the bloc’s Customs Union, and will not be blocked by the European Union (EU) from taking back control of trade policy – something not included in Mrs May’s current proposals.

“The reason the party is in disarray is because a large part of it doesn’t like this deal and fears that it would be faced with a take-it-or-leave it in late December,” Mr Davis told the Huffington Post website.

He continued: “That’s what’s driving a lot of people, that we are going to run out of time. The proper way to resolve the issue is to put the deal to the Commons as soon as possible, ideally this week.

“There’s very little on the agenda in the Commons this Thursday, for example. There’s no need to wait for the EU council because this [deal] was approved by the Commission.

“If Parliament decides to reject it, then the Commission has got to deal with the fact that it is unacceptable to Parliament.

“It might choose to walk away and say in that case there’s no deal, I think it’s highly unlikely, but it puts the ball in their court.”

A spokesman for the Prime Minister said he was “not aware of any plans” to schedule a vote on the deal this week.

Mrs May has previously argued that critics must accept her deal and premiership as there is no other option, nor enough time to select a new Prime Minister before the divorce date.

“A change of leadership at this point isn’t going to make the negotiations any easier and it isn’t going to change the parliamentary arithmetic,” she said on Sunday.

Adding: “What it will do is mean that it is a risk that we delay the negotiations and that is a risk that Brexit gets delayed or frustrated.”