Report: British PM expected to delay Brexit vote
LONDON Will she or will she not delay the Brexit vote?
According to the Sunday Times, British Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to delay tomorrow's key parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal and head to Brussels next week to demand better terms from the European Union.
The newspaper cited "ministers and aides" who said they expected her to announceshe was delaying the vote.
It is widely expected that she will lose, and ministers are concerned the scale of defeat will be such that it could bring down her government.
A government spokesman denied there will be a delay and said: "The vote is going ahead on Tuesday."
British junior Brexit Minister Kwasi Kwarteng backed this up yesterday.
He told Sky News: "My understanding is that we will have a vote on Tuesday, and we are looking to win that vote. We have a good shot of winning."
The Sunday Times, however, claimed the denial will be the official stand until the delay is announced.
With her own future in the balance, Mrs May has repeatedly insisted her deal, which envisages continued close ties with the EU, is the only one on the table and that the alternatives are a painful "no-deal" exit from the EU or possibly no Brexit at all.
But the pressure on Mrs May mounted after Conservative lawmaker Will Quince quit his government role on Saturday in opposition to her deal, and the Sunday Times said more resignations were expected.
One minister said he would quit if the vote went ahead, and the newspaper said at least two Brexit-backing ministers and two members of the whips office were on the verge of resigning.
The paper also said some ministers were planning for a second referendum on EU membership, naming Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington and Justice Secretary David Gauke as those considering that as a possible outcome. - REUTERS
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