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Brexit: Theresa May defeated in critical vote on key EU withdrawal law Brexit: Theresa May's EU summit marred by embarrassing defeat at hands of Tory rebels
(about 3 hours later)
The Government has been defeated by Conservative rebels and Labour MPs in a critical vote on its key piece of Brexit legislation. Theresa May is set to arrive in Brussels for a key EU summit on Thursday having suffered a damaging defeat in Parliament over her central piece of Brexit legislation.
MPs amended the EU Withdrawal Bill against Theresa May's will, so guaranteeing Parliament a "meaningful" vote on any Brexit deal she agrees with Brussels. The Prime Minister is to use the EU event to try and make the case for moving Brexit talks on to trade negotiations quickly, but European leaders will now be left wondering if she still has the political support in London to deliver any deal.
Ms May's whips applied heavy pressure on Conservative rebels who remained defiant in the Commons throughout the day and in the end the Government was defeated by 309 votes to 305, a margin of  just four votes. There were cheers from opposition MPs in the House of Commons when it emerged the Government had been forced to accept changes to its EU Withdrawal Bill, which it is now claimed will guarantee Parliament a “meaningful” final vote on any Brexit deal Ms May agrees.
Justice Minister Dominic Raab also sought to pick rebels off with concessions he offered from the Commons floor, but not enough backed down for Ms May to avoid her first defeat over the legislation. The embarrassing defeat – the first inflicted on Ms May as she pushes through her Brexit plans – came after Jeremy Corbyn ordered Labour MPs to back an amendment to her legislation proposed by ex-Conservative attorney general Dominic Grieve.
The setback is a major blow to Ms May' political authority, underlining how fragile her parliamentary majority is and also signalling that those who disagree with her Brexit plans are ready to cross a line in opposing their own leader. The result immediately exposed deep divisions on the Conservative benches, with reports of a heavy-handed Government whipping operation creating tension, blue-on-blue clashes in the Commons and one Tory rebel sacked from his senior party position within moments of opposing Ms May.
The Government remained defiant following the defeat, with a spokeswoman saying: "We are disappointed that Parliament has voted for this amendment despite the strong assurances that we have set out. Rebels braced themselves for a wave of abuse from the Brexit-backing media, but insisted they had no choice but to put principle before party and vote against the Government.
"We are as clear as ever that this Bill, and the powers within it, are essential. Ms May was supposed to enjoy something of a victory at the EU council summit on Thursday, expected to rubber-stamp the judgment that “sufficient progress” has been made on divorce issues to move on to the next phase of talks.
"This amendment does not prevent us from preparing our statute book for exit day. We will now determine whether further changes are needed to the Bill to ensure it fulfils its vital purpose." But with difficult obstacles already arising in Brussels, the defeat in London lays bare the difficulties Ms May will have in delivering anything she agrees on the continent.
But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose MPs backed Mr Grieve's proposals to change the Government's Bill, branded it a "humiliating" defeat for Ms May. Following the blow, the Government immediately hinted it may try a parliamentary counteroffensive later in the legislative process to undo the change forced upon it.
Conservative former attorney general Dominic Grieve led the rebellion via his amendment seven, which would require any Brexit deal to be approved by a separate Act of Parliament before it could be implemented. A Government spokeswoman said: “We are disappointed that Parliament has voted for this amendment despite the strong assurances that we have set out. We are as clear as ever that this Bill, and the powers within it, are essential.
He warned ministers they had "run out of road" and drew upon Winston Churchill's spirit as he said he intended to put "country before his party". She added: “We will now determine whether further changes are needed to the Bill to ensure it fulfils its vital purpose.”
In total 11 Tory MPs rebelled, including eight former frontbenchers. Ex-cabinet minister Nicky Morgan, among Conservatives who refused to budge, said: "Tonight Parliament took control of the EU Withdrawal process." The key vote in the Commons came over Mr Grieve’s amendment seven, with the legal expert insisting it was necessary to prevent Ms May's flagship Brexit legislation becoming a “very worrying tool of executive power”.
Stephen Hammond, another former minister, said he had voted against the Government with "a heavy heart" and said he thought the Government could have found a way out of the impasse had it been "swifter of foot" - he was later sacked from his Conservative party post. Up to now Ms May had promised Parliament a say of sorts over the final deal she agrees in Brussels, but as it stood it would be a ‘take it or leave it’ vote and ministers would retain powers to enact any deal without first gaining Parliament’s permission.
Anna Soubry MP also said: "Nobody takes any pleasure in the Government losing a vote." The change means the terms of any Brexit deal must now first be approved with a full Act of Parliament –effectively allowing MPs to re-write parts of the deal before any of it is implemented by Ms May.
As pressure increased on the Government earlier in the day, reports emerged that one Conservative MP thinking of rebelling had been reduced to tears following pressure from her party' whips, counter reports circulated that MPs had been threatened with legal action if they made false claims about the whipping operation. Ministers are now under heavy pressure to drop another part of Ms May’s proposals that would fix 29 March 2019 as Brexit day – opening the way for the Article 50 period to be extended to ensure Parliament can approve any deal before the UK drops out of the EU.
The issue flared at Prime Minister's Questions as Ms May rebuffed requests by rebels to accept their proposals for giving Parliament a meaningful vote. Tensions later boiled over in the Commons as Conservative MPs clashed on their own benches.  That part of the Bill was to be voted next week, but after the defeat Downing Street may conclude it will lose that too.
But it was in the main session that Mr Grieve told the Commons of his grave concerns over the potential for Ms May's flagship Brexit legislation to become a "very worrying tool of executive power". Ms May's whips applied heavy pressure on Conservative rebels and Justice Minister Dominic Raab offered minor concessions in the Commons, but rebels said it was too little too late.
He noted it would be the second time he has rebelled in his 20-and-a-half years as an MP, and said the Bill must be changed to require any final Brexit deal to be approved by a separate Act before it could be implemented. In the end the Government was defeated by 309 votes to 305, a margin of  just four votes. In total 11 Tory MPs voted against the Government, including eight former frontbenchers. A further Conservative MP abstained.
His amendment sought to change clause nine of the Bill, which provides the Government with the power to use secondary legislation to implement any Brexit deal - which would require less scrutiny from MPs. Speaking after the vote Mr Grieve struck a sorrowful tone, saying he “didn’t wish to rebel against the Government, it’s not something I make a habit of doing”.
Mr Raab made a last-ditch attempt to appease the would-be rebels but faced shouts of "too late" from some on his side. He added: “To my mind I had no option but to continue with this. I had hoped even during the course of the afternoon that the Government would try to do something.
He told MPs: "Having taken advice, and in particular having listened very carefully to the contributions by [Mr Grieve and Sir Oliver Letwin], the Government is willing - reflecting the mood of the House - to return at report stage with an amendment on the face of the Bill, making clear the undertaking and assurance that I gave in my speech that statutory instruments under clause nine will not enter into force until we've had a meaningful vote in Parliament." “But the proper thing to do was to table their own amendment, and so when five minutes before the end they come along and say well actually they are going to make a concession that was not fully explained, and I have to say falls a bit short of what’s needed, I had to make an immediate decision.”
But Mr Grieve said afterwards that the concessions were to late and had come with little explanation. Another ex-minister Stephen Hammond was sacked from his party role of Conservative vice-chairman after he rebelled with a “heavy heart”.
As Mrs May prepared to travel to a Brussels summit on Thursday where European Union leaders are expected to rubber-stamp Brexit negotiations moving on to trade, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: "This defeat is a humiliating loss of authority for the Government on the eve of the European Council meeting. He said afterwards: “I made it very clear that for me this was a point of principle and just occasionally in one’s life, one has to put principle before party.
"Labour has made the case since the referendum for a meaningful vote in Parliament on the terms of Britain's withdrawal from the European Union. “I know that sounds pompous, but I’ve never done it before.”
"Theresa May has resisted democratic accountability. Her refusal to listen means she will now have to accept Parliament taking back control." He added: “The Government could have been a little bit swifter of foot. I think there was a way out of this, we were all very close, but the Government chose not to go that way.”
Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake said: "MPs insisted on a meaningful vote and dismissed Ministers' eleventh hour attempts to buy off the rebels. Ex-cabinet minister Nicky Morgan, also among Conservatives who refused to budge, tweeted that Parliament had acted to take back “control of the EU Withdrawal process.”
"This is a momentous day for Parliament and a humiliating defeat for Theresa May." Meanwhile Anna Soubry MP said the Government had “got to stop playing silly games” and realise that times had changed since the Bill was drafted before the election, when Ms May had a Commons majority.
Labour said their whips’ efforts to convince Brexiteers in their own party to vote for Mr Grieve’s amendment had been crucial.
Leave-supporting Labour MPs all backed the Tory backbench amendment to inflict defeat on the Government.
Mr Corbyn said: “This defeat is a humiliating loss of authority for the Government on the eve of the European Council meeting.
"Labour has made the case since the referendum for a meaningful vote in Parliament on the terms of Britain's withdrawal from the European Union.”
Liberal Democrat Brexit Spokesperson Tom Brake said: “This is a momentous day for Parliament and a humiliating defeat for Theresa May.”
Conservative rebels were braced for a deluge of abuse from the Leave-backing media on Thursday, with Brexiteers in their own party already attacking them in and outside the chamber.
Nadine Dorries demanded her fellow Tory MPs be stripped of their seats in Parliament, tweeting that they had, “put a spring in Labours step, given them a taste of winning, guaranteed the party a weekend of bad press, undermined the PM and devalued her impact in Brussels.” 
Sir Desmond Swayne told the Commons the rebel amendments simply aimed to delay Brexit, dismissing them as “sanctimonious guff” and their Conservative backers as “idiots”.
He added: “Now we see the real motive and of course he was assisted by others, who comrade Lenin would have properly referred to as useful idiots.”
Senior Tory Bernard Jenkin said: “To dress this attempt to reverse Brexit as an argument in favour of parliamentary sovereignty is nothing but cant.”
Hours after the vote, Ms May was on her way to Brussels to push European leaders to begin discussing the EU’s future trade deal with Britain.
The Prime Minister needs Brexit talks to move on to trade as quickly as possible, but European negotiators are warning that how the ‘transition period’ plays out must be decided first.
It is an early sign that the withdrawal agreement – reached after torturous negotiations and including a UK commitment to pay some £39bn to Brussels – has not automatically opened the way to trade talks.
A leaked draft of a text to be considered by the EU27 leaders on Friday suggests that trade talks may not start until after a subsequent summit in March.
The Cabinet, let alone the wider Conservative party in the Commons, is split over how the transition will take place, giving rise to concerns over how easy it will be for Ms May to deliver an agreed position in the light of the Commons defeat.
The European Parliament's chief Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt tweeted: “British Parliament takes back control.
“European and British Parliament together will decide on the final agreement. Interests of the citizens will prevail over narrow party politics. A good day for democracy.”