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Theresa May suffers third Brexit defeat in Lords More Brexit defeats for No 10 in Lords amid reports of cabinet split
(about 3 hours later)
The House of Lords handed the government its third defeat over Brexit in less than a week, voting down plans to exclude European Union rights from national law before Britain leaves. The government has suffered more significant defeats to its Brexit legislation in the House of Lords as the row over membership of the customs union threatened to split the cabinet.
An opposition-backed amendment to the legislation, on which the government suffered two defeats last week, was backed by 316 to 245, a majority of 71. Peers voted by a majority of 77 to keep the fundamental charter of EU rights in force after Britain leaves the EU with 10 Conservative voting with the opposition.
The defeat on Monday is one of several Theresa May’s government is expected to face in the Lords as parliament debates legislation that will enact Britain’s exit from the EU in March next year, but the votes, while embarrassing for the Tories, can be overturned by the House of Commons. It raised the prospect of the government being defeated in the Commons on the amendment when the EU withdrawal bill returns for final consideration by MPs in May. Ministers only averted a defeat on the issue in January by offering to review the protections given by the charter.
The defeat – over ensuring the political, social and economic rights protected by the European charter of fundamental rights are replicated in British law – follows a vote by the Lords that challenged May’s plan to leave the customs union, which increased pressure on the prime minister to reconsider. Former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve has indicated that he might vote against the government when the bill returns, saying that he was waiting to hear if there would be any concessions.
David Pannick, the author of Monday’s amendment, told fellow peers he feared the government was doing away with the charter because ministers might want to dilute its protections. “I fear that the government is seeking to make an exception for rights under the charter because the government is suspicious of the very concept of fundamental rights,” he told peers. Paul Blomfield, Labour’s Brexit spokesman, welcomed the vote. “The future of human rights protections is not a party political issue. It is about the type of country we want to be and the values that we want to champion,” he said.
Arguing against the amendment, Richard Keen said retaining the charter would open up Britain to being influenced by “foreign law” that could to lead to “constitutional outrage”. Opening the debate, the cross-bencher Lord Pannick, who is a practising lawyer, argued that it was “unprincipled and unjustified” to remove the protection of rights from children, older people and disabled people that are currently covered by the charter.
The government says the charter’s rights are already covered by British law. The government also lost a series of other votes that could have given ministers the power to restrict when citizens could use principles of EU law to challenge the government.
May’s spokesman said earlier on Monday the EU withdrawal bill was the best way of providing “the smoothest possible Brexit”. But it avoided defeat on another measure relating to public health protection by pledging to allow EU obligations to continue after the UK left the EU.
Later, the government suffered a further defeat linked to the earlier one, over challenges to the validity of EU law. Peers backed by 285 to 235, a majority 50, to effectively clip the wings of ministers in deciding cases being brought. Peers have been reluctant to challenge the Commons on Brexit itself, but many of them regard protecting the detail of legal and constitutional principle as one of their core functions.
On Wednesday the government is expected to table amendments relating to devolved powers, which could also provoke a significant revolt in early May when it is due to come to a vote.
The defeats came as Downing Street played down reports that senior cabinet ministers continue to be split over the customs union, with key Brexiters wanting to drop one of the two options put forward by the government.
Theresa May could face calls from ministers including David Davis, Liam Fox and Boris Johnson to abandon the so-called customs partnership, which is generally regarded as her preferred option.
At a meeting of the cabinet’s Brexit subcommittee on Wednesday they were expected to argue that the proposal, which relies on Britain to collect EU import tariffs on behalf of Brussels, could lead to the UK staying in a customs union.
However, her official spokesman said the government was still looking at both options – also including a proposal to use technology to achieve a frictionless border – and refused to confirm whether the prime minister had a preference. Brussels has repeatedly made clear it does not regard either option as workable.
Some Brexiteers fear that May is paving the way for a compromise on the issue after her team privately admitted she may have to accept permanent membership of a European customs union. “We are absolutely clear that we are leaving,” the spokesman insisted.
However, a group of senior Conservative ministers and backbenchers, thought to include Grieve, are said to be drawing up a customs union “in all but name” in an effort to resolve the issue, in the hope both sides would accept a compromise.
Timing is also at stake, with some remainers hoping that extending membership of the customs union beyond the end of the transition period would make it more likely that the UK would stay in. The government believes it can get new customs arrangements in place by December 2020, although experts are sceptical.
Downing Street was earlier forced to deny reports that it was threatening to turn a Commons vote on the customs union later this spring into a form of “confidence vote” that would end May’s leadership or even topple the government if she lost.
It has signalled, however, that it will abstain in the debate this week on the issue, saying it was regarded simply as “routine backbench business”.
BrexitBrexit
Foreign policyForeign policy
House of LordsHouse of Lords
Human rightsHuman rights
European UnionEuropean Union
EuropeEurope
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