This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/jul/09/david-davis-resignation-what-happens-now
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| David Davis resignation: what happens now? | David Davis resignation: what happens now? |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| What happens next now David Davis has resigned as Brexit secretary? Theresa May must appoint a successor, while also handling a potential challenge to her future as prime ministerand publishing the Brexit white paper setting out the plan agreed at the Chequers summit. | |
| Who could replace Davis as Brexit secretary? | Who could replace Davis as Brexit secretary? |
| Michael Gove, the environment secretary, is a true Brexit-believer but spoke passionately in favour of the prime minister’s Chequers plan on Friday, and was sent out to bat for it on the airwaves on Sunday. | Michael Gove, the environment secretary, is a true Brexit-believer but spoke passionately in favour of the prime minister’s Chequers plan on Friday, and was sent out to bat for it on the airwaves on Sunday. |
| He is a member of the inner cabinet Brexit sub-committee and has a firm grasp of the detail. It would give him a platform for a future leadership challenge but there has long been a lack of trust between Gove and May. | He is a member of the inner cabinet Brexit sub-committee and has a firm grasp of the detail. It would give him a platform for a future leadership challenge but there has long been a lack of trust between Gove and May. |
| Alternatively, the prime minister may choose to appoint a loyalist like David Lidington, who is her de-facto deputy at the Cabinet Office. No 10 has been leading the key decision-making on Brexit ever since Oliver Robbins, formerly Davis’s chief adviser, moved over to Downing Street. | |
| Putting Lidington in charge would probably enrage leavers but be a formal declaration that the centre of power has formally moved from DExEU’s No 9 Downing Street headquarters next door to No 10. | Putting Lidington in charge would probably enrage leavers but be a formal declaration that the centre of power has formally moved from DExEU’s No 9 Downing Street headquarters next door to No 10. |
| What would trigger a leadership contest? | What would trigger a leadership contest? |
| A confidence vote is triggered if 15% of Conservative MPs write to Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers, saying they no longer have confidence in the Conservative leader. | A confidence vote is triggered if 15% of Conservative MPs write to Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee of Tory backbenchers, saying they no longer have confidence in the Conservative leader. |
| The leader is then subject to a full confidence vote and must resign if she or he loses. The Conservatives have 316 MPs, meaning Brady must receive 48 letters to trigger a leadership contest. | The leader is then subject to a full confidence vote and must resign if she or he loses. The Conservatives have 316 MPs, meaning Brady must receive 48 letters to trigger a leadership contest. |
| How many letters has he got? | How many letters has he got? |
| Reports vary wildly from about 25 to more than 40, depending on which MP you talk to, and the reality is that no one knows apart from Brady. Many of the letters were sent by Conservative MPs furious at the result of the 2017 election, so not all are objections to May’s Brexit stance; some just believe she is not up to the job. | |
| Should more letters be sent in outrage at May’s Brexit position, it is possible some other MPs could withdraw theirs if they believe it would not be in the national interest to challenge the prime minister so close to the Brexit deadline. | |
| Would May lose a confidence vote? | Would May lose a confidence vote? |
| Even if a confidence vote is triggered, May’s allies are reasonably confident she could win. She would need more than 150 MPs to vote against her, which far exceeds the “ultras” on either wing of the party. | Even if a confidence vote is triggered, May’s allies are reasonably confident she could win. She would need more than 150 MPs to vote against her, which far exceeds the “ultras” on either wing of the party. |
| Many pragmatic, mainstream Conservative MPs, whatever their position on Brexit, may view a change of leadership at this stage as disastrous. But much depends on how Downing Street handles dissent in the wake of Davis’s resignation. May could emerge with her confidence and authority shot, even if she escapes defeat and her chances of fighting the next election would be practically zero. | |
| What does this mean for the white paper? | What does this mean for the white paper? |
| It was the delay to the Brexit white paper, which Davis had hoped would be completed before the June EU summit, that enraged him in the weeks before the Chequers summit. May is likely to want to press ahead with publishing the white paper this week, but that will depend on whether there are further resignations. | |
| David Davis | David Davis |
| Theresa May | Theresa May |
| Brexit | Brexit |
| Article 50 | Article 50 |
| European Union | European Union |
| Europe | Europe |
| q&as | q&as |
| Share on Facebook | Share on Facebook |
| Share on Twitter | Share on Twitter |
| Share via Email | Share via Email |
| Share on LinkedIn | Share on LinkedIn |
| Share on Pinterest | Share on Pinterest |
| Share on Google+ | Share on Google+ |
| Share on WhatsApp | Share on WhatsApp |
| Share on Messenger | Share on Messenger |
| Reuse this content | Reuse this content |