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MPs to vote on Boris Johnson's 12 December election call | MPs to vote on Boris Johnson's 12 December election call |
(about 3 hours later) | |
MPs are due to vote later on Boris Johnson's call to have an election on 12 December. | |
The prime minister says he will restart moves to get his Brexit deal bill into law if the motion is passed. | |
But he looks unlikely to get the two-thirds of MPs - 434 - he needs, under the law that sets election dates, with Labour set to oppose it. | |
The UK is due to leave the EU on Thursday - but the EU is considering whether to extend that date. | |
The EU agreed to delay Brexit and are expected to make a decision on a new date, with an option for the UK to leave earlier if and when a deal is signed off. | |
A draft text of an agreement for the 27 ambassadors from other EU nations includes multiple possible dates for Brexit: 30 November, 31 December or 31 January. | |
There will also be a commitment that the Withdrawal Agreement on the UK's exit from the EU cannot be renegotiated in future. | There will also be a commitment that the Withdrawal Agreement on the UK's exit from the EU cannot be renegotiated in future. |
The ambassadors, who speak on behalf of member states but do not have the final say, are currently meeting to discuss the proposals. | |
The Guardian is reporting a leaked draft of the agreement contains a three-month extension to 31 January. | |
The newspaper says the UK could leave earlier - with Brexit taking place on the first day of the month after a deal is ratified. The EU has not commented on the report. | |
In Westminster, MPs are due to vote on the prime minister's election call after 1700 GMT. | |
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has said his party is not prepared to support it until a no-deal Brexit is ruled out. Labour MPs are expected to abstain in the vote. | |
The SNP has said it will block the government's election attempt. | The SNP has said it will block the government's election attempt. |
The party has joined forces with the Liberal Democrats to push for an election on 9 December - provided the EU grants a Brexit extension until 31 January. | |
They have proposed a bill which would tweak the Fixed-term Parliaments Act 2011 - the law which sets the time-frame for elections. That would need a majority of one, rather than two-thirds of MPs. | |
Lib Dem leader Jo Swinson told BBC Radio 4's Today programme they were pushing for the earlier date because it would be easier for university students to vote as it would be further from the end of term. | |
She added she had written to the prime minister but was yet to get a response. | |
Asked about the Lib Dem/SNP proposal, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said the government would "always look at every single option" but added that MPs should vote for the government's motion. | |
MPs have already twice rejected a call from the PM to hold a general election. | MPs have already twice rejected a call from the PM to hold a general election. |
Mr Johnson has sent a letter to the EU requesting a Brexit delay until 31 January. He was compelled to do so by a law passed by MPs - known as the Benn Act. | Mr Johnson has sent a letter to the EU requesting a Brexit delay until 31 January. He was compelled to do so by a law passed by MPs - known as the Benn Act. |
Before this, the prime minister repeatedly insisted the UK would leave the EU on 31 October, with or without a deal. | Before this, the prime minister repeatedly insisted the UK would leave the EU on 31 October, with or without a deal. |
The decision by the Lib Dems and SNP is basically to abandon a "People's Vote" in this Parliament and to campaign now for a general election. | |
That is the only way, they believe, that you can change the maths in Parliament to make a People's Vote more likely. | |
It points to the break-up of the so-called Rebel Alliance, which has hung together through thick and thin and has stymied Mr Johnson. | |
The Lib Dems and the SNP appear to be moving in on one direction - and Labour and the Greens in the other. | |