Return to zero to Brexit

No British government has ever suffered such a clear defeat: Theresa May on the road to Parliament. (Image: Jack Taylor / Getty)

The British House of Commons rejected the treaty negotiated in Brussels on the exit from the country Tuesday evening with 432 votes against 202. The difference in votes of 230 means the clearest defeat in the history of a British government. More than 100 Tory rebels voted against the opposition and against their own government, as did the 10 members of the Northern Ireland unionists. The previous record of parliamentary defeat was held by Ramsay MacDonald, the first Labor Prime Minister, who lost 166 votes in 1924. He can surpass the mark by 64 votes.

Fierce verbal fighting

If the prime minister was shocked, he did not show it. He spoke immediately afterwards. "The House (parliament) has spoken, but it does not say anything if and how it wants to respect the will of the electorate in the Brexit referendum," he said. The prime minister promised that the government will face an opposition vote on Wednesday. Opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn announced his request. If May loses the trust of the representatives of the people, she must resign. After the devastating result for the Brexit affair, such a sequence has moved into the realm of possibilities.

May had previously spoken passionately to the parliamentarians at the conclusion of the debate. "If the deal is denied, there may not be the Brexit." The lower house was packed like never before, with dozens of parliamentarians crowding the edge of the narrow room. The highly pregnant Labor MP Siddiq Tulip had postponed the date of his detention and was pushed through the lobby by a party colleague in a wheelchair, the corridor in which they vote.

The decision was made earlier than expected because all the amendments had been withdrawn at the initiative of the government, with the exception of one concerning the backstop for the internal-Irish border. He was rejected at a high level – the delegates were tired of the debate, which had required eight days including the part demolished in December. Shortly after half past seven he arrived at the main vote.

In the afternoon the demonstrators gathered in front of the Parliament building, supporters of the EU on one side, waving blue flags and wearing bersets of the same color as the European Star Banner, and partisans of the Brexit field from the other. Some of the "Brexiteers" have shouted: "Outside means outside, stop traitors!". The provocation of betrayal is shamelessly expressed, and last week the police led a right-wing extremist demonstrator to verbalize the deputy Tory Anna Soubry had attacked.

In the lawn near Westminster Palace, television stations have set up dozens of tents to comment live on events. The demonstrators tried to make their voices heard; some played drums and bells. Strangely enough, both camps wanted the same thing on that day: Parliament should reject the Brexit agreement. However, they often met hostile. "You're a liar!", A Brexit supporter shouted, while Neil Remington, a supporter of a second plebiscite, told the question that the Brexit trial was a distraction from the real problems of the country.

Possible constitutional crisis

Previously, the heads of government resigned when they lost an important vote, even with small defeats. May will not go voluntarily, for two reasons. Firstly, the crisis would not be mitigated if new elections were to be held in the coming weeks. Secondly, in 2011 the Parliament introduced a legislative amendment with a fixed deadline of five years. The democratic tradition is therefore opposed by the letter of the law. This could still lead to a constitutional crisis. "If the Tories and the DUPs (Unionist Northern Ireland) keep May in their positions, but reject everything that leads them to the House of Commons, the decision-making process is blocked," says constitutional expert Catherine Haddon of the Institute for Government, a group of experts.

The EU reacted immediately to the outcome of the Chamber vote. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said that the results were noted, but that it followed the exit agreement and called for its ratification. The agreement is the best possible and the only way to get an orderly Brexit. Juncker asked the United Kingdom to cancel his position as soon as possible. "Time is almost up," he said. The English have to prepare for a tough ride in the coming weeks – with the fall of the government perhaps already on Wednesday.