British Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday signaled ahead of a British House of Commons debate that she would let parliament scrutinize her plan for Brexit before she begins the formal process to exit the EU.
The move caused the pound to bounce back after a torrid week, amid speculation that lawmakers might be able to soften the government’s approach to Brexit, which currently seems on course to take Britain out of the single market.
The pound was worth US$1.2250 at 9am in London after falling to a 31-year low of US$1.1840 last week.
Photo: AP
However, there would not be a vote in parliament on triggering formal divorce talks with the EU, a spokeswoman for May said.
“There will not be a vote on triggering Article 50,” the spokeswoman said, referring to Article 50 of the EU’s Treaty of Lisbon.
The opposition Labour Party hailed May’s move as a climbdown, although her office said that she has always stated that parliament should have a role.
May acted amid concerns that she would lose a House of Commons debate yesterday, initiated by Labour, calling for lawmakers to be allowed to “properly to scrutinize” the government’s strategy.
She proposed an amendment that effectively accepts the motion.
However, it specifies that any parliamentary scrutiny process must respect the vote to leave the EU and should not “undermine the negotiating position of the government.”
British Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the EU Keir Starmer, of Labour, described the prime minister’s move as a “real victory for parliament.”
The party has also given the government 170 questions on the details of the Brexit plan — one for every day until the end of March, the deadline May has set for triggering Article 50.
“If you are able to provide satisfactory answers to all these questions, just one per day from tomorrow until March 31 next year, it might give some confidence that the government is entering the Article 50 negotiations with a clear plan,” they wrote.
Additional reporting by Reuters
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