Brexit Update
Following the votes in Parliament on Tuesday night (22/10) I wanted to update you on how I voted on the EU Withdrawal Bill and the possible next steps.

How I voted
I voted with the opposition and against the Government in both votes:
– I voted against the Government’s deal
– And I voted against the short timetable for the Bill which would have allowed the Government to rush the Bill through Parliament

Reaction to Tuesday night
I was disappointed that we lost the first vote but very pleased that we won the second one. The effect of this is that it will be very difficult for the Government to get its deal through quickly and that further debate is likely to continue, opening up the prospect of the Bill being amended to allow a second referendum, or that Britain remains in the EU customs union.
I believe that there should be a second referendum and I am campaigning for this.

The Next steps
The Government is likely to try to call a General Election and it may try other tactics to rush its Bill through.
I believe we should continue to stand up for the people having the right to decide on the proposed deal.

Why the deal is so bad for Britain
I would campaign for Remain in a second referendum as I believe this is a very bad deal which would cause significant damage to our economy and in the longer term would lead to a shift in the economic model for our country and push us towards a trade deal with Donald Trump.
– The deal would be deeply damaging to people’s rights at work, environmental and consumer protection.
– The deal would lead to years of delay and difficult trade negotiations.
– The transition period would only last for one year, allowing the Government to crash to UK out of the EU without a deal in just 12 months.