Key voting bloc turns on British PM Theresa May, solidifying near-certain failure for her Brexit plan
Despite winning a last-minute, legally binding concession from the European Union on Monday evening, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May is still likely to lose a parliamentary vote on her Brexit plan on Tuesday.
May struck the agreement with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker at a meeting in France on Monday night, guaranteeing that the Irish border backstop, which would keep the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland open, would be a temporary measure, meaning that the U.K. will not be tied to EU customs regulations "indefinitely." But the deal was not enough to sway some of the more Euroskeptic parties in Britain's parliament.
The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), a conservative, pro-Brexit party from Northern Ireland that props up May's government, announced on Tuesday that all 10 of its members would vote against the deal, striking a crucial blow for May. The DUP released a statement saying that "sufficient progress has not been achieved" in negotiations with the EU. May, for her part, argued on Tuesday that supporting her withdrawal agreement is the only way to ensure avoiding a "no-deal" Brexit.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The Financial Times reported that without the DUP "there would seem to be no way that" most other conservative holdouts would swing toward May, though a few conservative "rebels" have, indeed, provided some hope for the prime minister. But those votes are not expected to be nearly enough to secure a victory. The Guardian echoed that sentiment, reporting that unless there is "an avalanche" of vote-switching, May will almost assuredly lose. Tim O'Donnell
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
The Week’s big New Year’s Day quiz 2026Quiz of the Year How much do you remember about 2025’s headlines? Put yourself to the test with our bumper quiz of the year
-
Is tanking ruining sports?Today's Big Question The NBA and the NFL want teams to compete to win. What happens if they decide not to?
-
‘Netflix needs to not just swallow HBO but also emulate it’instant opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Biggest political break-ups and make-ups of 2025The Explainer From Trump and Musk to the UK and the EU, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a round-up of the year’s relationship drama
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
-
House GOP revolt forces vote on ACA subsidiesSpeed Read The new health care bill would lower some costs but not extend expiring Affordable Care Act subsidies
-
Hegseth rejects release of full boat strike footageSpeed Read There are calls to release video of the military killing two survivors of a Sept. 2 missile strike on an alleged drug trafficking boat
