Britain's government-opposed bill to stop a no-deal Brexit is set to become law next week

Boris Johnson
(Image credit: Oli Scarff/AFP/Getty Images)

Britain's upper house of Parliament, the House of Lords, agreed early Thursday to vote by 5 p.m. Friday on a bill aiming to prevent the U.K. from crashing out of the European Union without an exit agreement. The House of Commons approved the bill on Wednesday, one of several consecutive defeats suffered by Prime Minister Boris Johnson this week. The lower house also rejected Johnson's motion to hold snap elections; the opposition Labour Party wants the legislation blocking a no-deal Brexit enshrined in law before agreeing to new elections.

Assuming the House of Lords approves the bill on Friday, as expected, it will be returned to the House of Commons for a final vote, likely on Monday. Conservatives members of the upper House had threatened to filibuster the legislation, aiming to prevent its passage before Johnson suspends Parliament next week, but a compromise was reached in the early morning. "There was a realization by those on the other side that this was more than usually stupid, and they were looking stupid, and we needed to find a way forward," Richard Newby, an opposition member of the Lords, told BBC Radio.

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Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.