Jeremy Corbyn expects Theresa May's Brexit deal will fail in Parliament and thinks his party can negotiate a "better" deal with the EU
Jeremy Corbyn has defended his plans to vote down Theresa May’s proposed Brexit deal when it comes before parliament, saying that “nobody’s going to allow" a no deal EU withdrawal.
Corbyn predicted MPs will reject May’s plan on 11 December, but added that EU leaders would be open to negotiations, despite the European Union’s Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier saying on Thursday morning that the current plan is the “only one possible.”
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Speaking on ITV’s
This Morning, Corbyn said: “We have the vote on the 11th, parliament makes its decision, I suspect it’s going to be no.
“The prime minister then has a limited number of days in order to go back to the EU and try and negotiate something else.”
The Labour leader called for a general election if the deal is voted down but did not rule out a second referendum before March.
"At that point the new government, hopefully us, would negotiate the best we can with the EU," he said.
When challenged by Phillip Schofield on the potential devastating effects not securing a deal could have on the UK economy, Corbyn replied: "Well, the alternative isn’t no deal. Nobody’s going to allow no deal. How could we?"
The prime minister is currently urging Tory and DUP sceptics to back the vote and has warned MPs that they have a “duty” to listen to their constituents.
When asked if Corbyn had sympathy for May's position, he said he did, but added that he feels more for the people of the UK. “Yes, at a human level," he replied. "But actually I have far more sympathy with people in our country that are going through terrible stress.”
The possibility of parliament voting down Theresa May's deal has led to growing calls for a People's Vote
after over half a million people marched through London in October to demand a second referendum.
Will Dry, co-president of Our Future, Our Choice, a youth organisation advocating for a People’s Vote on Brexit, told JOE.co.uk he agreed with the Labour leader's comments.
"Jeremy Corbyn is absolutely right to say that no deal is an impossibility. There is an overwhelming majority in Parliament for preventing the United Kingdom from crashing out of the EU with no deal,” Dry said.
“That’s why the only serious options on the table are the bad Brexit deal that the PM brought back from Brussels, and the better deal that we already have as an EU member. Parliament won’t let No Deal happen, but it also can’t let Brexit negotiations go on forever. That’s why we need a People’s Vote on the final Brexit deal.”
