Senior Remain MPs join together to force vote on keeping UK in customs union post-Brexit

Ministers will use a crunch vote brought forward by senior Remain-backing MPs next week to gauge the scale of a future Brexit rebellion on keeping the UK in the customs union.

Four Tories who chair influential parliamentary committees are among a group of prominent MPs who are set to call on the Government to make being in a customs union with the EU a negotiating objective.

The vote will be non-binding but Government whips are expected to use it to take the temperature of the Commons ahead of similar votes in the future which would actually force ministers to change course.

It comes after the House of Lords inflicted a damaging defeat on the Government on Wednesday as peers successfully amended Theresa May’s flagship Brexit legislation to potentially pave the way for a customs union deal with Brussels.

Ministers have ruled out being in a customs union with the EU because it would restrict Britain's ability to do trade deals after Brexit.

The backbench motion due to be debated next Thursday calls on the Government to pursue a customs union deal and it has been backed by Tories Nicky Morgan, Sarah Wollaston, Robert Neill and Dominic Grieve.

Yvette Cooper, the Labour chairwoman of the Home Affairs Select Committee, and Hilary Benn, the chairman of Brexit Select Committee are also involved in tabling the motion along with senior Liberal Democrat and SNP MPs.

The motion is broadly similar to a proposed amendment to the Trade Bill which would force the Government to seek a deal with the EU which enables the UK to stay in a customs union after Brexit.

That amendment has the backing of 10 Tory rebels and any vote would be binding on the Government, likely requiring ministers to radically change their approach to Brexit.

As a result Downing Street will view the vote on Thursday with great interest because it could give ministers an idea of how likely it is that they could be defeated on the issue when it counts in the future.

It will also help whips to identify the Tory MPs who remain sceptical of the Government’s Brexit strategy.

Ms Morgan and Ms Cooper said in a joint statement that Parliament was “running out of time” to shape Brexit.

They said that “the case for a customs union is overwhelming - for the sake of British manufacturing, international trade, smooth borders and Northern Ireland peace”.

“If Parliament stays silent until after the deal is done, that is just a recipe for conflict and regret later on,” they said.

“Far better for us to debate this properly now and let Parliamentarians express their view before it is too late.” 

It came after peers were accused of "playing with fire" and trying to block Brexit after they defeated the Government on Brexit.

Remain-backing lords succeeded in amending the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill to force ministers to set out the steps taken during negotiations with Brussels to enable the UK to stay in a customs union with the bloc.

Peers backed the amendment by 348 votes to 225, with 24 Conservatives, including Lord Heseltine, the former deputy prime minister, and Lord Lansley, the former health secretary, rebelling against the Government.

Downing Street said it intended to review the amendment to decide whether to try to remove it from the Bill when it returns to the Commons for further debate.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “Our position on the customs union remains the same and we are leaving the customs union.”