PMQs: Jeremy Corbyn demands immediate vote on Brexit deal

Jeremy Corbyn has demanded that Theresa May immediately put her Brexit deal to a vote of parliament, using prime minister’s questions to lambast the government for treating the Commons in a “totally and utterly unacceptable” way.

Almost entirely ignoring the issue of the no-confidence vote from her own MPs that May faces later on Wednesday, the Labour leader turned his attention to the prime minister’s decision to delay the vote on the deal that had been due to take place on Tuesday.

May called it off amid a near-universal assumption she would lose heavily, before embarking on a round of EU diplomacy to try to secure some concessions on the Northern Irish backstop plan.

Corbyn said he was “delighted to see the prime minister back in place after her little journeys”. He added: “Having told the media this morning that she’s made progress, can she now update the house on what changes she has secured to her deal?”

May responded by saying she had been heard on the backstop: “No one that I met yesterday is in any doubt about the strength of concern in this house on this issue of the duration of the backstop.”

Why has a confidence vote happened?

A total of 48 Conservative MPs – representing 15% of the parliamentary party – have backed a confidence vote in Theresa May in an attempt to trigger a leadership contest.

When will the confidence vote take place?

Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbench Tories, has confirmed the vote will take place on Wednesday evening between 6pm and 8pm in a House of Commons committee room. A result is expected shortly afterwards.

How many MPs would need to vote against May to oust her?

A simple majority is required – the figure is 158 MPs. However, it is widely believed that May would be under intense pressure to resign if the were a significant number of no-confidence votes, even if she wins.

The exact number is anybody’s guess but over 100 votes against the prime minister would be undeniably a bad result given that ministers will be expected to vote for her. Should May defeat her critics, they would not be permitted to challenge her for another year.

What happens if May loses?

She will have to tender her resignation as leader of the Conservative party, and ultimately as prime minister.

An open contest for the Conservative leadership would then follow, although May cannot take part. Tory MPs then whittle down the number of candidates over a matter of days to two – who face the party’s estimated 120,000 membership in a vote. After a three week ballot a new prime minister would be expected to take over in January.

A change of Conservative leader and prime minister would not automatically lead to a general election, although the Labour party could respond through a vote of no confidence.

In increasingly noisy exchanges, Corbyn demanded the government reinstate the rest of the debate on her deal, and the vote.

“Since the prime minister has not achieved any changes either to the withdrawal agreement or the future partnership, can she now confirm that we will have the concluding days of debate and votes within the next seven days, before the house rises for the Christmas recess?” he asked.

May, watched throughout from the public gallery by her husband, Philip, said the date of a new vote would be “announced in the normal way”, and that the really meaningful vote, the 2016 referendum, had already taken place.

This prompted a furious response from Corbyn, who said May was treating parliament with contempt.

“It is totally and utterly unacceptable to this house, in any way,” he said. “This house agreed a programme motion, this house agreed the five days of debate. This house agreed when the vote was going to take place. The government tried to unilaterally pull that and deny this house the chance of a vote on this crucial matter.

“The prime minister and her government have already been found to be in contempt of parliament. Her behaviour today is just contemptuous of this parliament. The prime minister’s appalling behaviour needs to be held to account by this house.”

In further exchanges, Corbyn condemned what he said was the “ongoing chaos at the centre of this government”, while an increasingly combative May won cheers from her largely subdued MPs by accusing Labour of wanting to frustrate Brexit, saying its approach was: “No plan, no clue, no Brexit.”

May declined to rule out the idea of a no-deal departure, saying: “The way to ensure there is no no-deal is to agree a deal.” This prompted Corbyn to say: “Can I tell the prime minister this sorry saga is frustrating for businesses, for workers, and actually for many behind her as well?”

He closed by saying: “The time for dithering and delay is over. The prime minister has negotiated her deal, she’s told us it’s the best and only deal available. There can be no more excuses, no more running away. Put it before parliament and let’s have the vote.”

In his one reference to the leadership challenge, Corbyn said it was “utterly irrelevant to the lives of people across our country”, adding: “It does nothing to solve the government’s inability to get a deal that works for the whole country.”