Brexit: John Bercow says there is 'arguable case' government has committed contempt by failing to publish legal advice
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Your support makes all the difference.Theresa May is facing a constitutional crisis after six opposition parties joined forces to accuse the government of contempt of Parliament over its failure to publish its full Brexit legal advice.
The Commons Speaker, John Bercow, said there was "an arguable case" that the government had committed contempt, after he was asked by Labour, the SNP, the Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru, the Green Party and the DUP to begin proceedings.
Earlier, Attorney general Geoffrey Cox admitted the UK could be locked into a customs backstop under the prime minister’s Brexit blueprint.
Mr Cox confirmed that neither the UK nor EU would be able to unilaterally end the Northern Irish backstop arrangement if it came into force, in an address to MPs.
It also comes as The Independent’s petition calling for a Final Say referendum on Brexit was delivered to Downing Street, after more than a million people backed the campaign.
See below for live updates:
Leading Brexiteer Michael Gove has also been forced to admit a second referendum is now a real possibility.
Two Conservative MPs have backed calls for publication of the attorney general's legal opinion on the EU withdrawal agreement.
Simon Clarke MP and David Jones MP - both lawyers - pointed out that, although the advice is usually not divulged, there was a precedent for doing so in the advice of Lord Goldsmith to Tony Blair on the legality of the Iraq war.
Simon Clarke MP said: "We are about to embark on the most significant debate in parliament for many decades. The functioning of the backstop and our ability to ever leave it will lie at the heart of it, and the advice the attorney general has laid before the cabinet is crucial. There should not be two classes of MPs in this debate - those who are aware of the full ramifications and those who aren’t. The government accepted the will of the House that this advice would indeed be published. It would be an act of bad faith not to do so now - and one that would strengthen people’s suspicions that ministers refuse to do so for fear of how damning it is."
The Rt Hon David Jones MP said: "At this crucial moment in the Brexit process, it is essential that parliament should be as fully informed as possible on the legal issues surrounding the deal. These include, among others, the role of the European Court of Justice, the justiciability of the “best endeavours” provision and whether it is possible to withdraw from the backstop without the consent of the EU. I am sure that Geoffrey Cox has given sensible, dispassionate advice and the government is under a duty to ensure that the Commons sees it."
A reminder that if you want to show your support for a public vote on the Brexit deal, the Final Say and People's Vote campaigns are delivering their respective petitions to Theresa May at midday.
Meet outside the Churchill War Rooms near Parliament Square (at the bottom of the steps) from 10.30am onwards before the group heads towards Downing Street at 11.30am.
Here's Alastair Campbell on a Final Say vote.
"Yes, it will be divisive and difficult. There are no easy ways out of this mess. But the people who gave the government the task of negotiating Brexit should have the Final Say on whether this is what they meant, and whether it’s what they want. If not, they should be entitled to say that we should stay, especially now we know for a fact, courtesy of the government itself, that all versions of Brexit leave us worse off."
Right now Theresa May is appearing on ITV's This Morning to talk about her "Brexit vision".
"This will determine our future," she tells Phillip Schofield. "The overwhelming message I am getting from people is that people just want us to get on with it."
Asked what will happen if her deal is voted down by MPs, she sidesteps the question and says she is focused on getting it through parliament.
"People are talking about a second vote when we haven't even delivered the first vote," she says.
Ms May effectively agrees that there will be no second vote during her premiership.
She is again asked if she will resign if MPs vote against the deal, and again does not give a direct answer.
"What I believe to be right at the moment is it is in our interests to get this deal through and move on to the future," says the prime minister.
The prime minister says she is keen to have a "head-to-head" TV debate with Jeremy Corbyn on Sunday evening.
She seems to suggest that the wrangling over whether the debate is on ITV or the BBC is based upon whether they miss I'm a Celebrity or Strictly Come Dancing. Ms May is the Strictly fan.
Perhaps the most significant line from Theresa May is her apparent confidence she will still be prime minister after the Brexit vote on 11 December.
"I will still have my job in two weeks time," she tells ITV's This Morning.
But does that mean she will not resign if her deal is defeated - or that she is confident the deal will pass?
Here's the part where Theresa May says she will still have her job in two weeks time.
Phillip Schofield: "Will you be booking a holiday? Do you think you will still have a job in two weeks' time?"
Ms May laughs and replies: "I will still have a job in two weeks' time. My job is making sure we do what the public asked us to, we leave the EU but we do it in a way that is good for them."
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