Brexit: Cross-party group of 40 MEPs sign pledge to work together to keep EU membership on the table

The MEP delegations of Labour, Greens, Liberal Democrats, Alliance, Plaid Cymru, and the SNP will formally cooperate

The European Parliament's seat in Strasbourg (AP)

Remain-supporting British MEPs have formed a new cross-party alliance and pledged to work together in the face of Brexit and Boris Johnson's suspension of parliament.

The pact, named the Brussels Declaration, unites the EU delegations of Labour, Greens, Liberal Democrats, Alliance, Plaid Cymru, and the SNP - with the aim of "keeping the door open" to EU membership.

The declaration puts down in writing the informal alliance that has formed among pro-EU British MEPs since the referendum - where cross-party working has been the norm in efforts to oppose the British government.

"The proroguing, or shutting down the UK Parliament in order to limit scrutiny of the implications of a potential no deal Brexit is completely unacceptable. Limiting the opportunity for MPs to debate, vote and crucially, to legislate, cannot be the response to a referendum in which Leave campaigned for the UK Parliament to 'take back control'," the MEPs' declaration says.

"In the continuation of the spirit that UK MEPs have worked in since the 2016 Referendum we commit ourselves to continue to work across party lines and declare that it is vital that MPs do likewise. We were all elected just four months ago with clear mandates. We are working together. We call upon our European friends and colleagues to assist domestic efforts in keeping the door open to us."

The loose declaration could be a model for pro-EU opposition parties hoping to cooperate back in Westminster. Efforts to build a "remain alliance" in UK national elections have floundered so far - with pro-referendum parties even unable to agree a single candidate for the recent Peterborough by-election.

In recent weeks, however, cross-party cooperation between opposition parties and Tory rebels has managed to reduce the likelihood of a no-deal and cost the government its majority.

One of the Labour MEPs who signed the Brussels Declaration, Julie Ward, told The Independent: “Now is the time to put the country first and for Labour to continue work across progressive political parties to show that we are united, here in the European Parliament and in Westminster, and that no-deal is wholly unacceptable and undemocratic.

"We refuse to risk millions of jobs, businesses, as well as key medical and food supplies across the UK by crashing out of the EU without a deal. While the Johnson-Cummings Government has shown it has no respect for democracy or our institutions, here in Brussels we are ensuring that we lead the way and assist domestic efforts to ensure that the UK Parliament has its say and that we do not crash off the edge without a deal with the EU.”

MEPs, who shuttle between their constituencies in the UK and the parliament's dual bases in Brussels and Strasbourg, expected to lose their jobs on 29 March - but have been given a stay of execution because of the postponement of Brexit.

The full list of MEPs who signed the Brussels Declaration is:

Labour Party

Richard Corbett MEP

Seb Dance MEP

Jude Kirton-Darling MEP

Rory Palmer MEP

Neena Gill MEP

Theresa Griffin MEP

John Howarth MEP

Jackie Jones MEP

Claude Moraes MEP

Julie Ward MEP

Green Party

Molly Scott Cato MEP

Scott Ainslie MEP

Ellie Chowns MEP

Gina Dowding MEP

Magid Magid MEP

Alexandra Phillips MEP

Catherine Rowett MEP

Liberal Democrats

Catherine Bearder MEP

Caroline Voaden MEP

Phil Bennion MEP

Jane Brophy MEP

Judith Bunting MEP

Chris Davies MEP

Dinesh Dhamija MEP

Barbara Ann Gibson MEP

Anthony Hook MEP

Martin Horwood MEP

Shaffaq Mohammed MEP

Lucy Nethsingha MEP

Bill Newton Dunn MEP

Luisa Porrit MEP

Sheila Ritchie MEP

Irina Von Wiese MEP

Alliance Party

Naomi Long MEP

Plaid Cymru

Jill Evans MEP

Scottish National Party

Alyn Smith MEP

Aileen Mcleod MEP

Christian Allard MEP