Brexit vote date on Theresa May's deal confirmed as Trump warns it favours EU
MPs on all sides line up to attack withdrawal agreement as prime minister gets two weeks to win over sceptics
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has said Theresa May's Brexit agreement "sounds like a great deal" for the EU, and may hinder trade between the UK and US.
The US president issued his warning hours after the prime minister faced an onslaught of criticism from hostile MPs in the Commons as she pitched her Brexit deal to them, saying that rejecting the agreement would cause division and uncertainty.
The date of the MPs’ vote on the agreement was revealed as 11 December, giving the prime minister a fortnight to avert what threatens to be a humiliating defeat at the hands of scores of Conservative rebels.
In a debate lasting nearly three hours, Ms May was forced time after time to defend her strategy as Tory grandees and opposition members alike lined up to attack aspects of the withdrawal agreement signed in Brussels at the weekend.
She was loudly barracked by MPs as she insisted that no better deal was available than the agreement and political declaration on future relations endorsed by EU leaders.
Former minister Mark Francois branded her deal a “surrender”, saying opposition from Eurosceptic Tories and the Democratic Unionist Party meant it was already “dead as a dodo”.
Former defence secretary Sir Michael Fallon described the deal as “a huge gamble” that involved the UK paying a £39 billion divorce bill and giving up its votes and veto without any firm commitment on future trade relations.
But Mrs May said: “The British people want us to get on with a deal that honours the referendum and allows us to come together again as a country, whichever way we voted.
“This is that deal. A deal that delivers for the British people.”
In a sign that she aims to go over fractious MPs’ heads and appeal directly to voters for their backing, Ms May said parliamentarians had a “duty” to listen to their constituents before taking their decision in the national interest.
But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the Commons would have “very little choice” but to reject the “botched” deal, which he described as “bad for this country”.
With 90 or more Conservative MPs indicating they could rebel in the “meaningful vote”, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay admitted the prime minister faces a “challenging” division.
No one knows what would happen if this deal doesn’t pass
European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker warned that there would be no more negotiation if MPs vote down the agreement, saying: “This is the best deal for Britain ... and this is the only deal possible, so if the House says no, we would have no deal.”
Ms May told MPs: “I can say to the House with absolute certainty that there is not a better deal available.”
She said MPs faced a choice: “We can back this deal, deliver on the vote of the referendum and move on to building a brighter future of opportunity and prosperity for all our people.
“Or this House can choose to reject this deal and go back to square one.
“Because no one knows what would happen if this deal doesn’t pass. It would open the door to more division and more uncertainty, with all the risks that will entail.”
Mr Corbyn said: “The prime minister says if we reject this deal, it will take us back to square one. The truth is, under this government we have never got off square one.
“This botched deal is still a bad deal for the country and all yesterday did was mark the end of this government’s failed and miserable negotiations.”
Ms May told MPs the government had ensured that Gibraltar was covered by the withdrawal agreement and would negotiate a future relationship “for the whole UK family, including Gibraltar”.
A two-hour Cabinet meeting earlier heard an update from Mr Barclay on preparations for a possible no-deal Brexit, which are continuing despite the deal being agreed.
After the Commons debate, Downing Street chief of staff Gavin Barwell and effective deputy prime minister David Lidington invited opposition MPs to a briefing on the agreement.
But Downing Street sources said they were not aware of the prime minister seeking to speak to Labour MPs thought to be considering backing her deal.
Analysis by the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority of the impact of the deal on the UK economy is to be published on Thursday.
Ms May has started a campaign to sell her deal directly to the public, with visits to all parts of the UK planned.
Her spokesman declined to confirm or deny reports that No 10 is considering a possible television debate with Mr Corbyn, something the Labour leader has made clear he would relish.
For more on the debate, please see what was our live coverage below:
David Davis - the former Brexit secretary - asks for the divorce payment of £39bn to the EU to be paid in two parts, and one being at the end of the trade negotiations. But May says, as he is aware, that the UK will stand by its financial obligations.
Theresa May is noticeably avoiding giving any answers to questions about a potential debate with Corbyn, and other leaders of political parties.
While the issue was not brought up by Corbyn, both Iain Blackford from the SNP and the Lib Dem leader, Vince Cable, pressed the PM on a potential debate - but to no avail.
After watching endless Brexit debates in the last few months, it is actually quite noticeable how united MPs across the Commons now seem to be - in opposition to Theresa May's deal. Not a single MP, so far, has spoken in favour of the deal. Condemnation from Labour, SNP, Lib Dems and many on her own backbenches.
It's been nearly an hour now since May stood up in the Commons - and rather than the congratulations she received from the cabinet over getting the EU's seal of approval - not a single MP from either side of the chamber has spoke in favour.
Michael Fallon - the former defence secretary - who is usually a loyal ally of the prime minister appears to come out against the deal in his intervention. He describes the agreement as a "huge gamble".
Referring to a recent speech, Theresa May says "I should not have used that language" when saying that EU citizens had "jumped the queue" under the current immigration rules.
In a letter to Conservative MPs, chief whip Julian Smith indicated that the "meaningful vote" on the Brexit deal was expected to take place on 11 December.
Mr Smith said the vote would come after five days of debate, starting on 4 December and told MPs that attendance in the voting lobbies should take priority over any Christmas gatherings.
Ms May tells MPs the deal is an agreement of "unprecedented ambition" of the kind that the EU has never before negotiated with any other country.
Asked whether a hotly debated ban on live exports would be possible after Britain leaves the EU, as called for by Zac Goldsmith and Boris Johnson, the prime minister replied: "I and the government have been clear that we want to maintain high animal-welfare standards and indeed enhance those standards."
Responding in the Lords to the prime minister's statement, Tory former cabinet minister Baroness Bottomley of Nettlestone said: "Is it not the case that the country is heartily sick of the political shenanigans around this subject?
"They voted to leave. There's an enormous admiration for the prime minister - for her tenacity and her courage and her level head and her patriotic heart.
"It's time now to settle with the best deal on offer and put the interests of the country and our people first."
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