Theresa May tells Cabinet she will not agree deal 'at any cost' amid Irish border row
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Theresa May has told the cabinet she will not agree a Brexit deal "at any cost" amid a fresh row over the vexed issue of the Irish border.
The prime minister's spokesman said there remains "a significant amount of work to do" and sought to reassure twitchy ministers that she would brief them before agreeing any deal.
Addressing journalists at a briefing on Tuesday, Ms May's spokesman said:“The prime minister said she was confident of reaching a deal. She said that, while the UK should aim to secure a withdrawal agreement as soon as possible, this would not be done at any cost.
“The prime minister said that, once agreement was reached on a withdrawal agreement, it remains the case that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed and it will be subject to securing an acceptable full future framework.”
It comes Ms May had to call Irish premier Leo Varadkar yesterday, after Brexit secretary Dominic Raab angered Dublin by appearing to backslide on a commitment the UK had made to preventing a hard border.
"There can be no expiry date and there can be no unilateral exit clause, and if it were to be either of those things, the backstop would not be worth the paper it was written on," Mr Vardakar added on Tuesday.
"If we do have a backstop and if it is used, it may be to our advantage or necessary to have a review - which is very different to the exit clause that would let the UK withdraw, and that has been Irish government stance all along."
This liveblog is now closed, but see how the day in Westminster unfolded below
Following the meeting of Cabinet at 10 Downing Street, Theresa May's official spokesman said: "The prime minister said she was confident of reaching a deal. She said that while the UK should aim to secure a withdrawal agreement as soon as possible, this should not be done at any cost."
Ms May stressed that any deal on withdrawal would be subject to the EU and UK finalising a framework on their future relationship in areas like trade and security, which is expected to be set out in a separate political declaration.
"The PM said that once agreement was reached on a withdrawal agreement, it remains the case that nothing is agreed until everything is agreed and it will be subject to securing an acceptable full future framework," said the spokesman.
Irish leader Leo Varadkar has reaffirmed his position on the Irish backstop post-Brexit after being challenged by Sinn Fein.
"There can be no expiry date and there can be no unilateral exit clause, and if it were to be either of those things, the backstop would not be worth the paper it was written on," he said.
Labour MP Chuka Umunnasays what right-wing Brexiteers have told him behind Theresa May's back "makes me worry for her EU deal".
Read his column here:
Labour has attacked Bedlam-like conditions for people with learning disabilities.
Shadow health minister Barbara Keeley said the current situation was "nothing short of a national scandal" with patients being treated in a way that has "no place in the 21st century".
Recent reports of an autistic teenager called Bethany who was locked in solitary confinement and fed through a hatch, has reignited calls for the immediate closure of institutions.
The news led Sir Stephen Bubb to claim the government had "ignored" his independent report into the 2011 abuse scandal at Winterbourne View, which recommended a dramatic reduction in the use of institutions for people with learning disabilities.
Theresa May is aiming to give MPs a vote on both a Brexit withdrawal agreement and outline future trading relations with the EU before Christmas.
But in a bid to reassure Brexiteers that she will not make too many concessions to get a quick deal with Brussels, she told ministers at cabinet that she would not agree terms “at any costs”.
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