Theresa May says she will publish detailed Brexit plan after MPs have voted to trigger Article 50

The detailed White Paper was promised by the Prime Minister 

Jon Stone
Political Correspondent
Wednesday 01 February 2017 13:23 GMT
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Theresa May says she will publish Brexit plan after Article 50 vote

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The Government will publish its White Paper spelling out its plan for Brexit after MPs have voted on triggering Article 50, the Prime Minister has announced.

Theresa May said the detailed document would be published on Thursday.

MPs are expected to give the Government the power to start negotiations in a vote Wednesday evening.

The timing of the white paper's release means MPs who decide they do not support the proposals will be unable stop the Government going ahead with them in negotiations.

Ms May said at Prime Minister's Questions: "I can inform my right honourable friend and the House that that white paper will be put out tomorrow."

The approach of putting the vote before the plans are laid out is likely to spare the Government the grief of having to argue in favour of its proposals to MPs once the details become known.

It is expected that the white paper will elaborate on the framework outlined by Ms May in a speech in January.

In that address the Prime Minister announced that Britain would be leaving the single market, the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, and that she would restrict freedom of movement with the continent.

The Government has said that MPs will be given another vote on Brexit in this Parliament: to agree any deal made.

However, it has indicated that if MPs reject the deal the only alternative will be no deal and that Britain will crash out of the EU with no special arrangements.

Ms May pledged the white paper last week but would not say when it would be published. The Government conceded that it would publish the document after a potential rebellion by Conservative MPs at the start of the year.

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