Theresa May To Campaign With 'Heart' For Brexit Deal Amid Warnings Her Government Could Fall

EU leaders rubber stamp agreement - now for the hard part.
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Theresa May has said she will campaign will “all my heart” to persuade MPs to vote in favour of her Brexit deal, as she was warned her government could be on the brink of collapse.

On Sunday EU leaders endorsed the agreement at an emergency summit in Brussels.

But the prime minister faces an uphill battle to win the vote in the Commons before Christmas.

Around 90 Tory backbenchers have indicated they will oppose the deal. Labour also plans to vote against it.

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt today admitted the government could collapse if it lost the vote.

“It’s not possible to rule out anything,” he said when asked on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show if the government could fall.

DUP leader Arlene Foster confirmed this morning her party will not support the agreement.

And she warned she could pull the plug on the DUP’s confidence and supply agreement with the Tories should it pass.

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker issued a warning to British MPs who believe a better deal can be reached if the Commons votes down May’s plan.

“This is the only deal possible,” he said during a press conference in Brussels. “This is the best deal possible for Britain.

Speaking at her own press conference, May said MPs will have to decide whether to back the Brexit deal and “move forward together into a brighter future” or reject it and “open the door to yet more division and uncertainty”.

“The British people don’t want to spend any more time arguing about Brexit,” she said.

“They want a good deal done that fulfils the vote and allows us to come together again as a country.

“I will take this deal back to the House of Commons, confident we have achieved the best deal available and full of optimism about the future of our country.

“In Parliament and beyond it, I will make the case for this deal with all my heart and I look forward to that campaign.”

Asked if she would be duty bound to resign should the Commons reject her plan, May said: “It’s not about me.”

The prime minister has repeatedly refused to rule out resigning if she fails to win the vote in December. 

Jeremy Corbyn said: “This is a bad deal for the country. It is the result of a miserable failure of negotiation that leaves us with the worst of all worlds. It gives us less say over our future, and puts jobs and living standards at risk.

“That is why Labour will oppose this deal in parliament. We will work with others to block a no deal outcome, and ensure that Labour’s alternative plan for a sensible deal to bring the country together is on the table. ”