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What really happened with Stephen Kinnock's amendment to the bill forcing Boris to get an extension?
Labour MP Stephen Kinnock’s amendment to the Benn Bill has passed unexpectedly after no division was called because no Conservative tellers for the ‘Noes’ presented themselves.
Its approval means the piece of legislation designed to block an October 31st no deal Brexit will also require the Prime Minister to state that the reason for requesting an extension from the EU is to pass the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.
...
The ‘WAB’ was Theresa May’s final offer to MPs, which was never put to parliament for a vote but included some of the concessions that Labour had been seeking from the government – including a workers’ rights bill and parliamentary time for a vote on a confirmatory referendum.
Following the passing of the bill with Kinnock’s amendment, the MP for Aberavon said “Given that the House has now approved the bill as amended, could I press the government to publish the WAB which really does require the proper and robust discussion.”
https://labourlist.org/2019/09/kinnock-amendment-to-benn-bill-passes-possibly-by-mistake/
Its approval means the piece of legislation designed to block an October 31st no deal Brexit will also require the Prime Minister to state that the reason for requesting an extension from the EU is to pass the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.
...
The ‘WAB’ was Theresa May’s final offer to MPs, which was never put to parliament for a vote but included some of the concessions that Labour had been seeking from the government – including a workers’ rights bill and parliamentary time for a vote on a confirmatory referendum.
Following the passing of the bill with Kinnock’s amendment, the MP for Aberavon said “Given that the House has now approved the bill as amended, could I press the government to publish the WAB which really does require the proper and robust discussion.”
https://labourlist.org/2019/09/kinnock-amendment-to-benn-bill-passes-possibly-by-mistake/
Link to tweet
"The amendment in the name of Stephen Kinnock didn’t have a vote as the Government didn’t provide tellers to count. This meant the amendment went through although the No Lobby was full. This wasn’t an accident you can be assured there’s some skullduggery going on"
Expecting skullduggery from the Tories should be the default position, but it is still possible for them to screw up.
The ‘WAB’ was never put before parliament, as May was ousted as leader of the Conservative Party before she was able to put it to a vote. It included compromises pushed for by Labour, such as a workers’ rights bill and parliamentary time for a vote on a confirmatory referendum.
https://labourlist.org/2019/09/labour-mps-for-a-deal-seek-to-bring-back-theresa-mays-final-offer/
https://labourlist.org/2019/09/labour-mps-for-a-deal-seek-to-bring-back-theresa-mays-final-offer/
"Labour MPs For a Deal" describe their intention here:
These two amendments build upon the work that has already been completed by both the Government and the Opposition as part of the cross-party talks which concluded in May.
Labour’s Brexit spokesperson Sir Keir Starmer MP made clear in an interview on the Marr Show (Sunday 1st September 2019) that Labour only withdrew from the talks due to the inability of Prime Minister May being able to deliver her own party:
“We took a judgement call that some of the proposals that the Prime Minister put forward she would not be able to get through her own party. ….The talks broke down. The next week Theresa May stood at the dispatch box and said I’m going to bring forward the Withdrawal Bill and this will be in it, she spelt out some of what we had been talking about. By the end of that week the party had taken her out so our judgement call was that she could not deliver this.”
This clearly indicates that Labour was ready to compromise on a deal if the Prime Minister could deliver her party.
Labour’s Brexit spokesperson Sir Keir Starmer MP made clear in an interview on the Marr Show (Sunday 1st September 2019) that Labour only withdrew from the talks due to the inability of Prime Minister May being able to deliver her own party:
“We took a judgement call that some of the proposals that the Prime Minister put forward she would not be able to get through her own party. ….The talks broke down. The next week Theresa May stood at the dispatch box and said I’m going to bring forward the Withdrawal Bill and this will be in it, she spelt out some of what we had been talking about. By the end of that week the party had taken her out so our judgement call was that she could not deliver this.”
This clearly indicates that Labour was ready to compromise on a deal if the Prime Minister could deliver her party.
I have been trying to work out what happened to May's last attempt at a withdrawal bill. As far as I can tell, it was going to get produced, despite the talks with Labour fizzling out; her cabinet made noises about not supporting it, and Andrea Ledsom resigned on Wed May 22nd; on the day of voting in the EU parliament elections (Thur May 23rd) , she put off publishing it until June 3rd; and then she announced her intention to resign, on the 24th, so it just seems to have disappeared.
17th May:
Talks between Labour and the government aimed at breaking the Brexit impasse have ended without an agreement.
Jeremy Corbyn said the discussions had "gone as far as they can", blaming what he called the government's "increasing weakness and instability".
Theresa May said the lack of a "common position" within Labour over a further referendum had made talks "difficult".
The prime minister said she would now consider putting options to MPs on Brexit that may "command a majority".
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-48304867
Jeremy Corbyn said the discussions had "gone as far as they can", blaming what he called the government's "increasing weakness and instability".
Theresa May said the lack of a "common position" within Labour over a further referendum had made talks "difficult".
The prime minister said she would now consider putting options to MPs on Brexit that may "command a majority".
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-48304867
23rd May:
In response to a question from Labour’s Valerie Vaz, Mark Spencer, the government whip, has just clarified two points about the EU withdrawal agreement bill (Wab).
Spencer said the Wab would now be published in the week beginning Monday 3 June. That is the second time this week it has been postponed. Yesterday morning Michael Gove, the environment secretary, said it would be published later that day. Then, in the afternoon, Theresa May said it would be published tomorrow. Spencer’s admission that publication has been postponed until June will increase suspicions that, in practice, it will never be published at all. May is under huge pressure to abandon the bill because it is so unpopular with backbenchers and ministers, and seems doomed to defeat.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/may/23/european-elections-uk-goes-to-the-poll-as-pressure-continues-on-may-to-resign-live-news?page=with:block-5ce672e78f08ad67f1a7f8c9#block-5ce672e78f08ad67f1a7f8c9
Spencer said the Wab would now be published in the week beginning Monday 3 June. That is the second time this week it has been postponed. Yesterday morning Michael Gove, the environment secretary, said it would be published later that day. Then, in the afternoon, Theresa May said it would be published tomorrow. Spencer’s admission that publication has been postponed until June will increase suspicions that, in practice, it will never be published at all. May is under huge pressure to abandon the bill because it is so unpopular with backbenchers and ministers, and seems doomed to defeat.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2019/may/23/european-elections-uk-goes-to-the-poll-as-pressure-continues-on-may-to-resign-live-news?page=with:block-5ce672e78f08ad67f1a7f8c9#block-5ce672e78f08ad67f1a7f8c9
24th May:
Theresa May resigns over Brexit: What happened?
On Tuesday, Mrs May made another attempt to convince members of parliament (MPs) to support her EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill - by offering a vote on whether to hold a second referendum, if the bill was passed.
The offer was designed to attract support from Labour MPs - but enraged many Brexit-supporting Conservatives.
Members of her cabinet began openly opposing the bill, while party members called for her to resign.
On Wednesday, one of her senior ministers, Andrea Leadsom, quit the cabinet, adding to the pressure.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-48379730
On Tuesday, Mrs May made another attempt to convince members of parliament (MPs) to support her EU Withdrawal Agreement Bill - by offering a vote on whether to hold a second referendum, if the bill was passed.
The offer was designed to attract support from Labour MPs - but enraged many Brexit-supporting Conservatives.
Members of her cabinet began openly opposing the bill, while party members called for her to resign.
On Wednesday, one of her senior ministers, Andrea Leadsom, quit the cabinet, adding to the pressure.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-48379730
I don't think I'd realised she had plans to produce something more for MPs to vote on in June. I had wondered why the Corbyn-May talks didn't seem to get anywhere.
You'd think that Johnson won't want to touch it - to survive as Tory leader, he has to satisfy the rabid Leavers, in the Tories and Brexit party, to get something closer to No Deal than May's original attempts, rather than something closer to Labour's customs union etc. wishes. But is it possible this Labour group can persuade the Labour leadership to look at it? If they did, the sacked Tory rebels might well support it, and maybe the SNP and Lib Dems too (the idea being that it could destroy Johnson, split the right wing vote, and make a Labour-SNP-Lib Dem coalition possible, with goodies like a new Scottish independence referendum to keep them sweet)