London: Several ministers including Britain’s Brexit minister Dominic Raab resigned on Thursday, November 15, in protest at Prime Minister Theresa May’s deal for leaving the European Union.
May won the backing of her senior ministers for a draft European Union divorce deal on Wednesday, November 14, but media reports of the five hour meeting were clear her team were deeply divided over the proposals.
“I regret to say that, following the Cabinet meeting yesterday on the Brexit deal, I must resign,” he said in a statement on Twitter.
Raab said May’s plan threatened the integrity of the UK and he could not support an indefinite backstop arrangement where the EU held a veto over Britain’s ability to exit.
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“No democratic nation has ever signed up to be bound by such an extensive regime, imposed externally without any democratic control over the laws to be applied, nor the ability to decide to exit the arrangement,” he said in his resignation letter.
Raab said that taking that arrangement as the starting point for negotiating Britain’s future relationship with the EU would “severely prejudice the second phase of negotiations against the UK.”
The 44-year-old was appointed to the role of Brexit minister in July this year following the resignation of his predecessor David Davis, who also quit in protest at May’s Brexit strategy.
Other than Dominic Esther McVey, welfare minister resigned accusing the prime minister of failing to honour the result of the 2016 referendum vote to leave the EU. Shailesh Vara and Suella Braverman has also stepped down disagreeing with the May’s deal with the EU.
Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of opposition Labour Party
“The withdrawal agreement and the outline political declaration represent a huge and damaging failure … The government … is in chaos,” added Jeremy Corbyn, leader of Opposition Party.
“Theresa May has no authority left and is clearly incapable of delivering a Brexit deal that commands even the support of her cabinet, let alone parliament and the people of our country,” said John Trickett, member of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn’s senior team.
The dollar jumped and traders bought into the safe-haven yen after Britain’s Brexit deal was plunged into uncertainty, spooking investors. The ministerial resignations sent sterling plummeting more than 1%.
Responding to the resignations, Theresa May said, “The choice is clear: We can choose to leave with no deal, we can risk no Brexit at all, or we can choose to unite and support the best deal that can be negotiated.”
(Reuters)