May to meet her lawmakers as resignation talk swirls

British Prime Minister Theresa May will address her Conservative lawmakers on Wednesday, possibly to announce a resignation date in a last throw of the dice to win support for her twice-rejected Brexit deal in parliament.

May was due to speak to the party’s so-called 1922 Committee at 1700 GMT on Wednesday, a lawmaker from her Conservative Party said, speaking on condition of anonymity, adding it was “certainly a possibility” she could set her date of departure.

The political editor of The Sun newspaper said May was expected to set a date for her resignation at the meeting.

Nearly three years after the 2016 EU membership referendum, and four days before Britain was supposed to leave the bloc, it remains unclear how, when or even if Brexit will take place, with parliament and the nation still bitterly divided.

There were signs that some eurosceptic lawmakers were prepared to swing behind her EU divorce plan before choosing a new leader closer to their position who would lead the next phase of negotiations with Brussels about a future trade deal.

May could try to bring her deal back to parliament on Thursday for a third vote on Britain’s biggest trade and foreign policy shift for more than 40 years.

On Monday, lawmakers seized control of the process in parliament for how Britain should leave the EU.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the leader of a faction in May’s Conservative Party demanding a clean break from the EU, said the choice now seemed to be between May’s deal or no Brexit.

“I have always thought that no-deal is better than Mrs May’s deal. But Mrs May’s deal is better than not leaving at all,” Rees-Mogg said in a podcast.

“I think it becomes the choice, eventually. But whether we are there yet is another matter ... Leaving the European Union, even leaving it inadequately and having work to do afterwards, is better than not leaving at all.”

REUTERS, 26th MARCH, 2019