UK Parliament votes to delay Brexit but rejects second referendum

Anca Alexe 15/03/2019 | 08:10

UK lawmakers voted on Thursday to delay the Brexit deadline in order to provide more time for the UK and the EU to reach an agreement and avoid a no-deal outcome. However, MPs categorically rejected an amendment that called for a second Brexit referendum.

Next week, MPs will be asked to vote again on Theresa May’s deal, which they’ve already rejected overwhelmingly twice.

If this time they approve her deal, then the delay to Brexit could be limited to three months; if they reject it again, the delay could be much longer and Britain would most likely have to take part in the upcoming EU elections. May hopes that this can convince enough MPs to start supporting her deal.

The amendment for a second Brexit referendum was rejected by 334 to 85 votes.

European Council President Donald Tusk said on Twitter that he would appeal to the 27 EU leaders “to be open to a long extension if the UK finds it necessary to rethink its Brexit strategy and build consensus around it,” while French President Emmanuel Macron said that the extension could only be “a technical delay to allow more time to put their departure in place”.