Emma Lewell-Buck MP: Prime Minister putting her party before the country with Brexit deal

This week we've been presented with a Brexit deal which has pulled off the remarkable feat of uniting leavers and remainers across the political spectrum in opposition to it.
Prime Minister Theresa May making a statement in the House of Commons on Brexit. Picture by PA WirePrime Minister Theresa May making a statement in the House of Commons on Brexit. Picture by PA Wire
Prime Minister Theresa May making a statement in the House of Commons on Brexit. Picture by PA Wire

This sorry state of affairs began with a lazy Prime Minister who offered a referendum to shut up his own party. Once the referendum result was announced in June 2016, it was clear that the country was very deeply divided – and not just along party lines.

If Mrs May had taken the opportunity to bring Labour and the smaller parties together with her Ministers to discuss the best way to achieve a good Brexit, I firmly believe we would be facing a far better deal than we are now.

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It is very sad for us all that she could not put country before party in this one instance, where the decisions made will have such a significant impact on all our lives for years to come.

Labour set out a Brexit deal this summer which could have gained cross-party support as well as protecting jobs here in the North East, keeping the peace in Northern Ireland and stopping Europe being able to dictate any future trade deals. But May rejected it.

So here we are, nearly 30 months after the vote, the Government remain in turmoil and we risk the chaos of ‘no deal’.

Theresa May is trying to blackmail MPs to support her rubbish deal by threatening even more damage if we don’t. This is a Tory mess. Now they want Labour to agree with their ridiculous plan. The Prime Minister’s deal won’t work and I certainly won’t be voting for it.

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If she can’t get her deal through Parliament she may call a second referendum. This is not dissimilar to those who are calling for a ‘People’s Vote’ today. It is something I am not comfortable with and I believe, from talking to people around the constituency, that Shields doesn’t like it either.

It feels like ‘trumping’ the referendum we’ve already had.

However, the Labour Party position is to keep an open mind and we will have to see how the land lies, assuming Mrs May’s deal is rejected by MPs.

What I do want is a General Election to get rid of this awful, incompetent Government, where Ministers spend more time plotting against each other than they do negotiating the best deal for Britain.

If that happens we can get a Labour team into talks with our European friends and work out a deal which is good for all of us.

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Even as I write this things are changing by the hour and I also know that not everyone will agree with me. That’s the nature of the whole Brexit debate and that is why this Saturday I am holding a drop-in at ‘Coffey by Name’ on Highfield Road from 1.30pm to 3pm to hear your views and answer any questions you might have about Brexit. Please call in for a free cuppa and a chat!