Rory Stewart MP has confirmed he will be voting to remove the option of a No Deal Brexit.
PM Theresa May has repeatedly said “no deal is better than a bad deal” and constantly said we are leaving the EU on 29 March with or without a deal.
Last night MPs voted down the prime minister’s deal by 149 – a smaller margin than when they rejected it in January.
Many Brexiteers believe leaving the EU on WTO rules is the only way to get a true Brexit and by taking no deal off the table the UK would lose its largest bargaining chip.
Rory Stewart MP said: “I will be voting against No Deal tonight, because I believe that it would be infinitely better to leave the European Union with a proper agreement in place to give us a responsible transition period to protect our industry and future.
“I do not want to see tariffs of 40% imposed on agricultural goods, nor do I believe that the significant economic and legal disruption – which would result from the abrupt ending of British involvement in systems which govern everything from healthcare distribution to scientific cooperation – to be desirable. I want a responsible, pragmatic Brexit – with Parliament engaging constructively in the process – and I will continue to argue for this over the coming days.”