Deal or no deal. reprise

A short post on events this evening in Parliament.

An amendment tabled by Yvette Cooper in the Government's finance bill now stops the Government form financing no deal preparations. It is a significant defeat, the DUP and 10 conservative MPs voted against the Government.

Three Labour MPs voted with the Government.

The question is, what does it mean?

No one really knows, in that this makes no deal preparations very difficult. But wit the "meaningful vote" on the 14th almost certainly will be defeated, but the truth is MPs are only looking to that point. The question is, what will happen then? Its all very well rejecting what is a dreadful WA that makes no one happy, but if it is rejected, what then? There is no plan B, and if rejected it makes both no deal and no Brexit more likely, but which one?

We just don't know.

Tory whips published the order papers for the debate on the WA, and there is no change, meaning that despite May claiming all through Christmas and New Year that negotiations were continuing with the EU, that none actually were, and the delay on the vote was just to ramp pressure on Parliament when the vote came, UK would be three weeks closer to Brexit. So hoping to force her negotiated WA on the House.

Now, who knows?

The country is dysfunctional, currently sitting in a shop doorway having soiled our collective trousers after a night on the raz, sending the month's rent. A cold dawn is coming with some hard facts to facts, and hard choices, none of which will fail to upset a large part of the electorate or country.

Will someone do what is best for the country, or what's best for themselves or their party?

Stopping No Deal Brexit requires voting *in favour* of something, not merely against something. Because Article 50 was triggered, No Deal is currently exactly what is going to happen, unless a majority for an alternative way forward can be found.