London, United Kingdom
The House of Lords has voted to give MEPs more power to reject the final terms of the UK's exit from the European Union, ignoring Theresa May's calls not to put new obstacles in the negotiations. The government will seek to reverse the decision, says Minister for Negotiations David Davis.
By 366 votes to 268, the upper house added an additional clause to the "European Union Draft (notification of withdrawal)", the bill authorizing the government to start negotiations on the UK's exit from the European Union.
The amended bill now requires any Brexit agreement to be put to a vote by the British Parliament before it can be debated in the European Parliament, and if negotiations fail, MEPs must vote to approve a decision to leave without an agreement.
The British government will seek to overturn the amendments voted by the upper house on Tuesday, said in a statement the minister in charge of Brexit, David Davis.
"It is clear that some members of the House of Lords will seek to prevent this process and it is the intention of the government to ensure that this does not happen. "We will now aim to repeal these amendments in the House of Commons," Davis said.
Both houses of parliament will have to approve any changes before the bill can be turned into state law and before May activates the legal process for the UK to leave the Union.
The government has already promised to submit the final agreement to the British Parliament for approval, but believes that by limiting the British Prime Minister's ability to leave the negotiating table, it may encourage the EU to offer a bad deal in the hope that MPs will reject it and possibly prevent Brexit.
"This amendment simply makes the negotiations even more difficult for the prime minister from day one, as it increases the motivation for the EU to offer nothing more than a bad deal," said George Bridges, the government's Brexit minister in parliament. of the Lords in his final motion before the vote.
Source: news.in.gr