If the UK heads to the polls before Brexit, MP says it could ‘very much backfire’ on the Labour party – CNBC

On Tuesday, lawmakers voted, in principle, for the government’s Withdrawal Agreement Bill to proceed — it was the first time members of parliament have, by a majority, backed any Brexit deal agreed between London and Brussels. But, that victory was shortlived as MPs then rejected the limited time frame for reviewing the full legislation, which means the U.K. is very unlikely to leave the EU by the Oct. 31 deadline.

The prime minister said earlier Tuesday if his “timetable vote” did not succeed in parliament, he would pull the whole legislation and instead call for a general election. If MPs make major changes to the agreement, despite agreeing to it in principle on Tuesday, the government is also expected to pull the bill.

“Johnson’s preferred Brexit strategy has therefore been derailed,” Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at Eurasia Group, wrote in a note. “He has now ‘paused’ the passage of the Bill through Parliament and is pondering whether to swallow a short extension beyond his ‘do or die’ deadline for leaving the EU by 31 October, or seek a general election.”

One of the biggest hurdles in the Brexit negotiation has been the Irish backstop — the border between the U.K.’s Northern Ireland and EU member state the Republic of Ireland. It’s the only land border the U.K. shares with the EU.

If the UK heads to the polls before Brexit, MP says it could ‘very much backfire’ on the Labour party – CNBC