Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd has said a second Brexit referendum is a possibility if Prime Minister Theresa May’s draft withdrawal deal is defeated in the Commons, insisting “anything could happen.”
When asked if she would prefer a no-deal Brexit or a fresh vote, Secretary Rudd said she thinks parliament ultimately won’t allow the UK to crash out of the EU without a deal.
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“The Brexiteers may lose their Brexit,” the cabinet minister warned.
Reacting to the PM’s warning that the only alternative to the deal she has negotiated is a hard Brexit, Rudd said, “There isn’t a majority in the House of Commons to allow that to take place.”
However, the cabinet minister said she still thinks the deal is likely to get through parliament, saying, “I think likelihood is that, despite what people say, the withdrawal agreement will get through.”
Rudd previously served as home secretary, until she was forced to resign in April after she was found to have lied to a parliamentary committee about the existence of deportation targets.
The DUP emerged as a key ally of the Tories following the 2017 snap general election, which saw the Conservative Party lose its majority in the House of Commons, but relations have been strained due to Brexit, with leader Arlene Foster warning they will not back a deal which risks jeopardizing the Good Friday Agreement or threatens to isolate Northern Ireland from the rest of Britain.
Meanwhile, several Tory and Labour MPs have slammed the deal, insisting they won’t back the draft agreement unless significant amendments are made.
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