May struggles to stay in chargePrime Minister Theresa May has insisted that the possibility of a no-deal Brexit should remain an option, arguing that to remove it from her negotiating arsenal would deny her leverage in dealing with the European Union. Still, when Parliament convened on Wednesday, she supported the motion asking lawmakers to state that they were opposed to leaving the European Union on March 29 unless there was a deal in place. Parliament went one step further and voted against leaving the bloc without a deal under any circumstances, at any time — a sharp rebuke to Mrs. May. It was not the first time that members of Mrs. May’s own party have defied her, and there’s little reason to suspect that it will be the last. British governments rarely lose significant parliamentary votes, but Mrs. May has survived several Brexit-related setbacks — and a stream of cabinet resignations — that would ordinarily spell the end of a prime minister’s tenure.

Source: New York Times March 14, 2019 11:01 UTC