The Labour leader has begun a chain of events that could lead to a general election
Jeremy Corbyn has tabled a motion of no confidence in Theresa May’s government after her Brexit deal suffered a historic 230 vote-margin defeat in the House of Commons on Tuesday.
Speaking following the vote, Jeremy Coryn described the result as a “catastrophic defeat” for the government.
“After two years of failed negotiations, the House of Commons has delivered its verdict on her Brexit deal and that verdict is absolutely decisive,” he said.
"This House can give its verdict on the sheer incompetence of this government."@jeremycorbyn tables a motion of no confidence. pic.twitter.com/ONyFI1HsHT
— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) January 15, 2019
He added: “She cannot seriously believe that after two years of failure, she is capable of negotiating a good deal for the people of this country.
“On the most important issue facing us, this government has lost the confidence of this House and this country.
“I, therefore, Mr Speaker, inform you, that I have tabled a motion of no confidence in this government. I am pleased that motion will be debated tomorrow so this House can give its verdict on the sheer incompetence of this government and pass that motion of no confidence in this government.”
Following the result, the prime minister had promised in a point of order that if a motion of no confidence was to be tabled it would be debated and voted-on on Wednesday.
She added: “It is clear that the House does not support this deal. But tonight’s vote tells us nothing about what it does support. Nothing about how – or even if – it intends to honour the decision the British people took in a referendum Parliament decided to hold.”
Under the Fixed Term Parliament Act the motion could potentially lead to a general election. If it is adopted and the motion passed, it will mean a general election could be triggered in 14 days – providing a subsequent motion of confidence in the government could not be passed in that time frame.
However, the motion is unlikely to pass as DUP leader Arlene Foster suggested ahead of the vote on Tuesday that her party will not support a bid to oust Theresa May.
Both the hard-Brexit and Remain wings of the Tory party too have said they would back the government to prevent Corbyn being given an opportunity to seize power.
