Banbury MP ‘genuinely sorry’ EU withdrawal deal didn’t get through

Victoria Prentis voted for the deal in the House of Commons alongside her Conservative colleagues for South Northamptonshire, Andrea Leadsom, and Stratford-upon-Avon, Nadhim Zahawi.

But it was not enough as 391 MPs voted against the Government’s deal, including the Tory MP for West Oxfordshire, Robert Courts, who was also among the rebels the first time around in January, with 242 in favour.

Mrs Prentis tweeted this morning: “Completely understand the difficulties a no deal scenario would cause, so won’t be voting for it this evening. Genuinely sorry we can’t get a deal through.”

Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement was defeated for a second time by the House of Commons by 149 votes having negotiated some legal clarification over the contentious Irish backstop over the past weeks.

MPs debated all day over the agreement, with Mrs Prentis in the second row behind Mrs Leadsom, who is Leader of the House.

MPs face another day of debate over a potential ‘no-deal Brexit’, which is expected to be defeated, before another day of discussion on the possibility of delaying the UK’s departure from the EU.

Mrs Leadsom tweeted before yesterday’s vote: “A vital day today. Let’s get on and leave the EU as instructed by the voters of the UK! The PM’s deal allows close cooperation but also delivers on the referendum.”