British Labour Party politician Yvette Cooper walks along Whitehall into the Cabinet office, in London, Britain, January 17, 2019. REUTERS/Toby Melville
January 23, 2019
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s opposition Labour Party is highly likely to back an amendment by lawmaker Yvette Cooper that could prevent a no-deal Brexit, the second most powerful man in the party said.
The Cooper amendment makes time for a piece of legislation Cooper has proposed, which gives May until Feb. 26 to get a deal approved by parliament.
If the government fails to get a deal through by that date, parliament would be given a vote on asking the EU for a postponement of the Article 50 deadline to prevent Britain leaving without a deal on March 29. The proposal is for a nine-month extension, to Dec. 31.
“Yvette Cooper has put an amendment down which I think is sensible,” the Labour Party’s finance policy chief, John McDonnell, told the BBC.
When asked whether Labour would back the amendment, he said: “Highly likely.”
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Alistair Smout)
