Brexit: Labour MP suspended from Commons for stealing ceremonial mace in protest at vote delay

This is interesting from Tory backbencher James Duddridge, a Brexiteer, who is vowing to try to block any attempts to delay the 'meaningful vote'. Others are likely to do the same - which could make things interesting...

Theresa May will give a statement in the Commons at 3.30pm, with speculation rife in Westminster about what she might say. As far as I see it, these are five possibilities:

1. Vows to return to Brussels this week in order to try to secure further concessions.

2. Abandons the planned deal and pivots to planning for a no-deal Brexit.

3. Announces plans for a second referendum.

4. Calls a general election.  

5. Resigns. 

Tory MP Nadhim Zahawi, an education minister, says Theresa May will go back to Brussels to seek further concessions on the Northern Ireland backstop...

Nicola Sturgeon has accused Theresa May of "pathetic cowardice" and "an unforgivable dereliction of responsibility" after the prime minister decided to delay the Commons vote on her Brexit deal.

The Scottish first minister said:

“Assuming these reports are accurate, this is a watershed moment and an act of pathetic cowardice by a Tory government which has run out of road and is now collapsing into utter chaos.

"It is final proof that the interests of a deeply-divided Tory party matter far more to the prime minister than people’s jobs and living standards.

"That is an unforgivable dereliction of responsibility, and the UK government should now get out of the way and allow others to take charge."

Full story: Leo Varadkar says the Brexit deal cannot be renegotiated without starting from scratch. 

It comes as Olly Robbins, Ms May's lead Brexit negotiator, was spotted in Brussels, with new talks likely this week after the prime minister delayed the Commons vote on the current deal. 

Intriguing...Nicola Sturgeon has called on Jeremy Corbyn to table a motion of no confidence in the government. 

She says the SNP will work with Labour to topple Theresa May and then push for a fresh referendum. That bit, though, is not Labour Party policy. At least not yet...

We wait to see how Labour will respond to the 'meaningful vote' being delayed. These are unprecedented times and even party leaders are still working out their plan of action. 

This is from the EU Parliament's Brexit coordinator on the news that Theresa May has dropped a vote in the Commons on Tuesday on the Brexit deal.

Theresa May appears to be a collision course with MPs over whether they will get a say over her decision to delay tomorrow’s ‘meaningful vote’ - writes deputy political editor Rob Merrick

Some MPs were critical of the decision to shelve it – opening up the possibility that they could combine to force her to stage the vote, in what would be the ultimate humiliation of the prime minister.

But The Independent understands that the government will not allow a vote on whether to pull the vote (if you’re keeping up!), but will simply choose not to move the planned debate today.

A Commons clerk confirmed it had the power to do this.

A statement from Andrea Leadsom, the Commons leader, will follow the prime minister’s statement later.

All the suggestions are that Theresa May will use her Commons statement at 3.30pm to announce her intention to return to Brussels  to seek further concessions from the EU on the matter of the Northern Ireland backstop.

But EU leaders have said for weeks - and re-iterated today - that the withdrawal agreement cannot be renegotiated.

There are also questions over why Brussels would help Ms May with getting the deal through Parliament, given the most likely alternatives - a soft Brexit with a Norway-type deal or a second referendum - both help serve their interests of keeping the UK closely aligned with the EU.

That means the prime minister is banking on one of two things happening: either that EU leaders will agree to some sort of other compromise on the backstop, possibly a written statement or an exchange of letters, designed to emphasise the temporary nature of the protocol or else give the UK some way of exiting the arrangement. But that would not override the legally-binding withdrawal agreement, and so is unlikely to satisfy Tory Brexiteers.

Ms May's other calculation could be that simply by having one last throw of the dice and showing she is doing everything possible to secure the best deal, she is likely to win over a few of the Tory rebels. Again, though, that seems highly unlikely to be enough to get the deal through.

All in all, then, it is unclear how Ms May returning to Brussels this week would significantly change matters...