Two U.K. Cabinet Ministers, Including Chief Brexit Negotiator, Quit

Image

Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain leaving 10 Downing Street on Thursday morning to make a statement in the House of Commons.CreditCreditPeter Nicholls/Reuters

By Stephen Castle

Nov. 15, 2018

LONDON — Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain faced a deep political crisis on Thursday after two cabinet ministers quit her government, including Dominic Raab, her chief negotiator on withdrawal from the European Union — decisions that threaten to wreck not only her plans for exit but also her leadership.

The surprise resignation of Mr. Raab Thursday morning followed a tense, five-hour meeting of the cabinet the previous day, during which ministers reluctantly agreed to sign off on Mrs. May’s draft plans for departure from the European Union, a process commonly known as Brexit.

Mr. Raab’s departure was not only unexpected but also deeply damaging to Mrs. May’s authority, increasing the risk that she might face a leadership challenge from rebel Conservative lawmakers.

Shortly after, Esther McVey, the work and pensions secretary, resigned, adding to the turmoil.

The crisis is a grave one for Mrs. May, who addressed lawmakers to sell her deal in Parliament on Thursday morning. Even before the resignations, Mrs. May knew she would struggle to gain support from lawmakers for her draft agreement.

“What we agreed yesterday was not the final deal,” she said. “It is a draft treaty that means that we will leave the E.U. in a smooth and orderly way on the 29th of March, 2019 and which sets the framework for a future relationship that delivers in our national interest.”

She added that the deal “delivers in ways that many said could simply not be done.”

Although a hard-line supporter of Brexit, Mr. Raab had been a core member of the cabinet, and his presence reassured other hard-line lawmakers.

In his letter of resignation, Mr. Raab said that he could not “reconcile the terms of the proposed deal with the promises we made.”

In the hours after his announcement, the pound dropped 1.5 percent against the dollar.

Ms. McVey’s departure, though damaging, was less of a surprise.

Another cabinet minister, Penny Mordaunt, the international development secretary, was also reportedly reconsidering her position after a cabinet debate that Mrs. May described, diplomatically, as “impassioned.” As many as 10 cabinet ministers were reported to have voiced reservations.

Iain Duncan Smith, a leading Conservative supporter of Brexit and former party leader, told the BBC that the effect of Mr. Raab’s resignation would be “devastating,” because it suggested that the Brexit secretary’s concerns had been ignored, despite his pivotal position in government and in withdrawal negotiations.

Such is the unhappiness from around the party at Mrs. May’s draft deal that the calculation of those who want to oust her might change.

It would take requests from 48 Conservative lawmakers to secure a vote of no confidence in Mrs. May. Though the hard-line pro-Brexit faction has that number, it has held back so far because it does not believe that it has enough support to topple her.

Dominic Raab’s resignation increases the risk that Mrs. May might face a leadership challenge.CreditAndy Rain/EPA, via Shutterstock

To oust her as prime minister would require a majority of Conservative lawmakers — at least 158 — voting to force her out.

Britons voted to quit the European Union in a 2016 referendum, but since then the Conservatives have been split between those who want to keep some close economic ties to the bloc, to protect the economy, and others who want a cleaner break.

Worryingly for Mrs. May, many of her enemies are converging around the view that the compromise she has crafted carefully is the worst of both worlds, leaving Britain without a voice in the European Union but still subject to many of its trade rules. Several leading Brexit supporters have characterized the draft deal as worse than membership in the bloc they find so objectionable.

The focus of the discord has been around plans to ensure that, whatever happens in future trade talks, there should be no physical checks at the border between Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, and Ireland, which is a member of the European Union.

Under the so-called backstop plan that is part of the draft deal, the whole of the United Kingdom would remain in a customs union with the European Union until future trade plans that negate the need for border checks are worked out.

But Northern Ireland would be subject to more of the European Union’s regulatory processes than the rest of the country, a fact that Mr. Raab said “prevents a very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom.”

He also objected to the fact that Britain could not unilaterally leave the backstop, a move that would clear a path to exit a customs union and pursue trade deals with other countries.

Mr. Raab’s departure had been preceded on Thursday morning by the resignation of Shailesh Vara, a junior Northern Ireland minister.

Speaking at a news conference in Brussels shortly before Mr. Raab’s announcement, Michel Barnier, the top European Union negotiator, and Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, said they would call a summit meeting for Nov. 25, where leaders of the bloc’s member states could endorse the deal.

Mr. Tusk said that the accord approved by the British cabinet meets two crucial objectives: It limits the damage Brexit would cause, and it protects the vital interests of the 27 remaining members states and the European Union as a whole.

“We have always said Brexit is a lose-lose situation and these negotiations were always about damage control,” he said.

Mr. Barnier said that the coming days, when the focus will be on finalizing a political declaration outlining the future relationship between Britain and the European Union, would be “intense,” adding that “we have no time to lose.” Brexit is scheduled to take effect on March 29.

However, European Union officials have made it clear that they were scheduling the summit meeting on the assumption that turbulence in Mrs. May’s party would not paralyze or overwhelm her government.

Michael Wolgelenter contributed reporting.