Sterling plummets on reports UK government could pull Parliament's vote on Brexit - CNBC

Reports that Tuesday's Brexit vote in the U.K. parliament has been delayed by Prime Minister Theresa May has sent sterling reeling.

The pound fell to $1.266, a level not seen since June 2017, following several media reports that May had gathered senior aides at a Monday morning meeting in 10 Downing Street to discuss pulling the vote.

The pound also extended losses versus the euro, trading down by 0.7 percent to 90.18 pence.

The political editor of The Sun newspaper said on Twitter that the meeting would decide the fate of the vote.

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That assertion was supported by the BBC's political editor who said she had heard that the vote would likely not happen on Tuesday.

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However, in a phone call to CNBC, a press officer to 10 Downing Street said the vote was still on track for Tuesday night.

"The spokesperson gave a briefing not long ago to say that the vote is going ahead tomorrow as planned. There is nothing else to add at this stage."

Members of the U.K.'s main opposition Labour Party have reportedly said that May will now provide an update on Brexit to the House of Commons on Monday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. London time (10:30 a.m. EST).

The official Twitter feed of the leader of the House of Commons, Andrea Leadsom, has confirmed that there will be three government statements in the House of Commons today, including one from May.

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Any delay would be seen as an attempt by the government to return to the negotiating table with the European Union and seek terms more amenable to U.K. lawmakers.

The climb-down will be seen as a failure on the government's part to convince enough lawmakers that the draft Brexit deal with Brussels is the best possible arrangement.

The leader of the U.K.'s main opposition Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn, has reportedly claimed that delaying the vote would show that Britain "doesn't have a functioning government."

And the head of the U.K.'s third biggest party, the Scottish National Party, has taken to Twitter to accuse May of "pathetic cowardice" should she implement any delay.

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The vote in the House of Commons is termed the "meaningful vote" and is to allow lawmakers to have their say on the terms of Brexit that the EU and British government had previously agreed.

May's motion that she seeks parliamentary backing includes a "withdrawal deal" that outlines the divorce and a "future relationship" document that spells out the areas of negotiations that she says are needed to resolve how the EU and U.K. will interact.

May has claimed it is the best deal she could get to satisfy a deeply divided country, which in June 2016 voted 52 percent to leave and 48 percent to remain in the EU.

But MPs from all sides have publicly refused to back the deal. Her deal with Europe is seen by some as a sellout to the ideals of Brexit, reducing Britain's influence while staying within many of the EU's rules.

And many of those who oppose Brexit didn't like the deal either. They have argued that it will reduce Britain's ease of trade with the world, repel global talent and increase the cost of living.

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