Theresa May under fire as MPs move to block no-deal Brexit

A junior government minister has resigned in protest at the Prime Minister's decision to hold talks with opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn.

Nigel Adams, minister for Wales and assistant government whip, told Theresa May that her decision to hold talks with the Labour leader was a "grave error."

"At Cabinet yesterday, there was an opportunity to get onto the front foot for once," he wrote to the Prime Minister. "However, by legitimizing and turning to Jeremy Corbyn to assist you at this crucial stage, rather than being bold, is a grave error."

"It is clear that we will now end up in the Customs Union. That is not the Brexit my constituents were promised, and it is contrary to the pledge we made in our manifesto," the Adams said.

The UK is now at risk of "simultaneously failing" the British public on its Brexit vote, he wrote, potentially leading to the "calamity of a Corbyn government."

"It now seems that you and your Cabinet have decided that a deal -- cooked up with a Marxist who has never once in his political life, put British interests first -- is better than no deal."

Theresa May has finally made a decision. And it's not one her hard-Brexit allies will like.

The Prime Minister has recognized what many have been saying for weeks -- that there's no majority for her deal in Parliament.

In offering talks with the opposition Labour Party -- and, crucially, offering to accept the result of any vote in Parliament for an alternative Brexit plan -- May has also recognized that she will never be able to persuade her supposed allies in the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, nor a hard core of Brexiteers in her own Conservative Party.

May has picked a side, and in agreeing to a cross-party approach, it's the side of a "soft" Brexit -- one that envisages a closer relationship with the EU than she previously could countenance.

"This is a difficult time for everyone. Passions are running high on all sides of the argument. But we can and must find the compromises that will deliver what the British people voted for," May said.

That's a sign that she's about to rub out at least some of her infamous "red lines" which shaped the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with the EU -- out of the Customs Union, which stops the UK signing independent trade deals, and out of the Single Market, which requires the UK to accept unlimited immigration from the EU.

Read more of Luke McGee's analysis here

Hardline Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg says Brexit has been taken over by Remainers and that Leave voters are being "disenfranchised," according to Britain's Press Association news agency.

Here's what the chairman of the European Research Group (ERG) said:

Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay has told the BBC that the "remorseless logic" of the House of Commons meant that the UK is heading for "either a soft Brexit or no Brexit at all."

Barclay blamed members of the European Research Group (ERG) -- a Brexiteer grouping of Conservative MPs -- for refusing to support Theresa May's deal.

"It's regrettable that what we have been saying for several months now is coming to pass but that is the remorseless logic of not backing the Prime Minister's deal because the alternative then is to have to seek votes from the opposition benches because 35 of my own colleagues would not support the Prime Minister's deal," he said.

Theresa May's statement on Tuesday evening represented a significant shift in her Brexit approach, moving away from the prospect of a no-deal split and bringing opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn into the equation.

The plan will dismay the hardline Brexiteers in her own party, who for so long have opposed her Withdrawal Agreement -- and may now, as a result, lose the hard Brexit they crave.

All eyes now shift to Corbyn, the Labour leader whose next move could shape the future of Brexit. The Prime Minister said she would attempt to forge an agreement with Corbyn that would then be put to the House of Commons.

Corbyn said his guiding principle would be to "avoid the dangers of crashing out" of the EU without a deal. Labour would "hold in reserve" the option of calling a no-confidence motion in May's government, which could trigger a general election if it were successful. He said he would make the move if the government "proves it is incapable of commanding a majority in the House of Commons."

But, what will Corbyn demand in his talks with May?

A customs union: Labour party policy favors a customs union with the EU and "close alignment" to the single market. A motion to add a customs union to May's Brexit deal came the closest to achieving a majority in the Commons during the first two rounds of indicative votes this week. If Labour compromised its demand for single market alignment, her deal could get over the line.

Common Market 2.0: This so-called "Norway Plus" model was also backed by Labour in Monday's indicative votes, and comes closest to Labour's own alternative Brexit plan. But it calls for the UK to stay in the Single Market, which would likely be unpalatable to May.

A second referendum: Corbyn took a long time to come around to the prospect of a second vote, but ultimately supported a plan from one of his backbenchers for a confirmatory vote on any deal May gets through Parliament. Could May accept a combination of a customs union plus a confirmatory referendum? It would be a huge move for her.

After holding a Cabinet meeting that lasted most of Tuesday, UK Prime Minister Theresa May tore up her Brexit strategy in a momentous statement and declared the UK would need to see another delay to Brexit to give her time to hold negotiations with opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn.

"This is a decisive moment in the story of these islands and it requires national unity to deliver the national interest," she said in Downing Street.

By offering to accept a compromise, May seemed to recognize Tuesday that she will never be able to win round her supposed allies in the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, nor a hard core of Brexiteers in her own Conservative Party. However, the decision is certain to sow deep divisions on her own side.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, a Conservative Member of Parliament who favors a clean break from the EU, said he was resolutely opposed to May's offer of talks with the opposition.

"I think getting the support of a known Marxist is not likely to instill confidence in Conservatives," he said, referring to Corbyn's left-wing politics.

If Corbyn and May could not agree a deal, the Prime Minister said last night, the government would give Parliament a series of votes on Brexit options.

Read more about what happened yesterday here.