Theresa May outside Downing Street this morning.jpg

May faces challenge to her leadership

Damian McCarney

British Prime Minister Theresa May will tonight discover her fate as she faces a vote of confidence, with the outcome having ramifications for the withdrawal agreement.

With the threshhold of 48 conservative MPs submitting letters to the 1922 Committee, a vote of confidence - amongst Tory MPs only - will be conducted by secret ballot after she has addressed her colleagues at 5pm this evening. The votes will be counted and made public at 9pm.

Before that she will face leader's questions at the House of Commons. 

The Tory leader had intended to visit Dublin this afternoon to discuss with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar the scope for movement on the vexed backstop issue, to provide a sop to the Brexiteer wing of her party and the DUP upon whom she depends for a confidence and supply partnership. That planned visit has been cancelled as she tries to “make the case for my leadership with my parliamentary colleagues”.

In an impassioned speech outside the door of 10 Downing Street this morning she insisted:“I will contest that vote with everything I've got.”

Ms May is expected to win the vote. The Brexiteers who provoked the vote of confidence are reportedly furious that the vote has been organised so rapidly, as they had expected it to be conducted on Monday, giving them time to rally support to unseat Ms May. Tory heavyweights immediately rushed to Theresa May's defence, with former British PM David Cameron, and current cabinet members Liam Fox and Jeremy Hunt amongst the many to say she is the best person for the job.

 

If Theresa May loses there will be a Conservative leadership election over Christmas. If she wins she will be immune from further votes of confidence in her own party for a year. Either way the deadlock on the Brexit backstop, and the unfavourable parliamentary arithmetic will persist.