UK PM Theresa May is preparing to put her Brexit deal before MPs for the fourth time if her controversial discussions with Labour breakdown, reports the Telegraph.
Under consideration are a number of methods to get the UK’s exit done and dusted, including allowing MPs to rank the alternative Brexit outcomes in order of preference.
A Cabinet source speaking with the Telegraph was reminded of a scene from comedy television show Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, which involved builders using this method to settle a disagreement.
The source said: “There is a scene in Auf Wiedersehen, Pet, where the builders pick a colour to paint their shed and end up with yellow.
“They are all baffled because no-one vote for yellow, but it turns out that two people put it down as their second choice.
“So there is an issue with a ranking systems, as it comes with the inherent danger that you end up with a result that no-one wanted."
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The prime minister is preparing to hold the indicative votes in a bid to find a mechanism that would allow her to avoid another Brexit stalemate.
Other alternatives include a knockout system, with the least popular options dropped after each round, leaving only one option at the end of the voting process.
Theresa May's government has not yet made any major concessions on Brexit to the Labour Party, opposition and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said at a speech at the University of Kent's Medway campus on Thursday morning.
"So far in those talks there's been no big offer and the red lines are still in place," Mr. Corbyn said.
The UK PM’s preferred option is to agree a deal with Labour that can be written into a Withdrawal Agreement Bill — the legislation needed for Britain to leave the EU with a deal — which would then be put to a vote by 22 May, before European elections.
But if the talks with Labour fail, May will move on to plan B: indicative votes — so-called because they indicate the will of Parliament, rather than being legally binding.
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Last month, when MPs voted on eight different alternative Brexit outcomes, including remaining in the EU, a no deal Brexit, a second referendum and a customs union with the EU, all of which were voted down, they came within three votes of agreeing Britain should leave the EU with a permanent customs union deal.
The latter is reportedly seen as the most likely outcome of another round of votes.
Supporters of this option claim it would resolve the problem of the Northern Ireland border. However, Brexiteers vehemently insist any such deal would not be Brexit.
Talks between May's government and the Labour Party will resume on Monday.
