British lawmakers are set to vote again Monday on whether or not to hold a general election next month as the UK continues to wrestle with the looming Brexit deadline.
A snap election is vehemently supported by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who hopes to regain a Conservative majority in Parliament so his government can withdraw the UK from the European Union — with or without a deal — on the October 31 deadline. Earlier this week, however, the House of Commons rejected Johnson's first bid to schedule an election.
The opposition Labour Party said they would back an election, but only after Parliament passes a pending bill that would prohibit a no-deal Brexit, which opponents say would have disastrous consequences to the nation's economy and trade relations.
"We want an election … but the offer of an election today is like the offer of an apple to Snow White from the wicked Queen," Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said Wednesday. "Because what [Johnson] is offering is not an apple, or even an election, but the poison of no-deal."
The Conservatives, however, have characterized the legislation to stop a no-deal Brexit as a "surrender bill" that would force Britain to cave to EU demands and would stymie the will of the British people who voted in favor of Brexit in 2016. If implemented, the bill — known as the Benn bill — would require the government to request the Brexit deadline be extended to January 2020.
Johnson, who has long been a vocal supporter of Brexit, told lawmakers that the bill would "effectively end negotiations" and force Britain to "acquiesce to the demands of Brussels."
Since the referendum over three year ago, debate over how to exit the EU has largely divided the UK with hard-line Eurosceptics demanding a swift withdrawal despite various concerns, such as the significant apprehension held by business and industry leaders.
Brexit also made the Johnson premiership a reality. The former Member of Parliament, mayor of London, and Foreign Secretary took over 10 Downing Street following the resignation of Prime Minister Theresa May, who stepped down in June after failing three times to secure a Brexit deal.
"This matter has to be resolved by a general election for the British people to have their final say," said Nile Gardiner, a former aid to Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and a current director at the Heritage Foundation, a U.S. conservative think tank. Gardiner added the Conservatives are likely to win a majority based on public polling, which shows strong support for Johnson among Conservative voters and a significant concern regarding Brexit overall nationwide.
In 2017, however, then-Prime Minister May held a snap election to widen the then-Conservative majority in Parliament in an effort to increase her governing mandate. The election backfired with voters electing a Labour majority instead.
On Thursday, the Brexit debate hit home for Johnson after his brother and fellow Conservative Member of Parliament, Jo Johnson, resigned citing "unresolvable tension" in his personal and professional lives. "In recent weeks I've been torn between family loyalty and the national interest," tweeted the younger Johnson brother, who has publicly supported the UK remaining in the EU.
Nigel Farage, the former leader of the UK Independence Party and the current leader of the nascent Brexit Party, said, however, that the fraternal feud showcases how the "centre of gravity in the Conservative party is shifting rapidly."
Yet within the Johnson family, the prime minister appears to be outnumbered. The middle sibling, Rachel Johnson, said on Twitter Thursday that the family avoids discussing Brexit "especially at meals as we don't want to gang up on the PM."
The European Commission, meanwhile, issued a statement this week urging relevant stakeholders — specifically European companies that do business in the UK — to prepare for a no-deal Brexit, which it said "remains a possible, although undesirable, outcome."
