Sadly, most of the 19 Labour rebels reverted back to form and voted down the timetable for the bill they had just voted for. It won't spare them awful abuse from Remainers on social media though. Only Barron, Fitzpatrick, Flint and Mann backed up their initial vote, with Kate Hoey providing the fifth Labour vote.
The PM has now put the bill on hold, for motives unknown, a decision that led Donald Tusk to announce his intention to extend Article 50 (collective groan). Even die hard supporters of Boris Johnson are now beginning to ask serious questions about his apparent lack of countermeasures and the now strongly suspected absence of a masterplan that would have got us out next week. A general election between now and the next Brexit deadline of January 31st is now inevitable. The problem for Boris is that he is going into this election having failed to deliver Brexit and as such the Brexit Party will still be in play. He simply has to swallow his pride (if he has any left) and cut a deal with Nigel Farage. The Brexit Party can take out Labour MPs in the north of England, but it can only do so if the Tories stand aside. The Brexit Party can then stand down elsewhere, in order to allow the Tories a free run in Labour marginals, particularly in the south of England. It's a no brainer, but having seen the debacle of the last few weeks, we have to ask if there are any brains on either side of the Commons.
