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UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson late Tuesday said he will ask parliament to approve a snap election, after he lost a crucial vote on a bid to prevent him from withdrawing Britain from the European Union without an exit deal.
Parliament’s elected main house, the Commons, voted by 328 to 301 for a cross-party motion allowing a debate on Wednesday on a bill to block a no-deal Brexit on October 31.
The bill would require Johnson to ask the EU to delay Brexit until January 31, unless parliament approves a new deal or votes in favour of a no-deal Brexit by October 19.
“It means parliament is on the brink of wrecking any deal that we may have had [with Brussels],” Johnson said following the vote.
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“I don’t want an election but if MPs vote tomorrow to compel another pointless delay to Brexit then that would be the only way to resolve this,” he said.
It was a stinging blow in a day that saw Johnson lose his majority after an MP defected.
Twenty-one pro-EU rebels from Johnson’s Conservatives also joined opposition lawmakers in voting for Tuesday’s motion.
Keir Starmer, shadow Brexit secretary for the main opposition Labour party, tweeted that the vote was a “hugely important first step in stopping Boris Johnson’s plan for a no-deal Brexit”.

Johnson will need the backing of two-thirds of the 650 lawmakers to win a vote on a snap election, making Labour’s stance crucial.
Responding to Johnson after the vote, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said he will not back an early election unless legislation is passed to rule out a no-deal Brexit.
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The Scottish National Party and the Liberal Democrats made similar statements, meaning Johnson would struggle to gain the two-thirds majority.
Commons speaker John Bercow allowed Tuesday’s debate on the cross-party bid to take control of the parliamentary process despite objections from Johnson’s government.




The debate was called after Johnson said last week that he would prorogue, or suspend, parliament from mid-September to mid-October - a move seen by many as an effort to limit parliament’s ability to have a say before the October 31 deadline.
Johnson earlier accused supporters of the cross-party bill of wanting to “frustrate the will of the people” and “overturn the result of the [2016 Brexit] referendum.”
He lost his majority in parliament earlier Tuesday after pro-EU lawmaker Phillip Lee left the Conservatives for the Liberal Democrats.
What is prorogation? A simple guide to what is happening in UK politics
Jacob Rees-Mogg, Johnson’s leader in the Commons, said the allowance of the debate and the measures in the proposed bill were “constitutionally irregular” and quoted parliamentary rules requiring impartiality from the speaker.
Bercow insisted that he was fulfilling his duty to “facilitate the house... without fear or favour”.
Opening the debate, pro-EU Conservative Oliver Letwin told lawmakers it was “decision time” on whether or not they want to prevent Britain leaving the EU without a deal.
Letwin said the government had “not produced a single indication of any viable proposal” to replace the so-called “backstop” provision, which is designed to guarantee an open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit.
Brussels has so far refused Johnson’s demand for the backstop to be removed from Britain’s existing withdrawal agreement with the EU.
Additional reporting by Bloomberg


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Brexit

UK PM Boris Johnson to call for election after humiliating loss in parliament over his Brexit plan

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson: ‘I don’t want an election but if MPs vote tomorrow to compel another pointless delay to Brexit then that would be the only way to resolve this’. Photo: AP

Protesters outside the House of Commons, London, Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2019. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered key defections from his party Tuesday, losing a working majority in Parliament and weakening his position as he tried to prevent lawmakers from blocking his Brexit plans. (AP Photo/Vudi Xhymshiti)

‘You don’t want an election’: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson warns lawmakers he will never delay Brexit

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson delivers a statement outside 10 Downing Street. Photo: EPA-EFE

Demonstrators gather to protest against the government's move to suspend parliament in the final weeks before Brexit in Manchester, northwest England, on September 2, 2019. - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday said the chances of a Brexit deal with Brussels were "rising" but ruled out any delay to the October 31 deadline for Britain to leave the European Union if no agreement is struck. (Photo by Oli SCARFF / AFP)

Britain begins decisive week of reckoning for Brexit

Demonstrators wave European Union flags outside Downing Street during a protest against the suspension of parliament on Saturday. Photo: Bloomberg

Britain's Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn addresses a protest against the government's move to suspend parliament in the final weeks before Brexit in Glasgow on August 31, 2019. - Demonstrations, being dubbed "Stop The Coup" by organisers, were to be held across Britain on August 31 against Prime Minister Boris Johnson's move to suspend parliament in the final weeks before Brexit. The protests come ahead of an intense political week in which Johnson's opponents will seek to block the move in court and legislate against a no-deal departure from the European Union. (Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP)

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson gestures during his final press conference at the G7 summit Monday, Aug. 26, 2019 in Biarritz, southwestern France. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

In a handout picture released by the BBC shows Britain's Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove (R) speaks to British journalist Andrew Marr during an appearance on the BBC political programme The Andrew Marr Show in London on September 1, 2019. - The EU's top Brexit negotiator warned in an interview published on Sunday that it will not change the divorce deal agreed with Britain, as a showdown week looms in which MPs return to parliament. While Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said that we could expect change in food prices with some increases in the event of withdrawal from the EU without an agreement with Brussels. (Photo by JEFF OVERS / BBC / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT " AFP PHOTO / JEFF OVERS-BBC " - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS TO REPORT ON THE BBC PROGRAMME OR EVENT SPECIFIED IN THE CAPTION - NO ARCHIVE - NO USE AFTER **SEPTEMBER 21, 2019** /

(181214) -- LONDON, Dec. 14, 2018 (Xinhua) -- Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair delivers a speech on Brexit in an event in London, Britain, on Dec. 14, 2018. Tony Blair, a strong supporter of Britain remaining in the EU, said in a speech Friday there would soon be a majority in the British parliament for a second referendum on EU membership. (Xinhua) -UK OUT-

TOPSHOT - Demonstrators hold up placards in the sunshine at a protest against the move to suspend parliament in the final weeks before Brexit outside Downing Street in London on August 31, 2019. - Demonstrations, being dubbed "Stop The Coup" by organisers, were to be held across Britain on August 31 against Prime Minister Boris Johnson's move to suspend parliament in the final weeks before Brexit. The protests come ahead of an intense political week in which Johnson's opponents will seek to block the move in court and legislate against a no-deal departure from the European Union. (Photo by Niklas HALLE'N / AFP)

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Lawmakers voted by 328 to 301 for a motion put forward by opposition parties to block a ‘no-deal’ exit from the EU
Johnson’s government will now seek to hold a vote on Wednesday to approve an early election



Boris Johnson raised the prospect of a snap election after he suffered a major parliamentary defeat over his Brexit strategy that could delay Britain’s exit from the European Union.
