If parliament cannot decide on Brexit, then the people must

Editorial: Sir Oliver Letwin is right to say that this is where he and those who oppose the PM’s deal must part company, but we do so praising him for his public service

The House of Commons voted yesterday to “withhold approval” of Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal. The throng in Parliament Square cheered the news of the vote. Hundreds of thousands of people had marched to make their voices heard as MPs, once again, deferred a decision on Brexit.

It was indeed an important victory for common sense and constitutionalism. The prime minister tried to bounce parliament into voting through a worse deal than that negotiated by his predecessor, but brave MPs stood their ground. Sir Oliver Letwin says he wants Britain to leave the European Union, but he and several of his former Conservative colleagues are rightly worried about the possibility of a no-deal Brexit.

As Sir Oliver said after the vote, he and those (including this title) who oppose the prime minister’s deal must now part company. But before we do, we should praise him and his colleagues for their public service: by passing the Benn Act, and yesterday’s amendment, they have ensured that the disaster of a disorderly Brexit could not be inflicted on this country.

But in our view – and in the view of the majority of those who marched yesterday – the damage that would be caused by Mr Johnson’s hard Brexit deal could be almost as great as crashing out without a deal. That is why we have argued for the Brexit decision to be put back to the people in a Final Say referendum. And that argument is not over yet.

Yesterday could have been the day that the Brexit question was finally decided – and if it had been, it would have been in favour of leaving the EU. That it was not is another victory of sorts, but these increasingly small steps forward cannot go on forever. If parliament cannot decide on Brexit, then the people must.

We do not know what will happen in the next few days or weeks. The vote yesterday suggested that a vote on the Brexit deal itself would be extremely close. That is why it was so important for the supporters of a Final Say to make their strength of feeling clear to MPs. If this Brexit deal is poised on a knife-edge in parliament, MPs should resolve it not by arm-twisting and deal-making, but by revisiting the original democratic mandate.

Now, the choice is clear: Mr Johnson has negotiated a withdrawal agreement that provides clarity about what “Leave” means. The alternative would be to Remain, having considered all the options in exhausting detail over more than three years.

There is insufficient support among the people or in parliament for leaving without a deal, so a Final Say referendum could be a straight choice between the prime minister’s deal and staying in the EU.

In the next few days, if the prime minister fails to get his deal through parliament, MPs must rule out any further delays and give the people a Final Say.