RECAP: Brits in Europe vent anger after May postpones Brexit vote

British PM Theresa May has postponed the UK Parliament's vote on the draft Brexit deal because of MPs' "concerns" about the backstop, which could threaten "a hard border" between Ireland and Northern Ireland.

• May says she will consult again with EU leaders on the backstop
• PM says a second referendum risks "dividing the country again"
• Leader of the opposition Jeremy Corbyn calls for the PM to "make way" if she cannot get a new consensus out of Brussels and the EU27
• PM Theresa May refuses to commit to a new date for the vote, although it will have to be in the next 42 days – before January 21st, 2019.
• May says discussions with EU leaders reassured her that they are open to some renegotiations. The EU Commission has said that the current deal is final and non-negotiable.
• British in Europe lament being left "in limbo" for even longer about the future status of British citizens in Europe
• EU Council President Donald Tusk says the deal, including the backstop, will not be renegotiated.

19:11 EU Council says it will not renegotiate backstop

EU Council President Donald Tusk says the EU27 is "not willing to renegotiate, including on the backstop" but "but we are ready to discuss how to facilitate UK ratification. As time is running out, we will also discuss our preparedness for a no-deal scenario.

I have decided to call #EUCO on #Brexit (Art. 50) on Thursday. We will not renegotiate the deal, including the backstop, but we are ready to discuss how to facilitate UK ratification. As time is running out, we will also discuss our preparedness for a no-deal scenario.

— Donald Tusk (@eucopresident) December 10, 2018

18:57 First media reactions from the EU to May's vote postponement

"May pulls the emergency breaks" – headline in Munich's Süddeutsche Zeitung

"Brexit, May's government in chaos" – Italian daily Repubblica leads with that headline in its coverage

"May confirms her intention to renegotiate the deal with the EU" – Spain's El Mundo

18:50 Mayor of London Sadiq Khan reiterates support for People's Vote or revocation of Article 50

The Prime Minister postponing the #BrexitVote means the only sensible course of action is to withdraw Article 50 immediately.

People from every corner of our country continue to call for the British people get the final say – with the option to stay in the EU. #PeoplesVote pic.twitter.com/skXUEWtDHZ

— Sadiq Khan (@SadiqKhan) December 10, 2018

18:46 More from British in Europe

"Parliament also needs to make its mind up and decide quickly if it's going to go for a People's Vote or revoke Article 50 unilaterally. It's not just EU negotiators whose patience is wearing thing. EU 27 governments are already looking at their no deal contingency plans and the window to make any of these things happen is closing rapidly," British in Europe told The Local.

18:41 Opposition minor parties want May out

Vince Cable, leader of the Liberal Democrats, and Nicola Sturgeon, head of the Scottish National Party, have said they would support Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn if he calls for a vote of no-confidence.

So @jeremycorbyn – if Labour, as official opposition, lodges motion of no confidence in this incompetent government tomorrow, @theSNP will support & we can then work together to give people the chance to stop Brexit in another vote. This shambles cant go on – so how about it?

— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) December 10, 2018

18:40 "If the PM can change her mind, so can the public" – MP Caroline Lucas

18:35 Postponement is equivalent to deal rejection, says Dutch analyst

A key Brexit analyst with Dutch think tank Clingendael, Rem Korteweg, says the vote postponement is equivalent to the deal being voted down.

So, actually, we are now where we all thought we would be after tomorrow's vote:

Deal has by all measures been voted down and May will now attempt to renegotiate.

May has just saved us all 24, maybe 36 , hours.

Well done! https://t.co/NvZJERWBlC

— Rem Korteweg (@remkorteweg) December 10, 2018

18:30 Vote postponement hits EU markets

Markets in Europe are reacting badly to May's announcement of the vote being postponed. The Borsa in Milan, owned by the London Stock Exchange, is down 1.77%, according to Italian daily Repubblica. Stock markets in Paris and Frankfurt have also taken a hit today.

18:26 May in confident mood, despite postponing the vote

"I believe from discussions with my EU colleagues that they do want a deal," says PM. The former EU Commissioner Romano Prodi made the same point in an interview with the Guardian recently in which he expressed the view that the EU Commission would be willing to renegotiate to get a deal.

18:23 A vote before Christmas?

Most interventions from MPs are now pushing for a new date before Christmas, but PM May is not giving in to specifying a new date for an MPs vote on Brexit. Reactions to May's announcement to the UK Parliament that the vote will be postponed are ongoing.

18:21 Further reassurances from France for Brits

"Just before Theresa May spoke in the Commons, Nathalie Loiseau (ED: France's Europe minister) was speaking in the Assemblée nationale plenary debate on the projet de loi. She stated very strongly that British residents in France would be 'as welcome tomorrow as they are today' and that we shouldn't be the 'hostages of Brexit'. So some reassurance for Brits in France on a difficult afternoon," RIFT'S Kalba Meadows told The Local in a written comment.

READ ALSO: 'Brits in France are victims of Brexit' – French senator vows to fight for UK citizens

18:18 Will a new declaration from the EU/UK be ready in time for Thursday's EU Council meeting?´

2/ So, three key questions: what will the content of the declaration be; what will its legal weight be; and will it be ready in time for the #EUCO on Thursday?

— Tony Connelly (@tconnellyRTE) December 10, 2018

18:14 Representative of Brits in France calls postponement "dangerous"

"900 days in limbo and here we are watching the can being kicked down the road … Unbelievable, dangerous, and to what end? At worst there should be, as the speaker has strongly suggested, a motion to debate whether the vote should be delayed or not, instead of this unilateral declaration that doesn't serve anything or anyone. But it's obvious that the House isn't going to resolve this message and the time must now have come to put the question back to the people in a further vote – including of course a vote for the 5 million British in Europe and EU citizens in the UK!" Kalba Meadows, chair of Remain in France Together (RIFT), a group representing Brits in France, told The Local.

18:11 No new date until May talks to EU leaders again

"We need to enter into discussions with the European Union. Until we have done that, it is not possible to give a date," PM May says in response to a question requesting when the new date will be.

18:09 Frankfurt wants the WA, not a "disorderly Brexit"

Before today's vote, voices in Frankfurt expressed the hope that Parliament would accept the Withdrawal Agreement.

“Frankfurt Main Finance would welcome the adoption of the agreement by the British Parliament. For above all, a “yes” would be a definite “no” to an unregulated Brexit. Approval of the agreement and a regulated withdrawal would mean more certainty for markets and for the banks, which could now finally make reliable plans. We have waited a long time for this. Even if still hold the opinion that the withdrawal from the EU is neither good for Europe nor for Germany nor the UK," Hubertus Väth, managing director of the financial centre initiative Frankfurt Main Finance, said in a statement on December 10th.

18:06 The big question is: when will the vote in the UK Parliament now be held?

International Trade Secretary Liam Fox tells me hed rather the vote be after Christmas if necessary than rushed through beforehand.

— Chris Mason (@ChrisMasonBBC) December 10, 2018

18:04 House of Cards Commons language

There has been some very angry comments directed towards the PM in Parliament – she has been called a "coward," among other things, for postponing the vote.

I cant remember a PM being criticised like this from the benches in front and behind. May wanting to boil this down to a choice between accepting the outcome of the referendum or not

— Ben Wright (@BBCBenWright) December 10, 2018

18:00 "EU leaders will not give TM more than very minor changes to her deal" – head of Brussels think tank

May says she can get concessions out of the EU, but key observers in Brussels aren't convinced. This from Charles Grant, director of think tank The Centre for European Reform.

EU leaders will not give @theresa_may more than very minor changes to her deal. The substance of the Irish backstop will be unaltered. So I very much doubt that Parliament will vote for the deal, when it has the chance to do so. @CER_EU

— Charles Grant (@CER_Grant) December 10, 2018

17:55 Boris Johnson needs a rest from Brexit?

Everybody is fully engaged in the debate in the UK Parliament. Meanwhile, Boris Johnson – one of the key politicians who started this whole quagmire – is yawning his way through it.

17:52 Do you think Brits in Europe should be allowed to vote in any second referendum? If so, Best for Britain has started a petition to that end.

A lot of people are calling for what is being labelled a People's Vote, a second referendum on Brexit now the terms of the future relationship with the EU are clear(er). British in Europe spokeswoman Laura Shields say Brits in the EU should be given the chance to vote in any such plebiscite.

17:48 Notes on voting

Was thinking same. May & others speak as if the votes of the people who voted for the first time (assumed to all be leavers) are some special, sacred kind of votes different to any other. And anyway they're as likely to feel betrayed by the Brexit in prospect as by another Ref. https://t.co/M7RO09KpWk

— Chris Grey (@chrisgreybrexit) December 10, 2018

Should the first referendum result be sacrosanct or is there space for a second vote? The debate ensues.

17:42 British in Europe reiterates need for ring-fencing of rights

"The PM needs to get on with it and allow the vote to happen. Britons living in Europe need certainty and we've now been in limbo for 900 days. But, if, as expected, she loses, we need her and the EU 27 to move to ring-fence the existing – if imperfect – withdrawal agreement straight away, so that real people's lives don't get forgotten in the chaos that will inevitably ensue," Laura Shields, spokeswoman for British in Europe, told The Local.

17:38 PM believes the EU is willing to renegotiate

"Nothing is off the table," says PM May. The main thing is to seek reassurances from EU leaders that "the backstop will not be indefinite." She says her discussions with EU leaders reassured her that she will still be able to have discussions about the deal and make changes. This is contrary to what the EU Commission has been repeating in recent days – that the deal on the table is final and non-negotiable.

17:34 EU Council schedule makes no mention of Brexit talks

The EU Council summit schedule, according to Austria's current presidency of the Council, for the end of this week makes no mention of renegotiating anything in the Brexit deal. Are they also surprised?

17:31 "We entered as one United Kingdom and will be leaving as one United Kingdom," says May in response to a question in a raucous House of Commons. The Speaker has made several interventions calling for calm.

17:26 The European Council is scheduled to meet on December 13th and 14th – Thursday and Friday this week, providing an opportunity for the PM to meet her EU counterparts directly. Meanwhile, May has been talking to EU leaders on the phone.

May/Varadkar call tonight. Irish govt spox: "They discussed the current situation on Brexit, including the planned vote in Westminster on Tuesday. They also discussed preparation for this week's European Council and looked forward to seeing each other in Brussels on Thursday."

— Ross Kempsell (@rosskempsell) December 9, 2018

17:23 Nicola Sturgeon presses for new date

The First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon has noted that the content of the PM's speech conspicuous for its absence of a new date for the vote. Theresa May has postponed the vote but has refused to commit to a new date. Parliament will have to be given a vote in the next 42 days – before January 21st.

The most notable part of this PM statement so far is what is absent from it – a date for a rescheduled vote. Is she simply trying to run down the clock? Unacceptable, if so.

— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) December 10, 2018

17:21 Concern from EU citizens

EU citizens in the EU are expressing concerns about the devaluation of the pound, the lowest the pound has sunk in 18 months.

Blah, blah ………. blah, blah, blah ……….. £ devalued ………. blah, blah ………. still no confirmation on whether or not deal can be improved or when parliament can vote.@BremainInSpain

— Sue Wilson #FBPE (@Suewilson91) December 10, 2018

In other news today, the ECJ has ruled that the UK can unilaterally revoke Article 50 and remain a member of the EU, should it choose to.

READ ALSO: UK can cancel Brexit before March 29th without EU's consent, ECJ rules

17:20 Theresa May says a second referendum would lead to a third referendum to decide the result. "The people voted, we should deliver on it," says May.

17:13 British in Europe, the grassroots campaign for the rights of British citizens in Europe, says the "delay is adding to the stress that we are feeling" – the 1.2 million to 3.6 million British citizens in Europe.

"The elements do not offer sufficient number of colleagues the reassurances they need," May said.

17:10 Guy Verhofstadt, of the EU Parliament (and the former Belgian PM), is not impressed with the delay.

17:04 This has turned into a robust debate. Kenneth Clarke and Ian Duncan Smith, both Conservatives in May's party, are grilling her on whether she thinks she can get the EU to "reopen the Withdrawal Agreement."

17:02 The PM says the latest a vote could be held will be January 21st next year, which we already knew. But she refuses to commit to a new date for a vote.