Prime Minister Theresa May’s EU Withdrawal Agreement was defeated by 432 votes to 202, the largest government defeat in modern history. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn told the House of Commons Mrs May's "catastrophic" defeat represented an "absolutely decisive" verdict on her Brexit negotiations and has tabled a vote of confidence. He added the vote would enable the Commons to "give its verdict on the sheer incompetence of this government". The motion will be debated in the House of Commons tomorrow.

What is a no confidence vote? Will Theresa May QUIT? A vote of no confidence is a way for an opposition party to try to overthrow the government. It works by MPs voting on a motion asking whether they have “confidence” or “no confidence” in the Government. The motion must be tabled by the Leader of the Opposition, who in this case is Jeremy Corbyn.

If the motion is backed, it starts a countdown of exactly 14 days in which the government must win the support of MPs in a second vote. If they fail to do this then Parliament is dissolved and a general election is triggered. Since the Fixed Term Parliament Acts 2011 was introduced, a motion of no confidence is one of only two ways in which an early general election can now be triggered. Mrs May has vowed to fight on and insisted her deal was “the best way to deliver the will of the British people”.

Will Theresa May win a vote of no confidence? The outcome is not certain but the bookies believe Theresa May can survive. Theresa May has odds of 1-50 to win the no-confidence vote, according to Coral, but she is on odds of 1-2 to be replaced as Prime Minister in 2019. Coral’s John Hill said: “Theresa May is long odds-on to win the no confidence vote tomorrow, however, the betting suggests her survival will be short-lived as punters continue to bet on her to leave her position before the end of the year.” </s> Theresa May's government has tonight survived a vote of no confidence.

MPs voted 325 to 306 in favour of allowing the Prime Minister's administration to remain in power, despite the Brexit turmoil.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn tabled the motion last night after MPs voted 432 to 202 against Mrs May's EU Withdrawal Agreement.

During a six-hour debate today in the Commons, Mr Corbyn argued that Mrs May's "zombie" administration had lost the right to govern.

But the outcome of tonight's vote means Mrs May and her cabinet can now continue Brexit negotiations with the EU.

The UK is due to leave the EU on March 29. </s> Theresa May has survived the vote of no confidence against her.

The result, announced in the last couple of minutes, was 200 in her favour, to 117 against. </s> Update - 10.14pm: Theresa May has made a statement in Downing Street following her survival of no confidence vote earlier this evening.

Speaking in Downing Street, the Prime Minister said: “This evening the Government has won the confidence of Parliament.

Prime Minister Theresa May speaking outside 10 Downing Street in London after MPs rejected Labour's motion of no confidence by 325 votes to 306. Photo credit: Yui Mok/PA Wire.

“Overwhelmingly, the British people want us to get on with delivering Brexit.

“I believe it is my duty to deliver on the British people’s instruction to leave the European Union and I intend to do so.”

“In a historic vote in 2016 the country decided to leave the EU. In 2017, 80% of people voted for parties that stood on manifestos promising to respect that result.

“Now, over two and a half years later, it’s time for us to come together, put the national interest first and deliver on the referendum.”

Mrs May attempted to put pressure on Jeremy Corbyn in her statement.

She said she had held “constructive” meetings with Mr Cable, Mr Blackford and Ms Saville-Roberts and would meet MPs including the DUP on Thursday.

She added: “I am disappointed that the leader of the Labour Party has not so far chosen to take part, but our door remains open.”

Update - 9.22pm: Theresa May is to make a statement in Downing Street at 10pm, following her survival of no confidence vote earlier this evening, a Number 10 spokeswoman has confirmed.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman also said she would meet with eurosceptic MPs in her own party, who accepted an invitation, on Thursday.

Theresa May during Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons this evening. Picture: UK Parliament/Mark Duffy

Earlier - 'British public must have final say': Mayor of London as Theresa May survives no confidence vote

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has said he is "deeply disappointed" about the outcome of this evening's no confidence vote in Theresa May.

The Britsh House of Commons narrowly voted against a motion of no confidence in Prime Minister Theresa May by 325 votes to 306.

Following the result of the vote, Sadiq Khan tweeted:

“Deeply disappointed that Conservative MPs have put political interest above the national interest tonight.

“The Govt needs to withdraw Article 50 immediately. If we cannot have a general election – the British public must have the final say – with the option to stay in the EU.”

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, raising a point of order after the vote, said: “Last night the House rejected the Government’s deal emphatically.

“Before there can be any positive discussions about the way forward, the Government must remove clearly once and for all the prospect of the catastrophe of a no-deal Brexit from the EU and all the chaos that would come as a result of that.”

DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds said the result of the vote “shows the importance” of his party’s confidence and supply agreement with the Conservatives.

“DUP votes once again make the difference,” he wrote on Twitter.

Mr Dodds said the “result of the motion of no confidence illustrates the importance of the confidence and supply arrangement that is currently in place” between his party and Theresa May’s Conservatives.

He said: “I’m always delighted when our opponents illustrate the strength of that relationship that we have, and what is delivering for Northern Ireland.

A number of Labour MPs then held their hands in the air and rubbed their fingers together, in reference to the extra investment promised to Northern Ireland in exchange for the support of Mr Dodds’ party’s 10 MPs.

He said the agreement was “built on delivering Brexit”, adding that he is looking forward to “working in the coming days to achieve that objective”.

Former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas called on Jeremy Corbyn to hold a second referendum after his confidence motion failed.

In a clip posted to Twitter, the Brighton Pavilion MP said: “The leader of the opposition was right to try to bring down this toxic, failing Government. But now MPs have had their say on the Brexit deal, he needs to give the people a say over our future relationship with our nearest neighbours.”

Ms Lucas added that to do otherwise would be a “betrayal” of the “majority of his party’s members” and young supporters who were unable to vote in the referendum two years ago.

Theresa May’s official spokesman has since said that the Westminster leaders of Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the SNP and Plaid Cymru had been invited to meet Mrs May later tonight.

However, a no-deal Brexit will not be taken off the table, despite Mr Corbyn’s insistence it was a prerequisite for talks, he added.

The spokesman said: “The Prime Minister has been very clear that the British public voted to leave the European Union.

“We want to leave with a deal but she is determined to deliver on the verdict of the British public and that is to leave the EU on March 29 this year.”

Asked by a reporter if he was “taking no-deal off the table in response to the opposition leader”, he replied: “I am not.”

Earlier: Arlene Foster has said she had a "useful discussion" with Theresa May and confirmed the party will support the Prime Minister in Wednesday's confidence vote.

The DUP leader said she had indicated during a meeting in London, which was also attended by the party's Westminster leader Nigel Dodds, that her party "will act in the national interest".

She added that the issue of the backstop, the main sticking point for the DUP in Mrs May's rejected Withdrawal Agreement, "needs to be dealt with and we will continue to work to that end".

In a statement issued after the meeting, Mrs Foster said: "These are critical times for the United Kingdom and we have indicated that first and foremost we will act in the national interest.

"Lessons will need to be learned from the vote in Parliament.

"The issue of the backstop needs to be dealt with and we will continue to work to that end."

She confirmed the party will vote in support of the Government "so that we can concentrate on the real challenges ahead of us".

There will be "further engagements in the coming days", she added.

Earlier Mrs Foster said she would urge the Prime Minister to go back to Europe and seek a better deal, and called on the Irish Government to help find solutions to Brexit.

She also claimed there had never been a hard border on the island of Ireland.

She told Northern Ireland-based U105 radio: "For those of us who lived on the border and who were attacked by the IRA, we know that the IRA escaped across that border so it was not a hard border, nobody wants to go back to that.

"I hope that they are now, I hope that our Prime Minister uses that vote last night to go to Europe and to look for a better deal."

The DUP's 10 MPs voted against Theresa May's draft EU Withdrawal Agreement on Tuesday.

The opposition had focused on the backstop, an insurance policy to avoid a hard Irish border after Brexit. </s> British Prime Minister Theresa May survived a no-confidence vote in Parliament on Wednesday to remain in office — but saw more of her power ebb away as she battled to keep Brexit on track after lawmakers demolished her European Union divorce deal.

May won a narrow victory, 325 votes to 306 votes, on an opposition motion seeking to topple her government and trigger a general election.

Now it’s back to Brexit, where May is caught between the rock of her own negotiating red lines and the hard place of a Parliament that wants to force a radical change of course.

After winning the vote, May said she would hold talks “in a constructive spirit” with leaders of opposition parties and other lawmakers, starting immediately, in a bid to find a way forward for Britain’s EU exit.

Legislators ripped up May’s Brexit blueprint Tuesday by rejecting the divorce agreement she has negotiated with the EU over the last two years. That it would lose was widely expected, but the scale of the rout — 432 votes to 202, the biggest defeat government defeat in British parliamentary history — was devastating for May’s leadership and her Brexit deal.

Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn responded with the no-confidence motion and urged the government to “do the right thing and resign.”

May, who leads a fractious government, a divided Parliament and a gridlocked Brexit process, said she was staying put. May said an election “would deepen division when we need unity, it would bring chaos when we need certainty, and it would bring delay when we need to move forward.”

The government survived Wednesday’s vote with support from May’s Conservative Party and its Northern Irish ally, the Democratic Unionist Party. Many pro-Brexit Conservatives who voted against May’s deal backed her in the no-confidence vote to avoid an election that could bring a left-wing Labour government to power.

Had the government lost, Britain would have faced a snap election within weeks, just before the country is due to leave the European Union on March 29.

Political analyst Anand Menon, from the research group U.K. in a Changing Europe, said May has a remarkable ability to soldier on.

“The thing about Theresa May is that nothing seems to faze her,” he said. “She just keeps on going.”

May’s determination — or, as her foes see it, her inflexibility — might not be an asset in a situation calling for a change of course. The prime minister has until Monday to come up with a new Brexit plan.

May promised to speak to lawmakers from across the political spectrum. But she also said any new Brexit plan must “deliver on the referendum result,” which May has long interpreted to mean ending the free movement of workers to Britain from the EU and leaving the EU’s single market and customs union. </s> LONDON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Theresa May’s government won a vote of no confidence on Wednesday, with 325 votes versus 306.

The vote means that May will now press ahead with talking to lawmakers from all parties to try to find a consensus over how to proceed with Britain’s departure from the European Union, after her proposed deal was rejected by parliament. (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper, Editing by Kylie MacLellan) </s> LONDON (AP) — Embattled British Prime Minister Theresa May faces a perilous “no-confidence” vote in Parliament Wednesday after her plan to withdraw from the European Union suffered the biggest defeat for a government in the House of Commons in modern history.

The challenge to May’s authority, also known as a censure motion, was put forward by the leader of the opposition Labour Party Jeremy Corbyn, whose goal is to trigger a new election that might bring his leftwing party to power.

May needs a majority of lawmakers to back her Wednesday evening to avoid the prospect of a fresh general election that might sweep away her Conservative Party, which is already in a precarious minority position.

If she wins a majority in Parliament, she is judged to have the confidence of the House of Commons and the measure dies. That seems the most likely outcome, given the explicit backing May has received from the Democratic Unionists, a small Northern Ireland party that has propped up her government.

But if she loses, it means legislators have decided that “this House has no confidence in Her Majesty’s Government.”

If that happens, May’s government would have 14 days to try to win back the support of a majority in Parliament to maintain power. At the same time, Corbyn could try to form a majority and take power, although that is unlikely given that the DUP in Northern Ireland has no affinity with Labour.

If no party successfully gains a majority, an early general election would be triggered. An election normally takes five to six weeks, and May would remain in office as a caretaker prime minister during the campaign.

The no-confidence vote on May’s government is completely different from the no-confidence vote she faced in December, when members of her own Conservative Party challenged her role as party leader. She survived that vote unscathed.

The rules governing the no-confidence vote in the government were changed when the Fixed Term Parliaments Act was enacted in 2011 to make it more difficult to bring down a government. </s> As a result of Theresa May’s crushing defeat on her Brexit withdrawal deal, a vote of no confidence is being held tonight. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for the vote after a staggering 432 MPs voted against Mrs May’s deal. This meant just 202 MPs had supported the Prime Minister - and t is feared she could lose out at the no confidence vte tonight as well.

How many MPs will vote AGAINST Theresa May TONIGHT?



According to bookmakers Betway, more than 300 MPs are expected to support today’s motion of no confidence in Theresa May.



Betway has made the number of anti-May MPs at 310 to 319 being the most likely bracket of votes against the leader at 4/9.



This would not be enough to force May’s resignation, however, and the firm makes her heavily odds-on at 1/33 to survive today’s vote and 10/1 for a surprise defeat.

The online bookmaker expects the PM’s next move will be to seek an extension of Article 50 at just 1/5.



For Jeremy Corbyn to endorse a second referendum first is 8/11.



Another potential is for May to step down by the end of the week at 7/2 and 8/1 for no significant developments before 29th March, resulting in the UK leaving the EU with no deal.



Betway spokesman Alan Alger said: “Theresa May doesn’t have much room for maneuverer ahead of today’s vote of no confidence, with it just 4/9 for her to receive 310-319 no confidence votes.



However, there’s little sign of her own party rebelling and we expect May to get through the vote at just 1/33.



“The big question is what her next move will be, with an extension of Article 50 the most obvious play at 1/5, though Jeremy Corbyn could put a spanner in the works and endorse a second referendum first at 8/11.”



Following Mrs May’s defeat on Tuesday, the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier said he "profoundly" regretted the Commons vote and that it was now up to the British Government to say how it intended to proceed.



"An orderly withdrawal will remain our absolute priority in the coming weeks," he told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

He said there would be a "favourable response" from the EU side if Mrs May was prepared to re-think her red lines and seek a more "ambitious" deal with Brussels.



However, he was adamant the backstop had to remain part of any agreement.



"The backstop which we agreed to with the UK must remain a backstop. It must remain a credible backstop," he said.



Mrs May has today reiterated the Government wants the UK to leave the EU on March 29, telling MPs in the House of Commons: "The EU would only extend Article 50 if actually, it was clear there was a plan that was moving towards an agreed deal." </s> LONDON (Reuters) - British lawmakers will on Wednesday vote on whether they have confidence in the government, after Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal suffered a heavy defeat in parliament.

Here is how the process, which could ultimately trigger a general election, will work:

HOW DOES THE PROCESS WORK?

The opposition Labour Party, backed by other smaller opposition parties, has put forward a motion which states “That this House has no confidence in Her Majesty’s Government.”

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn will open the debate on the motion at around 1300 GMT. May will also speak in the debate and it will last until 1900 GMT.

Lawmakers will then vote on the motion at 1900 GMT, with the result due at around 1915 GMT.

There are 650 lawmakers in the House of Commons. May’s government needs 318 votes to win the vote, as seven members of the Irish nationalist Sinn Fein party do not sit, four speakers do not vote and four lawmakers who help count votes, known as tellers, are not counted.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THE GOVERNMENT WINS?

The government continues in office. However, there are no restrictions on how soon another confidence vote can be called, so Labour could put forward another no confidence motion at any point.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THE GOVERNMENT LOSES?

May does not have to resign. A 14-day period is triggered in which any party, including May’s Conservatives, can seek to form a government. To do this they would have to win a confidence vote in the House of Commons.

If a new government cannot be formed within 14 days, an election is triggered.

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES OF MAY LOSING?

May does not have an outright majority in parliament but the DUP, the small Northern Irish party that props up her government, has said it will support the government. So May would only lose if enough of her own Conservative members voted against the government.

WHAT ARE LAWMAKERS SAYING ABOUT THE VOTE?

“The most important issue facing us is that government has lost the confidence of this house and this country ... this house can give its verdict on the sheer incompetence of this government and pass that motion of no confidence”.”

“We don’t want a general election, this is not about party politics.”

“My party is no mood to hand over the reins to Jeremy Corbyn.”

“We’ll vote with the government. We’ll vote against the Labour party’s confidence motion. We want to see the Conservative government continuing to deliver on Brexit ... We never wanted a change of government, we wanted a change of policy.”

Conservative lawmaker Jacob Rees-Mogg, who leads an influential pro-Brexit group of Conservatives:

“I will be supporting the prime minister.”
Theresa May's government survives a no confidence vote by a majority of 19.