Tom Watson will pledge to vote for Theresa May’s beleaguered Brexit deal to prevent the UK crashing out of the EU if she vows to let the public have a say on it.
Labour’s deputy leader will tell a rally that he has reluctantly come to the view that the only way to resolve the current impasse is “for people themselves to sign it off”.
Mr Watson is set to address the Put It To The People March in Parliament Square on Saturday, where hundreds of thousands of campaigners will call for a second referendum.
Labour officially supports a second referendum, but has not said whether it would back the Prime Minister’s deal on the condition it is put to a public vote.
Mr Watson will tell the crowds in Westminster: “Brexit is currently stuck in the pipework of Parliament, with MPs split, completely unable to agree or find a way forward.
“The current impasse is not working for people who voted to leave or people who voted to stay. I really don’t think Parliament will be able to resolve this.
“That’s why I’ve come to the reluctant view that the only way to resolve this and have legitimacy in the eyes of the public is for the people themselves to sign it off.
“It can only bring closure if we’re all involved in making the decision.
“It can only begin to bring the country back together again if we all have a final say – and then live with the result.
“So, I have an explicit message for Theresa May: I will vote for your deal or a revised deal you can agree with my party. I will help you get it over the line to prevent a disastrous no deal exit. But I can only vote for your deal – or any deal – if you let the people have a vote on it too.
“That’s why I’m proud to be marching. I trust the people I represent. And only they can sort this mess out.”
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, former deputy prime minister Lord Heseltine and London mayor Sadiq Khan will also address the protest.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel