COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

Nigel Farage has warned that Britain is on "the edge of a great betrayal" as MPs ramp up efforts to prevent a 'hard' Brexit



The Ukip leader's warning comes as a growing number of voices in Westminster have made moves to push the case to keep Britain in the European single market.

During his weekend radio show on LBC, Mr Farage claimed the "the political establishment is ganging up together to betray Brexit voters".

In just the past few days, Lord Mandelson, Tony Blair and Nick Clegg have declared their intentions to stop Brexit from cutting off ties with the EU.

Mr Farage said: "Lord Mandelson, the cheerleader in chief, is trying to get us to stay in the single market."

The MEP, who campaigned prominently for the Leave campaign, told his LBC audience: "If Brexit doesn't happen, there is going to be political anger that has never been seen in this country."

He responded to Diana, from Putney, who called in to voice her frustration at the growing betrayal campaign.

She told him: "There is a ridiculous argument that we know what we’re going to get if we stay in the EU. We don’t!

"And the bits we do know about are not what we want."

Mr Farage added: "Well, we do know that they want a European Army, they want everyone to join Euro, they want Turkey to join.

"Who knows where the EU will be in two or three years, especially if they have another crisis in the Eurozone."

Fear and anger among Brexit voters were prompted after leading figures in Westminster revealed their plan to force the UK to remain within the customs union.

Lord Mandelson, writing in the Daily Mail, has called on Britons to reject Brexit – just a few months after the historic referendum.

Jeremy Corbyn gives Theresa May ultimatum: Agree to Labour's Brexit terms or I'll force election in spring



Jeremy Corbyn will force Theresa May to hold an election in the spring unless she caves in to his Brexit demands on trade and worker rights.

In an exclusive Sunday Mirror interview, the Labour leader said he will only let the PM trigger EU negotiations in a Commons vote if she agrees to Labour’s “Brexit bottom line”.

He said: “Sorry, but we live in a democracy and the Government has to be responsive to Parliament. It’s not my timetable so it’s up to her to respond.”

Mr Corbyn’s bottom lines are:

• UK access to 500 million customers in Europe’s single market.
  
• No watering down of EU workplace rights.
  
• Guarantees on safeguarding consumers and the environment.
  
• Pledges on Britain picking up the tab for any EU capital investment lost by Brexit

The PM wanted to trigger Article 50, which formally begins the process of Britain leaving the EU, without Parliamentary approval.

But on Thursday, three High Court judges ruled that was unlawful and Mrs May must allow MPs and peers to vote.

That could scupper her timetable and throw Brexit into chaos.

The Supreme Court will now hear a Government appeal next month.

Coventry's three MPs pleased by Article 50 court ruling



Coventry's MPs have welcomed a court decision which means Parliament will have to agree before Britain can leave the European Union .

The government had argued it should be allowed to trigger Article 50 - which would formally start the process of taking the UK out of the European Union - without MPs voting.

But the High Court has ruled that all MPs must be given a vote.

Coventry’s three MPs, who all campaigned to remain in the EU , said they would respect the views of the city where 56 per cent of 153,234 voters chose to leave.

But they welcomed the opportunity to scrutinise the decision after it emerged pledges made during the election campaign were not able to be backed up.

The trio of Labour MPs also said it would allow the public to better understand exactly what Brexit would mean with question marks hanging over what the decision would mean for issues such as immigration and trade agreements.

Jim Cunningham , MP for Coventry South, said: “I respect the result of the referendum and the decision that was made the British people on the June 23.

“The ruling made by the High Court was one of process, not policy.

“Throughout this process the prime minister has tried to avoid scrutiny – it is right that this is not a deal made behind closed doors and that Parliament has a say.

“Should a vote on Brexit come to the House of Commons in the future I will represent the views of the people of Coventry who voted in that referendum.”

Geoffrey Robinson , MP for Coventry North West, also backed that view.

He said: “There is no question of MPs trying to reverse the decision of the British people in exiting the EU.

“At the moment there is no detail around what kind of Brexit we are facing and this is the fundamental issue and of course, as part of this process it should be brought before MPs, and MPs should feel free to scrutinise it, shape it and direct what kind of Brexit.”

Colleen Fletcher , MP for Coventry North East, said the people’s representatives should be given a say on what Brexit looks like.

She said: “Over 85,000 people in Coventry voted to leave the EU compared to almost 68,000 who voted to remain.

“In Coventry North East the vote to leave the EU was especially strong.

“Although I campaigned for a remain vote I respect the views of my constituents and will be voting to leave the EU should a vote be held in the House of Commons.

“However, the real question is about the type of relationship we have with the European Union going forward.

“Whilst the public voted to leave, the public did not vote for hard Brexit or soft Brexit.

“Parliament now needs to interrogate the pros and cons of both options and ensure that whatever we agree is in the best interests of the UK whilst respecting the decision to leave.”