Britain's May faces defeat in parliament over Brexit plan

In Britain's deepest political crisis for at least half a century, May and EU leaders swapped assurances on the withdrawal deal on Monday, but there was little sign of a change of heart among rebel lawmakers.

The EU told May that it stood by commitments to find ways to avoid triggering the Irish "backstop".

That failed to reassure the Northern Irish Democratic Unionist Party, which props up May's minority government and said it will still not back the deal.

May has warned lawmakers that if her plan is rejected, no Brexit at all would be more likely than Britain leaving the EU without a deal, a result she called "catastrophic" for democracy after parliament promised to honour the 2016 vote to leave.

She has also said that a break-up of the United Kingdom could be the result of parliament voting against the agreement and warned her Conservative Party against allowing the left-wing opposition Labour Party to seize the initiative.

Labour is formally committed to Brexit but opposes May's deal. Polls of party activists show that most of them want the party to back a new referendum, although it has not done so.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, hoping to force a national election, is expected to call for a parliamentary vote of no confidence in May if she loses Tuesday's vote.

May has refused to budge over her deal despite criticism from all quarters. The agreement, which envisages close economic ties with the EU, has united the opposing sides of the debate -- pro-EU lawmakers who see it as the worst of all worlds and Brexit supporters who say it will make Britain a vassal state.

With a 'no deal' Brexit the default option if May's deal is defeated, some lawmakers are planning to try to pull control of Brexit from the government.

But though May is weakened, the executive has significant powers, especially during times of crisis, so it has not been clear how parliament would be able to take control of Brexit.

Reuters