Gavin Williamson has become the second Cabinet minister to suggest that the government will ignore any anti-No Deal law passed by MPs as he insisted sacking Tory rebels who side with Jeremy Corbyn on Brexit is the ‘right decision’.
Boris Johnson has vowed to withdraw the whip from any Conservative MP who tries to stop the UK leaving the EU on October 31.
Opposition MPs will tomorrow try to seize control of proceedings in the House of Commons to try to pass legislation making it illegal for the PM to take Britain out of the bloc without an agreement.
Numerous Tory Europhile MPs are expected to back the move, led by Mr Corbyn, and Mr Johnson has vowed to push the nuclear button and boot them out of the Conservative Party if they fail to vote with the government when it comes to the crunch.
The move has sparked widespread outrage but Mr Williamson today suggested the threat of expulsion was necessary in order to give the Tory rebels pause for thought.
Meanwhile, the Education Secretary said the government would need to examine any legislation which is passed by opposition MPs before acting on it in a clear hint that ministers could try to ignore it.
His comments came after Michael Gove, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, prompted outrage yesterday after he said the government would have to ‘see what the legislation says’.
Labour said Mr Gove’s suggestion that legislation could be disregarded was ‘breathtaking’.
Gavin Williamson, pictured on ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme today, said sacking Tory rebels would be the ‘right decision’ if they undermine Boris Johnson
Dominic Cummings, pictured leaving his London home this morning, has vowed to deliver Brexit by ‘any means necessary’ on October 31
Jeremy Corbyn, the Labour leader pictured in London today, will this week lead efforts to prevent the UK leaving the EU without a deal
Downing Street has war-gamed a variety of Brexit scenarios which could come to pass this week.
It is thought Number 10 has considered whether an anti-No Deal law requiring the PM to go to Brussels to seek a Brexit delay in the event there is no agreement between the two sides by October 31 could be ignored.
Mr Williamson said: ‘It’s quite normal for government to take the time to look at the legislation and see how it impacts in terms of the negotiations.’
However, he also insisted that ‘every government adheres to the law’.
His Cabinet colleague Mr Gove was asked yesterday if the PM would obey such a law and he said: ‘Let’s see what the legislation says.’
‘You’re asking me about a pig in a poke. And I will wait to see what legislation the opposition may try to bring forward.’
He also accused pro-EU MPs of being in a ‘denial of democracy’.
A Downing Street spokesman said today that Mr Williamson was outlining the government position when he said ‘every government adheres to the law’.
But the spokesman said the government would need to see what the anti-No Deal legislation actually says amid fears the rebels could try to crash through a defective or badly-written bill.
The spokesman said: ‘We haven’t seen what has been put forward yet. The people who are promoting it have not been willing to share that.’
The comments drew a furious response from Remainers, with Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer demanding an immediate statement from the PM.
The shadow Brexit secretary said Mr Gove’s stance was ‘breathtaking’ and added no government was ‘above the law’.
He tweeted: ‘For ministers not to confirm that this Government will accept and comply with legislation lawfully passed is breathtaking.
‘The Prime Minister must make a statement on this straightaway. No Government is above the law.’
Meanwhile, Mr Williamson said today it would be right to withdraw the whip from any Tory MP who fails to vote with the government this week.
It is thought as many as 21 Tory MPs are preparing to back opposition plans to try to thwart a bad break from Brussels at the Halloween deadline.
But if they do so they face the prospect of losing the whip and being told that they will not be allowed to stand for the Conservatives at the next election.
Mr Williamson, a former chief whip, told ITV’s Good Morning Britain programme the hardline approach to party discipline was the right one to take.
He said: ‘Anyone who is voting against the government is in a position where they are voting to undermine the prime minister’s negotiating hand.
‘They should think very seriously about that and the consequences.
‘I think that if they (the government) take the view that it is serious enough, that it is undermining the nation’s position and the prime minister’s position, if that is their decision it would be the right decision. If that is what is necessary.’
The government and opposition MPs are braced for what is likely to be a titanic battle in the Commons this week.
Labour, the SNP, the Lib Dems and Tory rebels are trying to seize control of Commons business so they can push through a Bill demanding Mr Johnson seeks an extension from Brussels rather than allowing the UK to crash out on October 31.
But Mr Johnson is sticking to his ‘do or die’ pledge to take the UK out of the EU with or without a deal in just 59 days time.
His top aide, Dominic Cummings, has vowed to deliver Brexit on time by ‘any means necessary’.
The PM has warned Tory rebels that derailing his Brexit plans risks condemning the country to ‘chaos’ with Mr Corbyn in power.
The PM said Remainers had a ‘fundamental choice’ between his ambitious agenda, including pumping billions of pounds into public services, or the hard-left Labour leader.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, Mr Johnson said: ‘I just say to everybody in the country, including everyone in parliament, the fundamental choice is this: are you going to side with Jeremy Corbyn and those who want to cancel the referendum?’
Michael Gove, pictured arriving in Downing Street today, has suggested that the government could ignore anti No Deal legislation passed by MPs
‘Are you going to side with those who want to scrub the democratic verdict of the people – and plunge this country into chaos.’
Mr Gove added: ‘For me, the most important thing is to bear in mind actually, we already have legislation in place which an overwhelming majority of MPs voted for.
‘We already have an EU Withdrawal Act, we already have the notice on Article 50, the process by which we leave the EU.’
Leader of the Commons Jacob Rees-Mogg launched a vicious attack on those MPs plotting to thwart Brexit.
He told The Mail on Sunday: ‘They dare not use the confidence procedures because they know that Jeremy Corbyn is too unpopular, and therefore they seek deceitful ends by underhand means.’
Reports that any bid to extend Brexit to stop a No Deal exit would be treated as a no confidence issue, with supporting Tory MPs stopped from standing for the party, drew a harsh response from former chancellor Philip Hammond.
The ex-chancellor tweeted: ‘If true, this would be staggeringly hypocritical: 8 members of the current cabinet have defied the party whip this year.
‘I want to honour our 2017 manifesto which promised a ‘smooth and orderly’ exit and a ‘deep and special partnership’ with the EU. Not an undemocratic No Deal.’
