The move could mark the start of a reshaping of British politics as the clock continues to tick down to March 29, when the UK is due to leave the European Union.
The three Conservative MPs issued a joint letter to the Prime Minister on Wednesday blaming their departure on a “shift to the right of British politics.” They said the “final straw” was the government’s “disastrous handling of Brexit.”
“We find it unconscionable that a Party once trusted on the economy, more than any other, is no recklessly marching the country to the cliff edge of no deal,” the group said. “No responsible government should knowingly and deliberately inflict the dire consequences of such a destructive exit on individuals, communities and businesses and put at risk the prospect of ending austerity.”
The MPs also rejected what they say May has presented as a “false binary choice” between a “bad deal” and a “no deal,” slamming her strategy of “running down the clock” to Brexit.
May said on Wednesday that she was “saddened” by the lawmaker’s decision to quit the party, but was determined to deliver on Brexit, saying it was “the right thing for the country,” Reuters reported.
The Independent Group was formed on Monday when seven MPs, including Chuka Umunna, Chris Leslie and Luciana Berger, resigned from Labour. An eighth Labour MP, Joan Ryan, joined their ranks on Tuesday evening. The group said variously that they had become ashamed of the Labour party and its shift to the hard-left, denouncing opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn’s handling of a wave of anti-Semitism and “betrayal” on Brexit.
A photo shared by MP John Lamont showed a smiling Berger snapping a selfie of the group as they took their seats in the House of Commons ahead of Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday.
Source : Nbcnewyork
