JEREMY Corbyn is facing increased public pressure from senior figures in his own Shadow Cabinet to throw the leadership’s weight behind a second EU referendum on any cross-party Brexit deal in order to gain the backing of their own MPs.
Sir Keir Starmer, the Shadow Brexit Secretary, warned it was "impossible" to see how an agreement between the Conservatives and his party could clear the Commons unless it guaranteed the deal would be put back to the public for a "confirmatory vote".
His Shadow Cabinet colleague Tom Watson, Labour’s deputy leader, said he thought the way out of the impasse was a "confirmatory ballot" on Theresa May's agreement, saying it would be "difficult" for his party to assist in the UK's exit from the EU without another referendum.
As Government and Opposition prepared to resume their Brexit talks this evening, Sir Keir claimed "probably 120 if not 150" of Labour’s 229 MPs could vote against any brokered deal unless it was linked to a second referendum.
"I've made it clear that at this stage, at this 11th hour, any deal that comes through from this Government ought to be subject to the lock of a confirmatory vote," he told The Guardian.
Mr Watson noted: "If a deal could be found that inspires enough votes in Westminster then fine but it seemed to me that that's very, very difficult.
"And so my idea of a confirmatory ballot is not a religious point or a point of ideology, it's just how do you get an outcome, how do you sort this out?
"And one way to do it are these two minority positions - the Prime Minister's deal and those that think the people should have a say on the deal - plug them together and you build a majority," the Midlands MP told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
Mr Watson also described Labour's position in relation to the European elections as a "remain and reform" party despite the fact that Mr Corbyn has said he wants Labour to honour the 2016 poll and for Britain to leave the EU.
The deputy party leader is expected to plead in a speech to the Fabian Society later today for supporters to back Labour in the polls next week.
"There are only two forces that can win this election; that nasty nationalism of the Farage Brexit Party, or the tolerant, compassionate outward looking patriotism of the Labour Party," Mr Watson will say.
"I can only plead with Labour supporters: don't stay at home, don't put that cross elsewhere, don't let them win."
Last month, Mr Corbyn saw off an attempt to commit the party to a confirmatory referendum on any Brexit deal and Labour will instead back a fresh vote only if it cannot either win the changes it wants to Mrs May's deal or secure a general election.
Meanwhile, Nigel Farage, who leads the new Brexit Party, dismissed the idea of a confirmatory referendum as the "most outrageous proposal" he had ever seen and would lead to a party like his winning a majority in Parliament at the next General Election.
Speaking during a walkabout in Pontefract, part of Labour MP Yvette Cooper's constituency, Mr Farage said: "A confirmatory vote, it sounds all nice and fluffy, what does it mean?
"It means we stay in the European Union as we are, or we nominally leave and stay permanently part of a customs union and with single market rules. They wouldn't even give the public the option of actually leaving. It's the most outrageous proposal I've ever seen.
"It wouldn't break the deadlock, it would just mean we're not leaving the European Union. It would just mean, basically, the second referendum would be there, giving two choices to reverse the result of the first one. It's an outrage, it cannot happen.
"I promise you this, if we get forced as a country into that choice of a referendum, there'll be bigger change in British politics than anybody can even imagine."
The MEP added: "If the Labour Party and sections of the Tory Party were to completely sell-out on any idea of a clean break then the Brexit Party, or something like it, would win a huge number of seats at the next general election and undoubtedly hold the balance of power in Westminster."
James Brokenshire, the Housing Secretary, said a confirmatory referendum would be "taking us in a different direction, that's actually saying: 'Well, we're looking at this issue all over again and not giving effect to the original vote."'
He described the cross-party talks as "very serious", adding: "We wouldn't have committed all of the time and effort on all sides in relation to this."
In Brussels, Jeremy Hunt echoed his sentiment from last week and said this week would be "crunch week" for the cross-party talks but he too rejected the possibility of a second referendum.
Speaking outside the EU's Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels, the Foreign Secretary said: "From a Conservative point of view, we've always said that we think that would be a betrayal of what people voted for, and we want to implement the first referendum. But let’s see where these talks go to."
Downing Street said the talks so far had been "serious" but "difficult".
The Prime Minister's spokesman said Mrs May had made clear her views about a second public vote, insisting she was "focused on delivering the result of the first referendum".
The Cabinet is expected to consider the progress of the talks in a meeting tomorrow morning as frustration mounts in Westminster about the failure to secure a breakthrough.
If the cross-party approach is abandoned, Mrs May has signalled that a series of “definitive” votes would be held in the Commons with the aim of finding a Brexit plan that could command a majority.
A Government source said that ministers had "tried everything else".
Elsewhere, Huw Merriman, Chancellor Philip Hammond’s aide, said the Tories would suffer "an absolute mauling" in next week's European Parliament elections.
"The public will blame the Conservative government because we were the party that brought forward the referendum," the Sussex MP said.
"And so for those who didn't want it and wanted Remain, they'll blame us for having tried to take us out. And for those who voted to leave, they'll blame us for having not got the country out of the EU. We're at the perfect storm, so yes, we'll get an absolute mauling," he added.
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