Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Will British PM Theresa May Lose Her Job Over Brexit Crisis?
Bill McEwen updated website photo 2024
By Bill McEwen, News Director
Published 7 years ago on
July 9, 2018

Share

LONDON — British Prime Minister Theresa May dug in her heels Monday after the resignation of two top government ministers over Brexit negotiations whipped up a storm that threatened to topple her fragile minority government.
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson quit with a resignation letter accusing May of flying “white flags” of surrender in negotiations with the European Union. He said “the Brexit dream is dying, suffocated by needless self-doubt.
“Johnson followed Brexit Secretary David Davis out the door as a hard-won government consensus on future trade ties with the bloc disintegrated less than three days after it was forged, and nine months before Britain is due to leave the EU.
Davis resigned late Sunday, saying May’s plan to maintain close trade and regulatory ties with the EU gave “too much away, too easily.”

Could Boris Johnson Replace May?

If Davis’s resignation rattled May, Johnson’s shook the foundations of her government. The tousle-headed blond Johnson is one of Britain’s best-known politicians, and one of the most prominent advocates for Brexit. Some euroskeptic lawmakers dream of replacing May with a staunch Brexiteer such as Johnson, a populist, polarizing figure who has never made a secret of his ambition to be prime minister.
With Britain due to leave the currently 28-nation bloc on March 29, 2019, EU officials have warned Britain repeatedly that time is running out to seal a deal spelling out the terms of the divorce and a post-split relationship.
Minutes after Johnson quit, May defended her Brexit plan to lawmakers in the House of Commons, with Johnson absent from his usual place on the Conservative front bench.
She said she and the two departed ministers “do not agree about the best way of delivering our shared commitment to honoring the result of the referendum” in which U.K. voters opted to leave the EU.

May Seeks To Keep Trading With EU

May’s plan seeks to keep the U.K. and the EU in a free-trade zone for goods, and commits Britain to maintain the same rules as the bloc for goods and agricultural products.
May said the plan would deliver frictionless trade with Europe and was the “only way to avoid a hard border” between the U.K.’s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. Britain and the EU agree there must be no tariffs and immigration checks along the currently invisible frontier, but working out how to achieve that has been a major stumbling block in negotiations.
Rebuffing claims that her proposals make too many concessions to the EU, May said her “smooth and orderly Brexit” would leave Britain free to make its own laws and trade deals.
The resignations came just days after May announced she had finally united her quarrelsome government behind a plan for a divorce deal with the EU.
Government unity began to fray within hours of Friday’s announcement. Brexit-supporting lawmakers were angered by the proposals, saying they would keep Britain tethered to the bloc and unable to change its rules to strike new trade deals around the world. They also argued that the proposals breach several of the “red lines” the government had set out, including a commitment to leave the EU’s tariff-free customs union.
In his resignation letter, Davis said the “‘common rule book policy hands control of large swathes of our economy to the EU and is certainly not returning control of our laws in any real sense.”
Johnson said in his letter that May’s plan to keep close economic ties with the bloc means Britain is heading for a “semi Brexit” that would leave Britain with the “status of a colony” of the EU.
Britain and the EU hope to reach broad agreement by October so the national parliaments of the remaining countries can ratify a deal before Britain leaves. The timetable increasingly looks overly optimistic, and EU frustration with British division and chaos is growing.
European Council President Donald Tusk said Monday that “the mess caused by Brexit is the biggest problem in the history of EU-UK relations and it is still very far from being resolved.”
Opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn said the government was incapable of delivering Brexit.
“How can anyone have faith in the prime minister getting a good deal with 27 European Union governments when she can’t even broker a deal within her own Cabinet?” he asked.

More Resignations Coming?

May has hung on to power longer than many expected after she lost her majority in a June 2017 snap election that she had called in hopes of strengthening her hand in Brexit talks.
The fear among May’s allies is that more resignations may follow. Steve Baker, a junior Brexit minister, resigned along with Davis. May appointed staunchly pro-Brexit lawmaker Dominic Raab as the country’s new Brexit secretary. She did not immediately name a replacement for Johnson.
The loss of two senior ministers and the anger among Brexit-supporting backbench lawmakers makes May’s position as leader increasingly tenuous.
Davis insisted he did not want his resignation to become a rallying cry for May’s ouster.
“I like Theresa May, I think she’s a good prime minister,” Davis said.
But other pro-Brexit lawmakers were furious at what they saw as a sell-out of the clean Brexit they desire. Euroskeptic Conservative lawmaker Peter Bone said party activists felt “betrayed” by the government plan.
Under Conservative Party rules, a confidence vote in a leader can be triggered if 48 Conservative lawmakers write a letter requesting one.
May was asked by an opposition lawmaker Monday whether she would contest a vote of confidence rather than resign.
“Nice try,” she said with a touch of bravado. “But I’m getting on with delivering what the British people want.”

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Fresno Man Arrested in 2004 Cold Case Rape and Murder

DON'T MISS

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Willie Ray Butler

DON'T MISS

California’s Economy Ranks Fourth Worldwide, Surpasses Japan

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Traffic Stop Leads to $600K Cocaine Bust

DON'T MISS

Fresno Ranks Fourth in US for an Affordable Night Out

DON'T MISS

New US SEC Chair Says Crypto Sector Deserves Clear Regulations

DON'T MISS

US Officials Arrest Milwaukee Judge for Obstructing Immigration Operation

DON'T MISS

Exclusive: US Congress Republicans Seek $27 Billion for Golden Dome in Trump Tax Bill

DON'T MISS

China Exempts Some Goods From US Tariffs

DON'T MISS

Luigi Mangione Due in Court for Arraignment as Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty

UP NEXT

Trump Poised to Offer Saudi Arabia Over $100 Billion Arms Package, Sources Say

UP NEXT

On Major Economic Decisions, Trump Blinks, and Then Blinks Again

UP NEXT

Two From Search Group That Uncovered Mexico’s ‘Ranch of Horror’ Killed

UP NEXT

Chicago Bears Great Steve McMichael Dies at 67 After Battle With ALS

UP NEXT

Long Wait Is Over for Cam Ward, Travis Hunter and Other Draft Prospects Joining the NFL

UP NEXT

Golden State’s Jimmy Butler Injured in Game 2 Loss, His Status for Game 3 Unknown

UP NEXT

Jalen Green Makes Eight 3s to Help Rockets Even Series With Warriors

UP NEXT

Israeli Fire Kills at Least 44 People in Gaza, Hits a Police Station

UP NEXT

Trump Tells Putin to ‘STOP’ After Russian Attacks Kills 10 in Kyiv

UP NEXT

US Justice Department Directs Investigations Over Gender-Affirming Care

Bill McEwen,
News Director
Bill McEwen is news director and columnist for GV Wire. He joined GV Wire in August 2017 after 37 years at The Fresno Bee. With The Bee, he served as Opinion Editor, City Hall reporter, Metro columnist, sports columnist and sports editor through the years. His work has been frequently honored by the California Newspapers Publishers Association, including authoring first-place editorials in 2015 and 2016. Bill and his wife, Karen, are proud parents of two adult sons, and they have two grandsons. You can contact Bill at 559-492-4031 or at Send an Email

Fresno County Traffic Stop Leads to $600K Cocaine Bust

19 minutes ago

Fresno Ranks Fourth in US for an Affordable Night Out

26 minutes ago

New US SEC Chair Says Crypto Sector Deserves Clear Regulations

44 minutes ago

US Officials Arrest Milwaukee Judge for Obstructing Immigration Operation

1 hour ago

Exclusive: US Congress Republicans Seek $27 Billion for Golden Dome in Trump Tax Bill

2 hours ago

China Exempts Some Goods From US Tariffs

2 hours ago

Luigi Mangione Due in Court for Arraignment as Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty

2 hours ago

Shedeur Sanders Snubbed in NFL Draft’s Round 1 but Leads List of Top Available Players for Day 2

3 hours ago

Chargers Choose North Carolina RB Omarion Hampton in Effort to Boost Offense

3 hours ago

49ers Draft Georgia Edge Rusher Mykel Williams With the No. 11 Pick in the NFL Draft

3 hours ago

Fresno Man Arrested in 2004 Cold Case Rape and Murder

A Fresno man has been arrested in connection with a decades-old cold case after DNA technology linked him to the 2004 murder and sexual assa...

3 minutes ago

Robert Castillo (left), 61, of Fresno, has been arrested in the 2004 murder and sexual assault of Barbara Lee after DNA evidence linked him to the cold case and two additional rape investigations. (Fresno County SO)
4 minutes ago

Fresno Man Arrested in 2004 Cold Case Rape and Murder

Willie Ray Butler is Valley Crime Stoppers' Most Wanted Person of the Day for April 25, 2025. (Valley Crimes Stoppers)
12 minutes ago

Valley Crime Stoppers’ Most Wanted Person of the Day: Willie Ray Butler

13 minutes ago

California’s Economy Ranks Fourth Worldwide, Surpasses Japan

A CHP K-9 unit discovered 13 pounds of cocaine worth over $600,000 hidden in a vehicle's exhaust tunnel during a traffic stop on I-5 in Fresno County on Thursday, April 24, 2025. (CHP)
19 minutes ago

Fresno County Traffic Stop Leads to $600K Cocaine Bust

26 minutes ago

Fresno Ranks Fourth in US for an Affordable Night Out

The seal of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is seen at their headquarters in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 12, 2021. Picture taken May 12, 2021. (REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo)
44 minutes ago

New US SEC Chair Says Crypto Sector Deserves Clear Regulations

Hannah Dugan speaks as she was seeking election to Milwaukee County Circuit Court during a forum at the Milwaukee Bar Association in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., March 15, 2016. Mike De Sisti / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images via (REUTERS/File Photo)
1 hour ago

US Officials Arrest Milwaukee Judge for Obstructing Immigration Operation

A Lockheed Martin Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile interceptor is seen during the third annual "Made in America Product Showcase" on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S., July 15, 2019. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo)
2 hours ago

Exclusive: US Congress Republicans Seek $27 Billion for Golden Dome in Trump Tax Bill

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend