Why a no-deal Brexit is now overwhelmingly likely

I am regularly asked whether MPs can block a no-deal Brexit, whether they will block a no-deal Brexit and whether there will be a referendum.

The short answers are:

1. MPs have the power to block a no-deal Brexit

2. The likelihood of them permanently and definitively blocking a no-deal Brexit is slim-to-none

3. There is likely to be a general election to decide whether the UK stays in or quits the EU, and the prospect of a referendum or People’s Vote is now vanishingly small.

Here is why, if you can be bothered to read on.

First of all, MPs have already demonstrated that they have the power to take control of the Commons order paper, and then legislate to mandate the PM to sue the EU for a further Brexit delay or to remove a no-deal Brexit as the legislated default position in the event that a negotiated Brexit cannot be achieved.

Second, they have the power to bring down the Government by a vote of no confidence, install a temporary government of national unity and then sue the EU to postpone the date we leave the EU.