Britain's Parliament delivered a crushing defeat to Prime Minister Theresa May's European Union divorce deal on Tuesday, plunging the Brexit process into chaos just 17 days before the UK is due to leave the bloc. Lawmakers rejected the deal 391-242, ignoring May's entreaties to back the agreement and end the political chaos and economic uncertainty that Brexit has unleashed. Hard-core Brexit supporters in May's Conservative Party and the prime minister's allies in Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party both said they could not support the deal, which Parliament rejected by an overwhelming margin in January. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte tweeted that he was "pleased with the agreement," adding: "An orderly #Brexit is crucial for both the EU and the UK. The EU warned British politicians that negotiations will not be reopened if Parliament rejects the deal again.

Source: News 24 March 12, 2019 20:37 UTC