,
6 tweets,
2 min read
Read on Twitter
Government loses its majority as @DrPhillipLeeMP defects to the @LibDems
Former Justice minister Lee crossed the floor right in front of the PM as he was speaking, depriving him of his working majority as LibDems waved the order paper... 
Here’s the video of PM having to react as his former ministerial colleague defects from his party right in front of him mid-Commons speech/
Johnson asked by Phillip Hammond to publish the alternative backstop plan and send it to the EU - PM says can get a deal in 30 days, suggests there's no point if Commons legislates against No Deal - but basically no.
PM leaning into the idea of an All-Ireland SPS (agrifood) zone... as alternative to backstop... BUT...
... In document leaked overnight from Government’s official Alternative Arrangements working groups of last Wed says of this NI/IE SPS zone: “it comes with many of the challenges of the backstop (democratic accountability, E/W issues, and implications for international trade)”
