Video
Norman Lamb considers resigning the Lib Dem whip after supporting soft Brexit
Norman Lamb. Photograph: PA / Andrew Matthews. - Credit: PA Archive/PA Images
Former Lib Dem minister Norman Lamb is considering resigning from the party whip because he fears it is becoming as uncompromising as the ERG.
Lamb was the only MP in his party to vote in favour of a customs union, with only one other (Tim Farron) joining him to vote for Common Market 2.0
He told the Eastern Daily Press that he could resign from the Lib Dem whip.
He said: 'I'm thinking of whether I should resign from the whip, staying as a Liberal Democrat, but I feel so strongly about the need to heal divisions and bring people together. I was deeply unhappy with my colleagues' unwillingness to participate in that process and to vote for options which I think would have helped bring the country together.'
But he later told BBC that he would 'stick with my membership of the Lib Dems as long as I am allowed to stay.'
He added: 'I don't want us to be the mirror image of the ERG just stuck in a trench and not moving and that's why I felt particularly distressed yesterday.'
You may also want to watch:
Lamb has joined a cross-party effort to try to force Theresa May to stop no-deal Brexit by tabling a bill requiring her to extend the negotiation process beyond April 12.
It is supported by former Tory chair Dame Caroline Spelman, Commons Brexit Committee chair Hilary Benn and former attorney general Dominic Grieve and Liberal Democrat Norman Lamb.
Most Read
- 1 Could Mexican Coke spark a new Coca-Cola cold war?
- 2 Dominic Raab 'chickened out' of a no-deal Brexit, Michel Barnier says
- 3 Boris Johnson's downfall will be the truth
- 4 Boris Johnson consumed by infighting as Brexit job losses worsen
- 5 The German mega-scandal that puts ours in the shade
- 6 Post-Brexit EU worker exodus hits restaurants and pubs
- 7 New royal yacht Prince Philip is a waste of £200m
- 8 A side to Julio Iglesias nobody should have to see
- 9 Brexit talks with Britain were plagued by 'Tory quarrels and low blows', says Michel Barnier
- 10 Could John Lewis remarks spell curtains for Boris Johnson?
The group hopes once it has passed the Commons it could be approved by the House of Lords and granted Royal Assent in time for the emergency EU summit on April 10.
Become a Supporter
The New European is proud of its journalism and we hope you are proud of it too. We believe our voice is important - both in representing the pro-EU perspective and also to help rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.
