Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has hit back at Theresa May after she accused him of "insulting" the British people by "undermining" her Brexit strategy.
The politicians have been at loggerheads since Mr Blair urged Mrs May to "switch course" and back a second referendum because of the deadlock in the UK parliament.
It comes amid reports that two of Mrs May’s most senior staff members have been talking to opposition parties about the possibility of a second vote.
In a statement this afternoon, Mr Blair said the UK is facing “the most important decision our country has taken since the end of WWII and after 30 months of negotiation we are in crisis.
“In these circumstances it is not irresponsible or insulting to put forward an alternative way to achieve resolution,” he said.
“The sensible thing is now to allow Parliament to vote on each of the forms of Brexit canvassed including the Prime Minister’s deal.
“If they can’t reach agreement then the logical thing is to go back to the people.
“To describe such a course as an insult is a strange description of what would be the opportunity for them to instruct Parliament as to how to proceed.
Irresponsible
He said it is be irresponsible to “try to steamroller MPs into accepting a deal they genuinely think is a bad one with the threat that if they do not fall into line, the Government will have the country crash out without a deal.”
“My call is for Europe as well as our own Parliament to prepare for the possibility now gathering momentum that we may go back to the people in a further referendum. Again this is surely sensible given the impasse we have reached.
He insisted that he has full respect for Mrs May – however he warned that he ‘profoundly believes’ that her strategy “will not work and is emphatically not in the National interest.”
“That’s the reason I am speaking out and shall continue to do so.”
People's Vote
Earlier Mrs May’s chief-of-staff David Gavin Barwell denied reports that he plotting with "political opponents or anyone else" to prepare for a second referendum.
Happy to confirm I am *not* planning a 2nd referendum with political opponents (or anyone else to anticipate the next question) https://t.co/3hNDvmNTN9
— Gavin Barwell (@GavinBarwell) December 16, 2018
Mrs May insisted she will “continue to fight for a good deal for Britain.”
"For Tony Blair to go to Brussels and seek to undermine our negotiations by advocating for a second referendum is an insult to the office he once held and the people he once served.
"We cannot, as he would, abdicate responsibility for this decision. Parliament has a democratic duty to deliver what the British people voted for.
"I remain determined to see that happen. I will not let the British people down."
