The Good Ship Brexit has had a fair few knocks as it has tried to steer its way out to sea. 

More than one Brexit Secretary has gone overboard. Businesses have stolen the lifeboats to see if the sea really is bluer on the other side - and now it appears we really are up S**t Creek without a backstop. 

Because make no mistake, we are all in the same boat when it comes to the consequences of this disastrous voyage.

Captain May has instructed her motley crew of MPs to support an amendment to her Brexit plan that will effectively try to make the backstop walk the plank.

"Alternative arrangements"

It is deliberately vague and calls for the backstop to be "replaced with alternative arrangements."

The only problem is that most MPs haven't a bull’s notion what those alternative arrangements should be – and the ones who know what they want can't get enough agreement from their colleagues to get it done.

It is like trying to book your holidays knowing that you don't want to go to Scunthorpe, but unable to decide where you do want to go. 

Or for Captain May, it has been akin to trying to order takeout with a fussy partner. They don't want pizza, Chinese, a chipper or Indian – but they don't mind what you get really. 

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar attends a session of the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, 24-01-2018. Image: Gian Ehrenzeller/Keystone via AP

Backstop

Every option she has come up with, MPs have thrown back in her face. 

Now by backing this amendment, she is doing a complete 180 on the backstop her government has already signed up to, in the hope it will put pressure for more concessions on Brussels.

The damage to Ireland if there is no backstop will be huge - the Taoiseach spelled it out in Davos last week.

Customs posts along the border would destroy so much of the work that has been done in the last 20 years to make Northern Ireland a peaceful place. 

So we may now get the real test of whether Tusk, Barnier and Juncker will row in behind Ireland and stand by the backstop.

There are those who would be quite happy to see the Brexit ship sink. But without a deal, they could bring us down with them.