May's Brexit Deal Starts to Fall Into Place

Wednesday night’s votes in parliament suggest that Theresa May is closer to leading Britain out of the European Union with a Brexit deal than at any other point since her negotiations with Brussels began. Instead of another humiliating defeat, parliament told her to stay the course. Crucially, the group of hardline Brexiters who have stood in her way before, look split.

Several things have changed to make a deal look a lot more likely. Faced with the threat of cabinet and ministerial resignations, the prime minister conceded on Tuesday that she would seek a short delay to Britain’s March 29 exit date – if her deal could not be passed by March 12, and if parliament rejected the option of leaving without a deal (which it certainly would) and then voted for a delay. May’s promises were embedded in a parliamentary amendment submitted by Labour lawmaker Yvette Cooper on Wednesday and which passed by a wide margin, with just 20 Brexiters voting against it.