Britain PM Boris Johnson loses wafer-thin majority as MP defects over Brexit
London, Sep 3: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Tuesday lost his already wafer-thin working majority of one in Parliament as one of the Conservative Party MPs defected to the anti-Brexit Liberal Democrat party over an ongoing showdown over his strategy for the country's impending exit from the European Union (EU).
Philip Lee defected just minutes before Johnson took to the despatch box at the House of Commons for his first parliamentary confrontation with MPs after a long summer recess. The MP for Bracknell conspicuously took his seat on the Opposition benches as Johnson began addressing the Commons.
"The party I joined in 1992 is not the party I am leaving today," he said in a statement, accusing his former party of "political manipulation, bullying and lies".
The former justice minister said the government was "pursuing a damaging Brexit in unprincipled ways", putting lives and livelihoods at risk.
In a letter to Johnson, Lee said the Conservative Party "had become a narrow faction in which one's Conservatism is measured by how recklessly one wants to leave the European Union".
Addressing the Commons after days of verbal clashes over his do or die Brexit pledge by the October 31 deadline, Johnson told MPs he wanted a negotiated exit from the EU and insisted there was "real momentum" behind the talks. But he warned that plans by rebel Tory MPs to pass legislation effectively blocking a no-deal exit would "destroy any chance of negotiating a new deal".
"It is Jeremy Corbyn's surrender bill. It means running up the white flag," said Johnson, in reference to a motion that is set to be voted on later on Tuesday night.
If rebel MPs from his own Tory party and Opposition benches succeed in uniting and seeing the motion through, it would force Johnson's hand on seeking an extension to the Brexit deadline from the EU at least until January 31, 2020, in the event that no withdrawal agreement is agreed between both sides by the middle of October.
However, Downing Street has indicated that Johnson is prepared to go for a motion for a general election around October 14 in retaliation and would rather let the government fold and go back to the voters than seek another extension from the EU.
Earlier, the Commons Speaker accepted an application for an emergency debate on the issue of Britain's exit from the 28-member economic bloc. It will go for on to be debated by MPs before a vote on Tuesday night, which if passed would then be tabled as a bill on Wednesday.
The so-called SO24, signed by 18 MPs, states that the Commons has "considered the matter of the need to take all necessary steps to ensure that the United Kingdom does not leave the European Union on October 31 without a withdrawal agreement". Downing Street branded the rebel motion a "blueprint for legislative purgatory".
"The Prime Minister does not want to hold an election. If, by destroying his negotiating position, MPs force an election, then that would take place before the October European Council [October 17]," Johnson's official spokesperson said.
Brexit is set to dominate proceedings throughout the week in Parliament, with Opposition MPs on overdrive to block Johnson from pushing through what they believe would be a damaging forced divorce from the EU without a deal in place just to meet the October 31 deadline. They were put against the clock after Johnson announced plans to suspend Parliament from around September 9 until October 14, reducing the number of sitting days during which they had planned to scrutinise the issue of Brexit.
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13 lakh litres of 'Rail Neer' supplied to train passengers daily: Government
New Delhi (PTI): Approximately 13 lakh litres of packaged drinking water -- 'Rail Neer' -- are being supplied to train passengers across the railway network daily, the government informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply on Wednesday.
Apprising the Lower House about the Indian Railways' endeavour to provide safe and potable drinking water facilities at all stations, the government also provided zone-wise details of the water vending machines (WVMs) installed there.
"To ensure the quality of drinking water being made available at the railway stations, instructions exist for periodical checking and required corrective action to be taken.
"Regular inspection and maintenance of drinking water facilities is carried out and complaints are attended to promptly," Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said while responding to a question raised by BJP MP Anup Sanjay Dhotre seeking to know the supply of drinking water at railway stations across the country
"Complaints regarding deficiency in services, including water supply, are received through various channels such as public complaints, web portals, social media, etc. These complaints are received at various levels, including the Railway Board, zonal railways, division office, etc.," Vaishnaw said.
"The complaints so received are forwarded to the concerned wings of Railways and necessary action is taken to check and address them. As receipt of such complaints and action taken thereon is a continuous and dynamic process, a centralised compendium of these is not maintained," he added.
Providing zone-wise details of water vending machines, the minister said 954 such machines have been installed across railway stations.
"The Indian Railways also provides safe and affordable packaged drinking water bottles -- Rail Neer -- approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) in trains and at stations," Vaishnaw said.
"Approximately, 13 lakh litres of Rail Neer are being supplied per day to the travelling passengers in trains and at stations across the Indian Railways network," he added.
