Britain could be facing another general election as soon as January if Theresa May fails to get her Brexit deal through parliament, a leading academic has said.

The prime minister is set to put her Brexit deal in front of the House of Commons within a month if she wins the backing of her Cabinet and after it has been agreed with the other 27 EU member states at an emergency summit in November.

If she fails to gain the support of MPs, the government could choose to simply stop negotiations with the EU and opt for “no deal” or try to get the deal passed a second time.

If the prime minister completely fails to get parliament’s support, there are three possible routes which could lead to a general election being called, according to Dr Alan Wager from the UK in a Changing EU thinktank.

The 2017 General Election route

The most plausible route is for Mrs May to do exactly what she did when she called a snap election in 2017.

She would table a parliamentary vote for a general election, which would have to be passed by a super majority of MPs. She would then set the election date, which would likely be between the end of January and the middle of February.

Theresa May could be forced to promise a second referendum in order to get her deal through parliament (EPA)

Dr Wager says: “If she went for it she would probably get it, but it’s about whether or not she would want to call another election over another referendum.

“She could persuade MPs to vote through her deal by promising to hold a second referendum on it.”

A ‘No confidence’ vote

A 'no confidence vote' takes place if the Prime Minister is no longer deemed fit to hold her role by her own MPs. 

A total of 48 Tory MPs must write to the party's 1922 Committee chair Graham Brady to request a vote of confidence.

If the Prime Minister won the confidence vote, she would remain in office and be awarded immunity for a year. 

If the Prime Minister loses a confidence vote, she is obliged to resign and would be barred from standing in the leadership election that follows.

She would need at least 158 votes from her 315 MPs to win.

Theresa May: Draft deal takes us closer to Brexit goal

If she loses, what is known as a two-week ‘cooling off’ period will commence. 

During this time, Parliament is dissolved, although Mrs May would still remain in Downing Street. 

If the Tories cannot choose a new leader and form a new Government with the support of a majority of MPs within 14 calendar days, an early General Election is triggered.

A new government could also include a cross-party allegiance and could dramatically change the government as we understand it now.

However, if an alternative government cannot be formed with a majority support, the prime minister would be forced to set a date for another general election - the second while Mrs May has been at Downing Street. 

Overturning the Fixed Term Parliaments Act

The final possible route to a general election would be the government seeking to repeal or amend the Fixed Term Parliaments Act – which creates a five-year period between general elections.

Introduced in 2011, the act took the power away from the queen to dissolve parliament and trigger a general election on the advice of the prime minister.

A new act would have to be passed through both the Commons and the Lords, before the prime minister can use the process it sets out to call an election.

However, Dr Wager says this would be “too long-winded and complex” to be a realistic option in the current climate, leaving the two distinct routes.

“The more plausible route is the 2017 route, but it all depends on how things stack up over the next few weeks.”

What would happen to Brexit negotiations with the EU?

The UK is set to leave the EU on March 29 next year, but if time begins to run out before a deal is agreed then an extension to the Article 50 period could be considered.

Once a deal is agreed with the UK, the European Commission will recommend it the European Council which will in turn pass it on to the European Parliament.

The process will stall as Europe waits for the UK Parliament to pass the deal. If it does so, the deal will be voted on by a session of all the MEPs and will require a simple majority.

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