Labour to let Brexit deal pass 'with nod and wink', Nicola Sturgeon claims

Nicola Sturgeon has accused Jeremy Corbyn of seeking to allow Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal to pass through Parliament ‘with a nod and a wink’ after Labour made clear it would not remove the whip from MPs who vote for the agreement.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon

Two Labour MPs have already said they will back the deal when it comes to the Commons tomorrow, and around a dozen more are thought to be considering it.

Mr McDonnell said he would “have a chat” with Ronnie Campbell, one of the Labour MPs who said he would back the deal.

Briefing journalists at Westminster, Ms Sturgeon said she had a “suspicion” that Labour would “allow Boris Johnson to get his deal over the line tomorrow”.

"Now I hope I'm wrong about that, but I'm simply surmising from what I'm hearing, you know piecing things together, it seems to me that it is possible we have a situation where Labour have an official position of opposing this deal, but are giving nods and winks to the so called Labour rebels in the hope that there's enough of them that allow it over the line,” the First Minister claimed.

"They're not in the healthiest of positions anyway, but I think it would be the end for Labour in Scotland if they turn out to be the handmaidens of Boris Johnson's Brexit."