THERE are 639 MPs in the House of Commons who are considered active once the seven Sinn Fein MPs and four speakers and deputies who don’t vote are removed from the total of 650.
It means any government needs 320 votes for a simple majority. The Conservatives won a total of 318 seats at last year’s General Election, though one is the speaker John Bercow and one deputy speaker Elenor Lang, leaving May with 316 active MPs. With the support of 10 DUP MPs, May has a working majority of just six.
READ MORE: DUP will get £1bn fund even if deal with the Tories collapses
She faces huge difficulties getting the Brexit deal passed in the Commons as 58 hardline Tory Brexiteers are unlikely to support it along with 14 Remain-supporting Tories. She has around just 244 loyal MPs. She is hoping to get some support from Labour rebels – 15 or so could back her. Stephen Lloyd, the only Eurosceptic Liberal Democrat MP, could support the deal as well as Sylvia Hermon, the independent Unionist MP. This is why she has been focussing effort trying to keep the DUP on side.
Much of the business community in Northern Ireland, along with the Ulster Farmers’ Union, want the deal and are lobbying the DUP. “While by no means perfect, it provides a platform to move onto the critical next stage of a comprehensive future trade deal,” a statement from the CBI Northern Ireland, Federation of Small Businesses, Institute of Directors and NI Chamber of Commerce said.
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