UK PM May’s party opposes her Brexit deal as economy slows

LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Theresa May’s bid to push her Brexit plans through parliament was dealt another blow on Friday when a survey showed most of her own party’s members oppose the agreement and would prefer to leave the EU without a deal.

May needs 318 votes to get the deal she struck with Brussels in November through parliament, yet 117 of her Conservative Party’s 317 lawmakers voted against her in a confidence vote on Dec. 12.

Friday’s YouGov survey offered a snapshot of the challenge she faces.

Of 1,215 of the Conservative Party’s rank-and-file members questioned by the pollster, 59 percent opposed May’s deal and 76 percent said warnings over the risks of disruption in the event of a no-deal were “exaggerated or invented”.

The British economy is showing clear signs of slowing with house prices taking a hit, services companies reporting crisis-like pessimism and lending to British consumers grew at its slowest pace in nearly four years.

Just 38 percent of those polled by YouGov said they supported May’s deal.