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Britain’s ‘zombie PM’ May staggers into battle
LONDON, Jan 29, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – British Prime Minister Theresa May heads into her
latest Brexit battle on Tuesday weakened but still determined to get her legacy-
defining deal through parliament, as MPs wrestle to take control of the process.
To her supporters, May is a model of resilience, but to her critics she is an
inflexible leader oblivious to the changing circumstances around her.
She has suffered the ignominy of losing her parliamentary majority following a
disastrous election campaign, seeing her flagship Brexit deal comprehensively rejected
by MPs and enduring two no-confidence votes, one by her party, the other by parliament.
Each time she has fought on, partly protected by the inability of any serious
challengers to form alliances and depose her, with the toxic Brexit issue dissolving
traditional political bonds.
May made it her mission to carry out the wishes of voters who backed the Brexit
referendum in June 2016 when she became premier the following month.
But Leave backers have always been suspicious of having a Remain supporter — which
May was before the referendum — leading negotiations.
And MPs who opposed Brexit want her to stick tighter to the EU or call for a second
referendum.
Parliamentarians could weaken her further on Tuesday by voting through a measure that
would open the door for them to dictate the way forward.
One glimmer of hope for the leader is that the Brexiteers who voted down her deal have
recently struck a softer tone towards the agreement, fearful that opponents of Brexit
in the House of Commons could scupper the whole process.
Shortly before Christmas, May made a rare acknowledgement of weakness, telling
Conservative colleagues she did not intend to lead them into the next scheduled
election in 2022 as she uncomfortably defeated the internal coup.
MORE/AU/07:50 hrs
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She then saw off a House of Commons no-confidence vote triggered by Labour leader
Jeremy Corbyn after her deal was rejected by MPs.
Critics from all sides have rounded on the leader, with Remain-supporting journalist
Matthew Parris calling her a “zombie prime minister”, and the Leave-supporting Daily
Telegraph newspaper warning that she was “out of allies, out of time”.
– ‘Difficult woman’ –
May took over after her predecessor David Cameron quit following the shock vote for
Brexit in June 2016, winning by default after her rivals fought among themselves or
withdrew.
She had quietly campaigned to stay in the EU, but has repeatedly stressed the
importance of implementing the verdict.
Yet her plan’s provision for a so-called “backstop” to prevent a hard border with the
Republic of Ireland, which could keep Britain indefinitely tied in a customs union with
the EU, has angered Brexit supporters.
Despite the near constant criticism, May has kept at it and compares herself to her
cricketing hero Geoffrey Boycott, who was a byword for doggedness as a batsman.
The vicar’s daughter has also gleefully seized on a putdown by a party elder that she
was a “bloody difficult woman”.
May eschews gossip and networking, proving herself through hard work. She spent six
years in the tough job of interior minister before entering Downing Street.
But her reserved nature often makes for stilted relations with world leaders and
voters, while her staccato speaking style, repeating phrases and avoiding direct
questions, earned her the media nickname “Maybot”.
– Field of wheat –
May, 62, said she knew she wanted to become a politician when she was just 12, and
provoked mockery when she said during the election campaign that the naughtiest thing
she had done was running through a field of wheat.
She studied geography at the University of Oxford, where she met her husband Philip,
who became a banker, after reportedly being introduced by future Pakistan premier
Benazir Bhutto.
The couple never had children and May devoted herself to a life of public service that
saw her become Conservative Party chairwoman in 2002.
The apparent ease with which May positioned herself to become prime minister after the
referendum drew praise for her political skills — but this evaporated the following
year.
Faced with an apparently unassailable poll lead, she called a snap election in June
2017 to bolster her position and Brexit plan — only to lose the Conservatives’
majority.
BSS/AFP/AU/07:55 hrs