LONDON, Oct. 21 (Xinhua) -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected on Tuesday to make a fresh attempt to win approval for his Brexit deal after the Speaker of the House of Commons flatly refused to allow it to be debated on Monday.
The Conservative government had hoped the deal Johnson brokered last Thursday with Brussels would be given a second chance of a vote on Monday.
But House of Commons Speaker John Bercow, quoting rules going back to 1604, refused to allow a fresh vote by MPs.
Bercow said the motion laid before the house was in substance the same as one put forward in a rare sitting of the Commons on Saturday.
Johnson had hoped to win approval in the weekend sitting for his deal, but MPs backed a move to delay it.
"My ruling is therefore that the motion will not be debated today, as it would be repetitive and disorderly to do so," Bercow told politicians.
Bercow's decision fueled a furious debate both inside the House of Commons and outside, about the power of the Speaker.
But it also left government managers being forced to lick their wounds and plan an alternative strategy in the race to get Brexit approved ahead of an Oct. 31 deadline for Britain to leave the European Union.
Following the rejection of the debate by Bercow, MPs heard a plea by the leader of the main opposition Labor Party, Jeremy Corbyn, asking for a statement by Johnson.
Corbyn made reference to a comment made earlier this fall by Johnson who said he would rather be dead in a ditch than ask the European Union (EU) for an extension of Britain's EU membership.
On Saturday night a letter, in the name of the prime minister, asked for an extension, as required by a law agreed by the House of Commons.
Corbyn told MPs: "Despite his pledge, he is not to be found anywhere in a ditch. I welcome the fact that the Prime Minister has sent a letter over the weekend to the EU President Donald Tusk.
"As we have come to expect with this Prime Minister, this has been done with posturing and attempts to distract, but despite having told the British public over and over again that he would never do it, the letter has in fact been sent."
The latest chapter in the Brexit saga started Saturday when the government wanted to hold a simple yes or no vote on its Brexit deal. That strategy collapsed because of a delaying amendment by former Conservative MP Oliver Letwin.
The Leader of the Commons, Jacob Rees-Mogg, announced Monday that the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement Bill will be introduced Tuesday, but will need to go through the full parliamentary procedures in both the House of Commons and the House of Lords.
Although the legislative procedure normally takes weeks, Rees-Mogg said the hope was, the bill would complete its journey through the Commons by this Thursday.
The next big hurdle for Johnson and his government will come Tuesday when MPs will vote on whether to accept or reject the proposed timetable.
Battle lines were already being drawn Monday night which could derail the progress of the elusive Brexit bill. It could see a war of words between supporters of leave and politicians determined to wreck the chances of a speedy Brexit.
Ian Blackford, leader of the Scottish National Party at Westminster, called on the government to make time for the bill to be properly scrutinized rather than be bulldozed through parliament.
The Brexit bill was present Monday in what was a simple formality, paving the way for a so-called debate on a second reading.
That is scheduled to start Tuesday and will give MPs their first chance to debate the bill, followed by a vote for its continued passage through the process.
If it survives its Tuesday hurdle, two days of debate will take place Wednesday and Thursday. This will present the government with another obstacle course, with amendments being tabled. These could demand a second referendum, or other changes to the future relationship with the EU.
Even if it survives its journey in the Commons, the bill has to navigate its way through the House of Lords where there could be more obstacles to curtail or crush its passage.
Early on Monday, Scotland's highest civil court deferred a decision on whether the prime minister had complied with a law requiring him to send a letter to Brussels seeking an extension of Britain's membership if no deal was in place by Oct. 19. The government sent the letter to Brussels, but Johnson did not sign it. Instead he wrote and signed a second letter saying the government opposed an extension and wanted Britain to leave the EU by the end of this month.
Meanwhile, as Speaker Bercow approaches his retirement at the end of this month after 10 years in the Commons hot seat, he came under fierce criticism from some MPs.
The Daily Telegraph reported veteran MP Bernard Jenkins saying it was "becoming remarkable how often you please one lot and not the other lot."
Jenkins, who chairs the constitutional affairs committee in Parliament, said his committee will hold a hearing on the role of the Speaker in light of the experience of recent months.
Numerous Brexit supporting politicians have accused Bercow of favoring measures to delay or frustrate Brexit.
Conservative MP Crispin Blunt, the Telegraph reported, has formally recorded his anxiety about Bercow's impartiality in the chair.
Other MPs have heaped praise on Bercow for championing back-bench politicians.
