Labour MP Tulip Siddiq delays giving birth to vote against Theresa May's Brexit deal

A pregnant Labour MP delayed the birth of her child so that she could vote against Theresa May’s Brexit deal.

Tulip Siddiq told the Evening Standard:

If my son enters the world even one day later than the doctors advised, but it’s a world with a better chance of a strong relationship between Britain and Europe, then that’s worth fighting for.

Siddiq, who represents Hampstead and Kilburn, was planning to give birth to her second child on 4 February via a caesarean. Though she was advised by doctors to bring the procedure up to Monday or Tuesday after she developed gestational diabetes, and the procedure was agreed by medical staff to take place on Tuesday, she has once more delayed it.

True to form, the heavily pregnant Labour MP was pictured in a wheelchair at the Commons chamber to cast her vote.

Pregnant MPs, those with newborns and those that are sick, are able to ‘pair’ with an opposition party member who also cannot vote so the results won’t be affected.

However, Siddiq revealed on Twitter that she couldn't trust the system after Conservative Party chairman Brandon Lewis broke a pairing arrangement with Liberal Democrat deputy leader Jo Swinson in 2018.

Mr Lewis apologised to Ms Swinson and told her that it was an "honest mistake made by the whips in fast-moving circumstances" - an explanation Ms Swinson described as "not credible".

Siddiq wrote:

Thank you all for supportive messages. My decision to delay my baby's birth is not one I take lightly. Let me be clear, I have no faith in the pairing system - in July the Govt stole the vote of a new mother. It's my duty to represent Hampstead & Kilburn, and I will do just that.

The prime minister suffered the biggest ever Commons loss when her Brexit plan was voted down by a record majority of 230 MPs.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called the results "catastrophic" and tabled a motion of no confidence immediately. May will have to win this to avoid a general election.

With little over two months left before the Brexit deadline, the clock is ticking to reach a deal that MPs across party lines can get behind.

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