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A vote in the House of Commons has been defeated by one vote after the Speaker John Bercow cast the deciding ballot.

MPs were voting on a motion to hold more indicative votes on alternative plans for Brexit but the result was tied with 310 votes for and 310 against.

Mr Bercow then voted "no" in accordance with precedent.</s>LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) - There are suggestions that Britain's government has been told it will not be allowed to bring Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal back for a fourth vote, the BBC's political editor said on Tuesday.

Parliament's speaker John Bercow said there needed to be significant changes to May's deal before it could be brought back for a third vote last week. Brexit minister Steve Barclay has hinted that May might bring the deal back to lawmakers again this week.

"Whispers this morning that clerks in Commons have made it clear to govt that Bercow would not allow them to bring back the deal for another vote - one source says this is a 'Big Problem'," the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg said on Twitter.

"Speaker's office says not decided yet - let's see."</s>LONDON, April 2 (Reuters) - There are suggestions that Britain’s government has been told it will not be allowed to bring Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal back for a fourth vote, the BBC’s political editor said on Tuesday.

Parliament’s speaker John Bercow said there needed to be significant changes to May’s deal before it could be brought back for a third vote last week. Brexit minister Steve Barclay has hinted that May might bring the deal back to lawmakers again this week.

“Whispers this morning that clerks in Commons have made it clear to govt that Bercow would not allow them to bring back the deal for another vote - one source says this is a ‘Big Problem’,” the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg said on Twitter.

“Speaker’s office says not decided yet - let’s see.”</s>(LONDON) — A Brexit-related vote in Britain’s House of Commons has ended in a tie, the first time that has happened in a quarter-century.

In an illustration of politicians’ deadlock over Britain’s exit from the European Union, Wednesday’s vote ended in a 310-310 draw.

Under Parliament’s rules, the speaker of the House has tie-breaking power. Speaker John Bercow cast his vote with the noes. He said that was in keeping with the principle that “it is not for the chair to create a majority that otherwise doesn’t exist.”

The result means lawmakers have rejected the idea of holding a third day of voting on alternative Brexit options Monday.

Bercow says the last time a vote in the Commons ended in a tie was in 1993.</s>LIVE: Speaker blocks further votes on Brexit alternatives after Commons tie

John Bercow breaks a rare parliamentary tie, meaning a call for MPs to get more indicative votes is defeated by one vote.</s>John Bercow was forced to intervene in a key Brexit vote in the House of Commons today after a vote on whether to hold more indicative votes ended in a tie. MPs were voting on whether time should be put aside on Monday for politicians to have another chance to try and find a majority for a Brexit deal in a third round of indicative votes. Following Mr Bercow's intervention, Tory MP Sir Patrick McLoughlin asked the Speaker: “Mr Speaker, I cannot recall when this last happened. I am sure you have been told the precedence. Perhaps you would like to inform the House as to when it was last happened?”

In response, the Speaker grinned and said: “In my recollection, that I have been saying this for years across the country to audiences so I hope it is right, is that the last occasion on which the Speaker had to exercise a casting vote was in 1993 and I believe I’ll be corrected by the honourable gentleman and member for Stone, if I am wrong, was appertaining to the Maastricht Treaty Bill.” Mr Bercow said he was “probably pushing his luck”, adding: “I think it was on an amendment relating to the social chapter. “And it was an amendment relating to the then leader of the opposition, I believe, and Speaker Boothroyd cast her vote in the way that she did against that amendment.” After MPs voted 310 in favour of more votes to 310 against, the Speaker was forced to intervene and cast the deciding vote.

Mr Bercow explained his decision to block more indicative votes and said: “The rationale, I say this with as much a benefit of new members, as of others, for the exercise of the casting vote is, as I have said, it is not for the chair to create a majority that doesn’t otherwise exist. “The way in which the casting vote is exercised does also depend upon the stage at which a matter is being aired.” Before the result was announced, staunch Brexiteer MP Mark Francois mockingly suggested MPs should vote again: “Can we have a people’s vote and do it twice?” The motion was seeking to secure the time needed to hold a third round of indicative votes after Parliament failed to find common ground on the favoured Brexit option on Monday April, 1 and last Wednesday.

All options put to the vote over the past two weeks were flatly rejected, forcing Theresa May to hold a tense Cabinet meeting with her top ministers before announcing plans to request a further extension to the Brexit process. The UK is scheduled to quit the European Union on April 12 at 11pm unless Brussels agrees to a further extension or Mrs May secures support for her withdrawal deal – which was defeated three times since January. In 1993, the then Speaker Betty Boothroyd used her casting vote to support the Government in defeating the Social Chapter amendment. However, shortly after her vote it was discovered it was not required, as the votes had been miscounted and the Government had in fact won by one vote. Announcing today's vote, Mr Bercow said: "In accordance with precedent and on the principle that important decisions should not be taken except by a majority I cast my vote with the noes. "The noes have it, by casting vote 311 to 310, that is the proper way in which to proceed."</s>A crunch vote on Brexit was tied in extraordinary scenes, the like of which have not been seen in the House of Commons in 26 years.

And the last vote to be tied in the Chamber was, ironically, in a vote on the Maastricht Treaty with the European Union.

The vote was on Labour MP Hilary Benn's bid to bring forward a third set of indicative votes to find a way forward on Brexit , which would have taken place on Monday.

After MPs voted on the plan, exactly 310 of them voted for and against it.

In the case of a tie, the Speaker has the casting vote.

Speaker John Bercow voted no, complying with the convention that when there is no majority in the House, the chair should not create one.

As such, the amendment was defeated by 311 votes to 310.</s>MPs Reject Plan For More Indicative Brexit Votes After John Bercow Breaks Tie

MPs have rejected a plan to hold a third round of indicative Brexit votes after Speaker John Bercow broke the tie by voting against the amendment.

They voted by 310 to 310 on Labour MP Hilary Benn's amendment on Wednesday afternoon.

After the tie was announced, Speaker John Bercow casted his vote, in line with precedent, with the noes.

He said it was not for him to "create a majority which does not otherwise exist".

This meant Mr Benn's amendment was defeated by 311 votes to 310, majority one.

His proposal sought a third round of Brexit indicative votes on Monday April 8 - the previous two bouts had failed to find a majority.

It was the first tie in a Commons vote since 1993.

Meanwhile, MPs later approved the motion to allow them to take control of the Commons agenda to debate Labour MP Yvette Cooper's

European Union (Withdrawal) (No 5) Bill by 312 votes to 311, majority one.

They will consider on Wednesday all stages of Ms Cooper's Bill, which requires Prime Minister Theresa May to table a motion seeking MPs' approval for an extension to the Article 50 process beyond April 12 to a date of her choosing.</s>John Bercow broke a tie to rule against holding a third round of Brexit alternative votes on Monday tonight.

MPs were tied for the first time in decades after they voted 310-310 on whether to stage a third day of indicative votes on Monday night.

Labour's Hilary Benn had tried to amend the rules of the House to stage more votes on alternatives to Mrs May's Brexit deal - in defiance of Tory rebel Oliver Letwin, who has masterminded the way backbench MPs seized control from the Government.

Mr Bercow said he had to use his casting vote - for the first time in his nine years as Speaker - against the move.

Mr Bercow's decision is helpful to the Government which may need Monday's time in the Commons to debate and vote on a new Brexit plan.

It effectively ends rebel control of the Commons following today's proceedings as Mr Letwin had opted against booking any more days.

Explaining why he broke the tie against the amendment, Mr Bercow said: 'The rationale .. for the exercising of the casting vote is .. that it is not for the chair to create a majority that doesn't otherwise exist.'

The main vote on whether today's rebel control of the Commons can go ahead was won 312-311 - suggesting the Commons is on a knife edge for when draft laws which seek to block a No Deal next week are voted on later tonight.

It is the first time since 1993 a Speaker has broken a tie in the Commons. On that occasion, the result was later changed after a recount.

The last successful tie breaker was cast in 1980 on a vote on whether to allow TV cameras into the Commons for the first time.

The extraordinary scenes came after a bad tempered debate on whether Rebel MPs should be allowed to try to ram through laws to try and block No Deal.

Labour MP Yvette Cooper has published draft laws that would oblige the Government to seek a long delay to Brexit next week if there is not a deal by April 10.

Veteran Brexiteer Sir Bill Cash complained the idea was 'unconstitutional' today and urged the Commons Speaker to block it.

But Mr Bercow told him pushing through laws in a single day was 'not particularly unusual' in itself, pointing out the Government does so in an emergency.

The Speaker has repeatedly been accused of helping Remainers to frustrate Brexit and has threatened to block any further votes on Mrs May's Brexit deal.

Of tonight's legislation, the Leader of the House of Commons Andrea Leadsom said: 'The Government regrets the position that Parliament is in today. Not only does it challenge again our constitutional conventions, but it offers Parliament hardly any time to consider, let alone to debate, the legislation before us.

'The people of the UK rightly expect our democracy to be upheld at all times and for our democratic institutions to take their responsibilities seriously.

'The Prime Minister also set out the Government's next steps to leave the EU in a way which can command support from a majority of parliamentarians, in that context, I question why the legislation before the House today is necessary.'

She added: 'The Government has consistently said that we do not support the unprecedented removal of Government control of the order paper, no matter the circumstances.'</s>THE HOUSE OF Commons has reached a tie on whether to hold more indicative votes on Monday.

There was a 10 minute delay before the votes were announced to confirm the tie.When the results were announced, 310 MPs voted for more indicative votes on Monday, and 310 voted against it.

The House Speaker John Bercow had the deciding vote, and voted against the amendment to the business motion, quoting precedent.

He said that the precedent was in 1993… “and I’ll believe that it was appertaining to the Maastricht Treaty Bill”.

Alastair Campbell, a Remain-supporter and former spokesperson for Tony Blair, reacted to the news by saying that the vote outlined the divide in the House of Commons.
An indicative vote on holding more indicative votes for Brexit possibilities in the House of Commons achieves a vote of 310 Aye and 310 No, becoming the first British parliamentary vote to result in a draw in the 21st century; Speaker John Bercow breaks the tie by voting No.