UK lawmakers offered chance to delay Brexit vote by Theresa May

Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday offered lawmakers the chance to vote in just over two weeks time on whether to delay Brexit or go for a potentially disorderly no-deal exit from the European Union if her attempt to ratify a divorce deal fails. Here is some reaction to her proposal

OPPOSITION LABOUR LEADER JEREMY CORBYN "They say... history repeats itself, first time as tragedy, second time as farce. By the umpteenth time, it can only be described as grotesquely reckless."

"This is not dithering, it's a deliberate strategy to run down the clock." "The Prime Minister is promising to achieve something she knows is not achievable, and is stringing people along."

CONSERVATIVE EUROSCEPTIC LAWMAKER JACOB REES-MOGG "There is obviously the possibility that Brexit will be delayed. If it (is) to change the Backstop to the Malthouse compromise, that would be positive - and to allow time for legislation to get through, that again would be perfectly acceptable."

"If it's being delayed, which is my suspicion, as a plot to stop Brexit altogether then I think that would be the most grievous error that politicians could commit." "It would be overthrowing the referendum result, two general elections - one to call for the referendum and one to endorse the referendum - and would undermine our democracy."

CONSERVATIVE REMAIN SUPPORTER NICK BOLES "The Prime Minister has made a significant concession. The detailed commitments that she made at the despatch box mirror the provisions of the Cooper-Letwin bill precisely. The question for all of us is this: can MPs trust her to do what she has promised?"

INSTITUTE OF DIRECTORS "Parliament must feel and accept the weight of responsibility that is on their shoulders.

"Seeing the impasse continue may not be comfortable for businesses, but a disorderly exit could bring unbearable disruption for firms in sectors from farming to finance, manufacturing to business services, across the UK. It is a long time since we have been in a world of easy choices, and while an extension is not an end in itself, it may become a necessity to achieve an orderly exit."