Boris Johnson’s real battle with the EU is only just beginning

The prime minister has got MPs to back him – but his next test, on a trade deal, will be even tougher, writes Sean O'Grady

The PM might not sail through the next phase with quite the same aplomb (UK Parliament/Reuters)

The Brexit bill is the piece of legislation that will formally take Britain out of the European Union so far as British law is concerned. The EU Withdrawal Bill must, in its various iterations over the past couple of years, hold the record for enjoying (if that is the word) the most tortuous and protracted passage through parliament, frequently amended, sometimes lost (by historic margins) and even withdrawn before being reintroduced like a battered old car in a banger race.

Now, however, it looks well on its way to the statute book. It has passed its third reading in the House of Commons, which means that MPs can no longer amend it. Thanks to the government’s thumping majority, the bill is now bound to have an easier time of it than under the previous minority administrations of Theresa May and Boris Johnson.

Now the bill is to be presented to the House of Lords – where the government does not hold a majority. Under the Salisbury convention, the bill cannot be rejected by the Lords. This is because Brexit was an (obviously) important part of the Conservatives’ 2019 manifesto and is deemed to have public support. However, their lordships can amend some details, and seem inclined to reinstate a clause from a previous version to make the government negotiate with the EU a deal whereby unaccompanied refugee children may join family members now legally in the UK. When that returns to the Commons, MPs may reject or accept it. Then the bill will go to the Queen for formal royal assent, and become law in time for Brexit Day, 31 January.