Exclusive: Sam Gyimah set to back a People's Vote after quitting Theresa May's government over Brexit
LONDON - Conservative MP Sam Gyimah is set declare his support for a People's Vote on Brexit after quitting Theresa May's government on Friday evening, multiple sources have told Business Insider.
Gyimah quit as universities and science minister on Friday in protest against the prime minister's Brexit deal with Brussels, branding the Withdrawal Agreement "naive," "EU first" and "not in the British national interest."
"Britain will end up worse off, transformed from rule makers into rule takers. It is a democratic deficit and a loss of sovereignty," Gyimah said, after becoming the seventh minister to resign over the divorce deal.
Gyimah is set to follow the footsteps of ex-transport minister Jo Johnson and back the campaign for a People's Vote, a referendum on the outcome of negotiations, according to multiple senior anti-Brexit campaigners.
Earlier this month, a senior source in the People's Vote campaign told Business Insider that up to three Conservative MPs would declare support for another referendum in November, with Johnson being the first.
In an interview with The Telegraph, the MP for East Surrey hinted at support for another referendum.
"We shouldn't dismiss out of hand the idea of asking the people again what future they want, as we all now have a better understanding of the potential paths before us," he said.
BI understands that he will soon declare his support for another Brexit referendum, piling more pressure on Prime Minister May as she faces the prospect of a landslide defeat in the parliamentary vote on her deal next week.
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