British MP delays giving birth by two days to vote against Brexit deal
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A British lawmaker revealed Monday she is postponing the delivery of her child so that she can vote against the prime minister’s Brexit deal.
Tulip Siddiq, a member of the opposition Labour Party, told the Evening Standard that her doctors had advised she have a cesarean section after she developed gestational diabetes.
She agreed to the procedure as long as it was pushed back to Thursday so that she could cast her vote in the crucial Brexit deal on Tuesday.
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Britain's Labour Tulip Siddiq, a member of the Labour Party who backs a second referendum, said she has delayed the birth of her child so she can vote against Theresa May's Brexit deal. (REUTERS)
Siddiq’s decision to delay the child’s birth reignited the debate over proxy voting in Parliament.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In the U.K., a system is in place that allows members of Parliament who cannot make a vote to “pair” with another member on either side of an issue who agrees not to vote, effectively canceling each other out.
However, Siddiq said she decided against the plan because she fears she could fall victim to underhanded tactics by the government.
Last year, Tory chairman Brandon Lewis was accused of breaking the system when he voted on a bill despite being paired with Lib Dem Jo Swinson, who was on maternity leave. He later apologized for making what he called “an honest mistake,” the BBC reported.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“I’ve had no pressure at all from the whips to come and vote, but this is the biggest vote of my lifetime,” Siqqid said. “I am thinking about my child’s future when I made this decision – his future in the world.”
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She told the Standard that her husband will push her in a wheelchair into Parliament so that she can vote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"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,” she added.
Fellow Labour MP Harriet Harman said Monday that Siddiq should be allowed to vote by proxy and that she “should not have to choose between her cesarean (section) and her vote.”