British Prime Minister Theresa May's control over Brexit is slipping away. On Monday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, no doubt hoping to prevent further defections from his party, said he would support a "public vote" on Brexit. He gave no details, but it's a significant shift in a politician who has never hidden his euroskepticism or opposition to a second referendum.
Whether another vote comes to pass, or Brexit is delayed, now depends very much on if the prime minister can convince lawmakers in her own party to back her deal. It is one of the more curious twists of the Brexit drama that this job — and thus the fate of May and her divorce deal — falls to a lawyer few had heard of a year ago. There is a simple reason for that: Geoffrey Cox may be the only official left who critics of the prime minister's deal feel they can trust.
It was the attorney general's damning November legal advice, which the government was forced to publish, that largely motivated Parliament to reject her deal in January. May is now hoping Cox will change his opinion and help her win over enough votes to pass the settlement agreement next month. Failing that, the fate of Brexit looks to be truly out of her hands.