Llywydd, despite those encouraging words following her defeat two weeks ago, it's now quite clear that the Prime Minister is going round in circles in her cul-de-sac, reiterating red-line positions, failing to see the urgent need to extend article 50 and failing to rule out 'no deal'—in short, a continuation on the road to nowhere. Can anything be more ludicrous than the Prime Minister imposing a three-line whip on her own MPs to get them to instruct her to go away and do something she only two weeks ago said was impossible? Rather than looking to unite Parliament on a way ahead consistent with a vision for a post-Brexit relationship with the EU that continues to be endorsed by the National Assembly, the Prime Minister has chosen to double down on the backstop, even though the EU has maintained, and repeated again last night, that the backstop is not open for renegotiation while her red lines remain in place. And, Llywydd, can I say that we support the legitimate concerns being expressed by our neighbours in the Republic of Ireland and the European Union on the risks that Brexit poses to the peace and prosperity that the Good Friday Agreement has brought to the island of Ireland? The Prime Minister is about to demand that Ireland and the other EU-27 re-open a deal that she has so recently said was final, done, the only deal on the table. If they refuse to give up the cast-iron guarantee, can we blame them that they would refuse to do that in return for the UK's assertion that they can be trusted to honour their agreements?

So, while with Brexit it's always impossible to be certain of the future, the Prime Minister's next dash to Brussels looks pretty much doomed. And, even if she does return with some token concessions or reassurances, who can be sure that it would assuage that handful of deluded Brexiteers who genuinely believe that crashing out with no deal will just be a minor inconvenience?

Let's be clear: the Prime Minister is going to need to secure lasting support for her approach to Brexit. Trying to build a strategy on side deals with the DUP and the concessions to the European reform group will only weaken the Government's position domestically as they try to pass the necessary legislation in the coming weeks. So, we condemn the UK Government for failing to see the need to establish common ground across political parties on Brexit for the long term. By contrast to the strategy of divide and rule seen in Westminster, right from the start the Welsh Government has looked to build consensus, typified by our White Paper 'Securing Wales' Future', agreed jointly with Plaid Cymru. In that White Paper, we were clear about the trade-offs that would be needed if we were to honour the results of the referendum. We recognised that people had not voted to make themselves poorer and that Wales could not afford the massive economic costs of severing access to the single market and being outside a customs union, and that this meant we would have to accept a future where, like Norway, we had less control over our regulatory environment than we do as a member state.

Our evidence-based approach continues to result in this National Assembly being able to agree majority positions to reject the UK Government's deal and set out the form of Brexit, with participation in the single market and a customs union, that would command our support, agreement on the need to extend the article 50 process, and agreement to rule out the prospect of the UK leaving without a deal. Our ability here to find common ground puts us in a position in this Assembly of strength when we seek to influence the UK Government by being clear what is and what is not acceptable for Wales.

Last night, the House of Commons failed to back any coherent way forward except a worrying attempt to kick the can down the road. It seems increasingly clear that the choice the country may indeed end up being faced with is no deal, a bad deal that cannot command a stable majority in Parliament, or putting the decision back to the people. Another public vote is not an easy path; there are many obstacles on the route, both principled and practical. But while we, as a Welsh Government, will continue to urge Parliament to unite around a withdrawal agreement and a rewritten political declaration that reflects a more credible, more stable, Norway plus-type Brexit—which, by the way, renders the backstop redundant—we also know that time is running out, and so the work must now begin of preparing for a public vote.