London [UK]: UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered a fresh blow after his second attempt to force an early election in the country failed to garner the required two-thirds majority.
As Johnson tabled a new motion in the House of Commons, 293 MPs voted for the motion, short of the 434-mark required to trigger a snap election. As many as 46 parliamentarians dissented, CNN reported. Following the vote, Johnson attacked the opposition parties, asserting they wanted to delay Brexit again. "I earlier urged the House to trust the people but once again the opposition think they know better," he told the House.
"They want to delay Brexit yet again...Not only have they refused to choose the way ahead, they have now twice denied the British people their say in an election," the Conservative Party leader said. The UK government has now prorogued Parliament for five weeks. MPs will not resume their duties until October 14, only 12 days before the UK exits from the European Union. "Now the House will be suspended until mid-October," Johnson said while hoping that the Opposition would use the time "to reflect".
Johnson asserted that his government will not delay Brexit "any further" and said he will "strive to get an agreement in the national interest". The developments have rattled the ruling Conservative Party government, which is struggling to eke out an agreement with the Opposition over the UK's withdrawal from the EU.
Last week, British MPs rejected a motion tabled by Johnson to dissolve the Parliament and call for a snap election on October 15 after the opposition backed the bill aimed at preventing a no-deal Brexit, causing a huge headache to the government, which is now without a working majority.
