What just happened in the Commons – and what's next for Brexit?

Boris Johnson won one vote and lost another over the withdrawal agreement bill. So what just happened? In brief: the bill seeking to put into law Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal was passed by MPs on its second reading, the initial opportunity that MPs have to vote on a bill. It passed by 329 votes to 299, the first time the Commons has formally approved a Brexit plan. However, only 20 minutes later, MPs rejected the government’s so-called programme motion, which set out the accelerated t