[ti:British Lawmakers Deal Another Blow to Johnson’s EU Plan] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.01]British lawmakers Wednesday denied Prime Minister Boris Johnson's call for a general election on October 15. [00:12.65]They also approved a bill that could prevent Johnson [00:17.87]from withdrawing the country from the European Union (EU) next month. [00:24.68]Britain's House of Commons voted 329 to 300 to support the bill Wednesday. [00:34.76]It now goes to parliament's upper house, the House of Lords, for consideration. [00:42.53]Both votes were a major defeat for the prime minister. [00:48.62]Johnson says his country must leave the EU on October 31, [00:56.69]with or without an agreement between the two sides. [01:01.82]His promise to withdraw from the 28-member organization has Britain's parliament in an uproar. [01:12.11]Many fear leaving the EU without a deal in place could create severe economic problems. [01:21.93]The dispute is the worst political turmoil since Britain voted in 2016 to leave the European Union. [01:33.58]Politicians and the media have been using the name Brexit for the proposed withdrawal. [01:42.01]The Labour Party and some rebel members of Johnson's own Conservative Party joined Wednesday to delay Brexit. [01:53.62]"To deliver Brexit like this is to create a poison pill which for 40 years [02:01.98]will divide this country straight down the middle," [02:06.44]former Conservative Party leadership candidate Rory Stewart told the BBC. [02:13.62]"If you are going to deliver Brexit at all, [02:18.35]try to do it legally, constitutionally and with consent." [02:25.36]On Wednesday, Johnson said the possible new law would destroy "any chance" his government [02:35.81]would successfully negotiate a new deal with the EU by October 31. [02:44.13]However, the EU says Johnson's government has not given them any real new ideas about an agreement. [02:54.99]The British Parliament rejected the deal former Prime Minister Teresa May [03:01.96]reached with the EU, forcing her to resign in June. [03:08.32]It is unclear whether Johnson will have the votes to call an election later, [03:15.15]after the bill is approved by the House of Lords. [03:19.89]An election vote needs the approval of two-thirds of the 650 House of Commons lawmakers. [03:30.38]The Labour Party had said it would not agree to an election until a law is in place to stop a no-deal Brexit. [03:42.01]It also said it does not trust Johnson to deliver an election before the Brexit date. [03:50.70]Johnson needs the support of a few Labour members to get enough votes to hold an election [03:59.02]because some members of his own party have turned against him. [04:05.67]The Labour Party's spokesman on Brexit issues, Keir Starmer, [04:11.56]said Johnson had violated the trust of the House of Commons with his decision to suspend Parliament [04:20.57]for several weeks in September and October before the Brexit deadline. [04:26.86]Many critics have called this move anti-democractic. [04:33.25]Tuesday, Johnson lost his first vote in Parliament since becoming Prime Minister in July. [04:42.45]Against his wishes, lawmakers passed a motion that would permit them to push for the law that banned a no-deal Brexit. [04:53.99]Johnson's government lost its majority when one Conservative lawmaker [04:59.72]joined the Labour party and more than 20 other Conservatives voted with Labour. [05:08.34]Johnson answered that by expelling them from the Conservative Party, [05:13.58]leaving them as independent lawmakers. [05:17.41]Among those removed were Stewart; Nicholas Soames, the grandson of Winston Churchill; [05:25.56]and Kenneth Clarke, the longest-serving member of the House of Commons. [05:31.79]Johnson received some help on Wednesday when a Scottish court refused to stop his decision to suspend Parliament. [05:42.54]A Scottish judge ruled that it was a decision for lawmakers and not for the courts. [05:51.01]Most experts believe a general election must take place in the near future to find a path out of the political turmoil. [06:03.46]I'm Anne Ball. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM