What time is the Brexit vote today? What could happen next?

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Theresa May has threatened to delay Brexit beyond March 29 after another crushing Commons defeat.

The Prime Minister was defeated by a huge 321 vote to 278, a margin of 42, on a motion to rule out no-deal on Wednesday.

Mrs May's authority was shredded as four Cabinet ministers abstained in the vote.

Her grip over more key Brexit decisions is now being prised open by cross-party groups of MPs.

So what happens now?

Thursday's vote on delaying Brexit

MPs will vote on a motion tabled by the Government that states Brexit will be delayed for a short period even if Mrs May’s deal is agreed in order to pass vital laws that are behind schedule.

The motion states that a much longer delay may be required if Mrs May’s deal is not approved.

Mrs May has stressed that a delay would not resolve the divisions in the Commons and could instead hand Brussels the power to set conditions on the kind of Brexit on offer "or even moving to a second referendum".

The motion will be amendable, meaning MPs may try to gain a majority for the length of the delay or type of Brexit as part of the extension.

MPs are also set to vote on amendments tabled by cross-party MPs led by Sir Oliver Letwin and Yvette Cooper which seek to take control of the Commons agenda to pursue a soft Brexit deal, such as Norway arrangement.

Third 'meaningful vote'

Mrs May has signalled a third "meaningful vote" on her EU Withdrawal Agreement could be held after MPs voted to rule out a no-deal Brexit on Wednesday.

The Prime Minister’s deal could be put to a vote again next week, despite being rejected twice already.

How could Brexit be delayed and for how long?

To secure an extension to Article 50, Mrs May would need the support of the 27 other EU states. They are likely to agree to an extension as long as there was a prospect of a deal being reached - or a referendum or general election which could change the political landscape at Westminster.

European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said that Brexit should be completed before the European elections which take place between May 23 and 26.

"If the UK has not left the EU by then, it will be legally required to hold these elections," he said.

If a longer extension was sought, that would mean taking part in the elections, something likely to fuel Eurosceptic anger - and potentially see Nigel Farage standing for the new Brexit Party

What have the EU 27 leaders said?

Ahead of the no-deal vote, German Chancellor Angela Merkel refused to say how long she thinks a possible delay to Brexit should be, but said it was in "our mutual interest that we achieve an orderly departure".

French president Emmanuel Macron said Britain needed a clear reason for requesting an extension and extra time could not be used to renegotiate the withdrawal.

The EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier said London must decide what it wants from Brexit before Brussels will consider a delay.

Will the Prime Minister seek further changes in Brussels?

Mr Juncker was clear during his meeting with the Prime Minister in Strasbourg that there was no more room for movement.

"In politics, sometimes you get a second chance. It is what we do with this second chance that counts. Because there will be no third chance," he said.

"There will be no further interpretations of the interpretations; and no further assurances of the re-assurances."

But a European Council summit on March 21 could give Mrs May one last chance to persuade her fellow leaders face-to-face that she needs extra help to get a deal over the line.

Theresa May suffered another crushing defeat in the Commons on Wednesday
AFP/Getty Images

So what happens on March 29?

It is still impossible to say. If a deal is somehow reached and legislated for then, although the UK will formally leave the EU at 11pm, very little will change as a transition period will smooth progress to the UK's new future.

If there is a delay, the UK will still be in the European Union until the extension period expires.

But if there is a no-deal Brexit, things are a lot more uncertain - the Government has been ramping up preparations to try to prevent shortages of food and medicine amid fears that increased bureaucracy will clog up key ports where goods arrive from the Continent.

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