As BBC political correspondent Chris Mason notes, Jeremy Corbyn has been calling for an election for months and a spokesman for him said Labour would back an election as soon as the plan to block no deal becomes law, rather than wait to see it implemented at the end of next month.

Strikingly, though, shadow chancellor John McDonnell sounded more equivocal, and shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer told the Commons he would want to see its “implementation” before an election.