Oliver Letwin, the man behind the amendment that disrupted Boris Johnson's plan

Conservative became independent, this maverick has repeatedly opposed the scenarios proposed by Theresa May and "BoJo".

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Oliver Letwin defends his amendment in the House of Commons in London on October 19th.
Oliver Letwin defends his amendment in the House of Commons in London on October 19th. REUTERS TV / REUTERS

The author of an amendment that thwarts Boris Johnson's plans to have the Brexit agreement voted by the British Parliament, Oliver Letwin is not at his first blow at Westminster, where he has already managed to stop mechanical.

Although favorable to this agreement, Sir Letwin, 63, drafted an amendment, adopted Saturday, October 19 by the House of Commons, to avert the risk of an exit from the EU without agreement on October 31: he forced Boris Johnson to request a postponement of Brexit until all the legislation necessary to implement the agreement he has won in Brussels has been adopted.

It is, in his words, a " insurance policy " to avoid an exit 'Accidental' without agreement at the end of the month if, for one reason or another, the necessary texts were not adopted by then.

For control by Parliament

Conservative MP from Dorset since 1997, Oliver Letwin is one of 21 "rebels" excluded from the party for voting in early September with the opposition a law requiring Boris Johnson to request a three-month postponement of Brexit in case a divorce agreement would not be concluded on 19 October.

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This intellectual and former banker had already illustrated in March with an amendment that allowed Parliament to tear control of the process from Theresa May, then prime minister, to organize a series of votes allowing MPs to give their votes. Brexit reviews. In the end, no majority emerged on the various scenarios envisaged.

Son of two American Jewish academics living in Britain, Oliver Letwin, married with two children, comes from the elite of British education: Eton, Cambridge and the London Business School. Known for his economic liberalism, he was spokesperson on budget affairs during the 2001 legislative campaign, and said he personally favored a drop in taxation of 20 billion pounds a year, while his party promised only 8 billion.

Former close to Cameron

In 2003, he stated that he preferred "give (his) right arm ", even "Go to the street and beg" to be able to send his two children to a private school rather than register them in the public.

Close to David Cameron, he participated in the 2010 negotiations to form a coalition government between Conservatives and Liberal Democrats. The Prime Minister had rewarded him by creating for him the position of Minister of Government Policy. In fact, Oliver Letwin was the man responsible for solving many problems.

But the blunders had continued: in 2011, he was surprised by a photojournalist throwing confidential trash documents on anti-terrorism into a trash can of a London park. Again, he had apologized. Eurosceptic, he had supported, as Mr Cameron, the maintenance of the United Kingdom in the EU in the referendum of 2016.

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