MPs have again rejected a series of alternatives to Theresa May’s Brexit deal. A call for a customs union after Brexit was defeated by just three votes, a referendum on any deal was rejected by 12, the Common Market 2.0 plan lost by 21 and cancelling Brexit to prevent a no-deal scenario was defeated by 101.

Three years after the referendum, it is possible the UK will still be in the European Union, have newly elected MEPs and will be contributing to the Brussels budget.

The current make-up of the House of Commons has so far proved unable to agree on any Brexit plan so the Prime Minister could be tempted to call a snap election to break the deadlock. But having promised not to lead the Tories into the scheduled 2022 election and then said she would quit before the next phase of the Brexit process, would her MPs allow her to fight another contest as leader?

The call for another referendum was defeated by just 12 votes and campaigners have seized on the fact it had more MPs voting in favour than any other option.

Is a “soft” Brexit on the cards? The defeat for a customs union will increase pressure on Mrs May to move in favour of this measure. But that would tear the Tory party apart and would be likely to result in Cabinet resignations as critics of the customs union believe it robs the UK of one of the major Brexit prizes – the ability to strike trade deals with countries such as the US.

Whatever happens next, the British public are just about ready to ask MPs to exit.