Theresa May’s, 62, Brexit deal was crushed tonight, as 432 MPs voted ‘no’ to her plans to keep the UK tied to the EU customs union and single market. The Prime Minister suffered the worst commons defeat in British history, following a tense five days of debates over her withdrawal agreement. She told colleagues before the vote she would respond “quickly” if her deal was rejected, and according to body language expert Judi James, Mrs May treated the crushing situation as if “it was just another day”. As she addressed parliament following her defeat, the PM showed signs of “someone who just wants to get back on with the job”.
Judi James explained to Express.co.uk: “The government might have suffered the most crushing defeat of modern times but – astonishingly – Theresa May’s delivery and body language during her brief speech that followed the vote suggested it was just another day at the dispatch box for the PM.
“She looked neither crushed, tired and defeated nor delivered her speech in the kind of show-boating, over-congruent style that is often used when a politician is only pretending a blow hasn’t hurt.
“For the few moments that she spoke it was almost as if nothing special had happened.”
However, the Prime Minister did seemingly show a flash of “growing anger” toward the opposition before focusing her attentions back to her speech.
Judi continued: “May jumped up after the vote, speaking with the kind of accelerated speed of someone who just wants to get back on with the job.
“Her head pecked backward and forward to suggest urgency and she threw her signature baleful, one-eyed stare at the opposition as she spoke.”
Mrs May also appeared to show signs her original Brexit plan is still in place.
“Her tone and delivery suggested that plan A was still firmly in place apart from a small and annoying hiccup,” Judi said.
“She even threw a rueful half-smile at Corbyn before gathering herself emotionally, wobbling her head to suggest growing anger before vowing to carry on.
“Although she spoke quickly there were none of her usual verbal stutters that she uses when she lacks confidence.
“Her final words were delivered with an eye-squint micro-gesture that suggested it was the opposition that needed to look out.”
Meanwhile, as Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn faced the PM, it was he who lost his patience.
Corbyn triggered a vote of no confidence against May, saying: “On the most important issue facing us, this government has lost the confidence of this House and this country.”
However body language expert Judi explained: “Corbyn rose to deliver some heavily incongruent body language with his tie askew and one eye nearly closing but at the end of his brief speech he whipped off his glasses like Superman to deliver his real message.
“Shouting and spitting his words with his vocal tone rising out he called for a vote of no confidence.”
Corbyn said the confidence vote would allow the Commons to “give its verdict on the sheer incompetence of this Government”.