U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron's attempt to avoid a parliamentary rebellion risked further damaging the already tense relationship he has with his Conservative Party's rank-and-file lawmakers.
Faced with the prospect of Tories voting against their own government and in support of two anti-European amendments to the Immigration Bill today, ministers have restricted the time for debate and laid down so many of their own new clauses that the rebel proposals are unlikely to be heard.
Last year saw record-breaking Conservative rebellions on both the U.K.'s membership of the European Union and the question of military action in Syria. While government tactics may avoid another such vote today, they risk stoking anger by denying lawmakers the chance to have their say.
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