Is there a Brexit deal that could win the backing of parliament?

It’s hard to say, because proponents of every alternative make bold claims about how many MPs support their cherished model.

The extraordinary margin of victory in Tuesday’s vote against Theresa May’s deal suggests that even if the prime minister could persuade Brussels to agree to an end date for the Irish backstop, it would not be enough to assemble a majority.

She could try offering legally binding promises on workers’ rights and environmental standards to try to win over Labour MPs from leave-backing constituencies.

But many at Westminster believe the only deal that could garner support would have to include a customs union – which is fiercely opposed by leave-supporting Conservative backbenchers because it would curtail Britain’s rights to make new trade deals. Some even say they would split the Tory party over the issue.

How likely is a no-deal Brexit?

There is no majority in parliament for a no-deal Brexit, but under the EU Withdrawal Act 2018 the UK will leave the EU on 29 March whether a deal is in place or not.

In order to avoid the significant economic and legal disruption that would result from leaving without a deal, the government must either win the support of parliament for a withdrawal agreement or delay or revoke article 50, the formal process of leaving.

After Tuesday’s defeat, May said she would talk to “senior parliamentarians” to try to find a deal that MPs could back. But with the prime minister reluctant to budge on any of her “red lines”, it is far from clear how she can achieve this.

Can article 50 really be extended?

A British request for more time is seen as almost inevitable by Brussels, not just because MPs are locked in stalemate, but because it looks impossible for parliament to pass all the necessary pre-Brexit legislation before 29 March. “If the UK comes around and asks for an extension of article 50 for a good reason, I don’t really see any one of the EU27 objecting,” one EU diplomat said.

For the EU, “a good reason” is not another six months of chaos and confusion at Westminster – but a second referendum would not be the only condition for an extension; there may be other good reasons.

Would an extension mean Nigel Farage remains an MEP?

If article 50 was extended beyond the summer the UK might be obliged to take part in European elections in late May. In which case, Farage, the former Ukip leader and key pro-Brexit campaigner, has said he would run.

However some EU officials think Brussels can come up with legal fixes, such as allowing the UK government to appoint national parliamentarians to represent the UK during the extension period.

Could Brexit still be stopped?

Yes, but there is currently no majority in parliament for that option. MPs would have to legislate for a second referendum, which would mean extending article 50 for several months. And without a deal on the table that parliament can agree on, it is unclear what the “Brexit” option on the ballot paper would really mean.

What else could May try?

The prime minister is so decisively boxed in that only dramatic moves remain open to her. One of those is to call a general election.

May believes strongly that her deal is closer to what the public wanted when they voted in the referendum, than a softer, Norway-style deal which would allow continued freedom of movement, and which she derides as a “politicians’ Brexit”.

She could choose to trigger a referendum herself, again to appeal directly to the public, over the heads of her squabbling MPs. Or she could resign. With much of Britain’s future trading relationship with the EU yet to be negotiated, May could pledge to step down in exchange for supporting her deal, and let a leaver take over for the next stage.