It is often argued that Theresa May, whatever her personal beliefs, is the prisoner of the Conservative Party’s right-wing Brexiteers. For Jeremy Corbyn, the aim of the opposition is to fight a “Tory Brexit” in the name of a softer, gentler version, while for Tony Blair the “hard-Brexit Conservative Party” is the reason for trying to stop Britain leaving the EU altogether.

But this week something important didn’t happen. This week the Prime Minister, in comments to journalists on her trip to the Middle East and in talks with Donald Tusk, President of the European Council, hinted that free movement of people between Britain and the EU could continue for a transitional period after Britain leaves in 2019. And what you’d expect to happen – that the Eurosceptic faction of Tory MPs would go bananas – never did.

In particular, two Tory MPs who are more important than they seem failed to denounce May’s sellout to the continentals. Liam Fox, the International Trade Secretary, may have been sidelined in the Brexit negotiations – he is not on the new Brexit cabinet committee, for example – but he has long been a significant indicator of Tory Eurosceptic opinion. It was his candidacy for the party leadership in 2005 that forced David Cameron to a notably more anti-EU position, promising to pull the Tories out of the main centre-right grouping in the European Parliament. His return to the Cabinet last year reinforced the human shield of Brexiteers around May.

And he has said nothing about the Prime Minister’s new stance. Instead, an ally of his was quoted in the Financial Times: “Liam is constantly saying that we have been a member [of the EU] for 44 years. So long as it’s only for a short period and it’s in law, I think he would be pretty relaxed about it.”

Brexit talks: PM welcomes Tusk to Downing Street

The other MP is Steve Baker, the organiser of the backbench Eurosceptics under the deceptively bland banner of the European Research Group. Much breathless twaddle is talked about Baker’s use of a WhatsApp group to organise his colleagues, which sounds exciting because WhatsApp has been identified by Amber Rudd, the Home Secretary, as a terrifying threat to civilisation as we know it. It is also a way of people communicating with each other. In the old days they would have done it by phone and notes delivered by Commons messengers. But Baker is significant because he is good at co-ordinating like-minded Tory MPs, and he was important in pressing for the referendum and in fighting the Leave campaign. He has described his attitude to the Prime Minister’s position as “zen”.

Theresa May has achieved this remarkable state of transcendental calm on her backbenches because she excels in two essential skills in politics: timing and counting. She has delayed invoking Article 50 for long enough to give herself time to prepare for the negotiations. During the past nine months she convinced her Eurosceptic hardliners she was one of them, above all by saying at the Tory party conference that Britain would be excluded from free movement and would no longer be subject to the rulings of the European Court of Justice. But she didn’t say when. And now that the two-year Article 50 procedure has been started, she can afford to be flexible about that.

Invoking Article 50 changes everything. It locks in Fox and Baker, who understand that – contrary to the hopes of Blair and the centre party supposedly waiting to be born – Britain’s departure from the EU is about as irreversible as anything is in politics.

In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Show all 12 1 /12 In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier listens at the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker speaking at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Frank-Walter Steinmeier, President of the Federal Republic of Germany, delivers his speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Michel Barnier, European Chief Negotiator for Brexit reacts during a meeting at the European Parliament in Strasbourg EPA In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Member of the European Parliament and former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage wears socks with Union Jack flag at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty Images In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Nigel Farage, United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) member and MEP, addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcoming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier gestures during speeches at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker (L) speaks with European commission member in charge of Brexit negotiations with Britain, French Michel Barnier at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions European Union's chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, President of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE), addresses the European Parliament during a debate on Brexit priorities and the upcomming talks on the UK's withdrawal from the EU Reuters In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions Member of the European Parliament and former leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party (UKIP) Nigel Farage gestures during speeches at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France, on April 5, 2017. The European Parliament will on April 5 lay down its "red lines" for negotiations over a Brexit deal, on which the assembly will have the final say in two years' time. / AFP PHOTO / Sebastien BozonSEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions German president Frank-Walter Steinmeier delivers a speech during a plenary session at the European Parliament in Strasbourg Getty In pictures: European parliament Brexit discussions The European Parliament in Strasbourg, eastern France Getty Images

But May can also count. She knows that there is a majority in the House of Commons for a soft Brexit. If she comes back from Brussels with a transition period of two or three years during which Britain continues to accept free movement and ECJ rulings, she can get it through. Even if the 80 Tory Eurosceptic MPs become less relaxed about a transitional deal over the next two years, they don’t have the numbers to do much about it.

In any case, they know, and May knows, that once Britain actually leaves the EU, at midnight on 29 March 2019, the structure of politics will move further in their favour. Once Britain is out, it would be much harder to get it back in than it is to stop it leaving in the first place. They are prepared to accept a high price to reach that promised land.