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The last few years have not been easy for Jeremy Corbyn.

The spectre of Brexit has loomed large over the Labour leader who has faced relentless pressure from various sides of his own party and the country on how he should act when it comes to the UK's departure from the European Union.

Most people are aware that he has never been particularly keen on the EU - and he faced plenty of criticism for what was described as a half-hearted effort to back the Remain campaign in the build up to the 2016 referendum.

Ever since Theresa May triggered Article 50 two years ago, pressure has mounted on the Labour leade r to take a definite stance - particularly from the growing number of citizens and campaigners calling for a People's Vote.

But he has always had, in the back of his mind, the knowledge that if Labour are to get the keys to Number 10 in what could be an imminent General Election, he must win seats in Leave voting areas.

Many have lamented the Labour leadership's approach as dithering - but after Theresa May ran out of options last night and called on Corbyn and co to sit down with her to sort out Brexit where her party has so dramatically failed to do so, it has to be considered that the Islington MP might just have played a blinder.

(Image: House of Commons/PA Wire)

The Prime Minister's speech last night left hard-line Brexit Tories enraged and made the prospect of a soft Brexit near inevitable.

The idea for them that the socialist leader of the opposition is now the pivotal figure in the Brexit they have dreamt about for so long is one they simply cannot stomach.

It took a heck of a long time for the Prime Minister to realise she didn't have the numbers to get her Withdrawal Agreement through Parliament - something Labour deserve a lot of credit for.

Somehow, amidst the swirling, often chaotic scenes within Parliament, Corbyn has managed to keep his MPs on side and in line on Brexit - in a way Theresa May must envy greatly.

There are plenty of Labour MPs who don't have much time for their leader - but when it has come to the crunch votes, they have fallen in line and stopped Theresa May from doing the one thing she wants to do most in the world.

And the result of that is that she now must to do the thing she least wanted to do - go cap in hand to the man she has so regularly barracked and belittled from the despatch box.

As Liverpool Walton MP Dan Carden put it: "Theresa May, her cabinet and the Tory party are in turmoil."

He added: "It has been obvious from the start of this process there is no deal that could satisfy the Tory Party and DUP as well as secure support in Parliament and the country - we were always going to end up here.

"With days to go the government’s last ditch attempt to save its Brexit Deal and save itself is to ask the Leader of the Opposition to sort out their mess.

(Image: PA)

"Jeremy has always been open to compromise. He publicly offered to work across political lines at last year’s party Conference in Liverpool.

"We’ll enter these talks positively in the hope that we can deliver on the referendum result in a way that protects jobs and the economy.

"But in the end, we need to sweep the Tories from power in a General Election to deliver a Labour Government that will end austerity, invest in our communities and rebuild Britain."

But while Corbyn and his team will undoubtedly feel vindicated by the Prime Minister's grovelling approach - there is a fear amongst many that it is a trap.

Now, after delicately balancing expectations within his own party for so long, he is likely to have to take a firm stance on the most controversial of Brexit possibilities - such as putting the power back to the people.

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There will be a worry that he could now be seen as helping to facilitate a Tory Brexit - or perhaps be blamed for not stopping a calamitous No Deal departure.

Garston and Halewood MP Maria Eagle warned: "I think May’s statement is a trap to try and blame Labour for her utter failure.

"She should have done this after she lost her majority in 2017.

"She has refused to engage constructively when Jeremy Corbyn has offered talks before, insisting on her red lines - all devised to please her extreme Brexiters.

"I think Labour should now ask for a long extension for a consensus to be built and any deal should be put to the people in a confirmatory ballot."

The Labour leader deserves credit for holding his nerve thus far - but the biggest test is coming up next.