纽约时报 败局逼近 特雷莎·梅推迟英国脱欧公投(1)（在线收听）

Defeat Looming, May Delays Vote on Exit from EU

败局逼近，梅推迟英国脱欧公投

By Stephen Castle

斯蒂芬·卡索

Britain’s embattled Prime Minister Theresa May on Monday postponed a critical parliamentary vote on her proposal for Britain’s departure from the European Union,

周一，四面楚歌的英国首相特雷莎·梅推迟了议会一项针对她提议的英国脱离欧盟的提议的投票事项，

a humiliating retreat that left the country’s economic and political future uncertain, and revealed her tenuous hold on power.

这一耻辱性的退让使得英国的经济和政治前途充满了不确定性，同时也暴露了她手上的权利其实脆弱不堪。

British lawmakers had been scheduled to vote on Tuesday on the agreement Mrs. May had reached with the bloc for Britain’s withdrawal, or Brexit.

议员们原定于周二就梅与欧盟达成的退出欧盟，即“脱欧”，的协议进行投票。

In changing course so late, Mrs. May has left the country without any clear way forward after an agonizing battle over an issue that has gripped British society for nearly three years.

近三年来，这个问题一直困扰着英国社会，在经历了一场痛苦的斗争之后，梅在最后关头改变路线，国家未来的道路由此陷入了迷雾。

The question facing the United Kingdom remains as straightforward — and yet as divisive — as it was when a small but clear majority of voters called for breaking with the European Union:

英国面临的问题一直都很清晰——也一直存在很大的分歧——和当初一小部分但数量仍不容忽视的选民要求脱离欧盟时面临的问题一样:

Is it possible to have a smooth and orderly divorce from Europe that will not cause a sudden break in all political and economic ties, and also spare the British economy?

有没有可能平稳有序地从欧盟脱离出去，既不导致所有的政治和经济关系突然中断，也不损害英国经济?

The answer, for now, seems to be a resounding no.

就目前来看，答案似乎是一声响亮的“没有”。

And the country’s future is as uncertain as ever.

而这个国家的未来一如既往的不确定。

But the opposition to her plan is also a rebuke to Mrs. May herself.

然而，反对她的计划，也是对梅本人的一种指责。

After years of talking the talk of a hard-liner, insisting that no deal was better than a bad deal,

多年来，梅在言辞上一直走的是强硬路线，坚称没达成协议总比达成糟糕的协议强，

Mrs. May showed up with a compromise that seemed to anger everyone on all sides of the debate.

故而她最终做出的妥协才像是激怒了争论各方的所有人一般。

While a strong prime minister with reserves of political capital might also find it impossible to escape the political quicksand that is Brexit,

拥有政治资本储备的强硬派首相可能还会发现，自己几乎不可能逃脱英国脱欧带来的政治流沙，

Mrs. May has few allies even among her own party and is facing constant speculation that she could confront a no-confidence vote.

在脱欧问题上梅甚至在她的党内都几乎没有盟友，而且人们一直在猜测，她可能还会面临不信任投票。

She is hanging on only because her party cannot agree on an alternative.

她之所以还在坚持，只是因为她的政党还没能达成一致，制定出其他解决方案。

In this reality, no plan and political paralysis means Britain could be staring at a hard break on March 29.

在这种情况下，没有计划和政治瘫痪意味着英国可能在3月29日面临一场艰难的脱欧局面。

That would mean that suddenly, in one dramatic moment, Britain’s time would run out and it would lose much of its economic and political links to Europe.

具体就是，在一个戏剧性的瞬间，英国的时间将会突然耗尽，瞬间失去与欧洲的大部分经济和政治联系。

Banking, trade, travel, the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland — all would possibly change overnight.

银行业、贸易、旅游、爱尔兰与北爱尔兰之间的边界——所有这些都可能在一夜之间变得不一样。

With the news of the postponed vote, the British pound lost about 1 percent of its value against the euro and the United States dollar, falling to its lowest level in more than a year and a half.

公投推迟的消息公布后，英镑对欧元和美元的汇率贬值了大约1%，跌至了一年半多时间以来的最低水平。

Responding to news of the delayed vote, Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s representative in the Brexit negotiations, wrote on Twitter, “I can’t follow anymore.”

在回应推迟投票的消息时，参与英国脱欧谈判的欧洲议会代表盖伊·费尔霍夫施塔特在Twitter上写道，“我再也跟不上了。”