Britain’s divide over Brexit has cost Prime Minister Boris Johnson another member of his embattled government — his own brother. Jo Johnson has announced he is quitting as an education minister and will step down from Parliament, saying he is “torn between family loyalty and the national interest.” Jo Johnson opposed leaving the European Union during the 2016 referendum campaign and later said the country should not quit the bloc without a divorce deal. But in July he accepted a job in the government formed by his brother, who argued the U.K. must leave the EU on Oct. 31, deal or no deal.

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PM seeks public support 

PM Boris Johnson’s office says he will seek the public’s support for his bid to hold a general election. His Downing Street office says Johnson plans to speak directly to the public Thursday, a day after his bid for an early general election was rebuffed in Parliament. Details about Johnson’s planned appearance have not been made public yet. His office reiterated that Johnson will not ask European Union officials for another delay in enacting Brexit. Such a delay would take the United Kingdom’s departure from the bloc beyond the current Oct. 31 deadline. Germany’s economy minister is urging British PM to present proposals for a post-Brexit relationship with the European Union, saying Britain’s departure will bring burdens on both sides.

Peter Altmaier told Germany’s Funke newspaper group Thursday that he expects Johnson “to deal responsibly with the citizens of his country and the EU partners.” Altmaier says, “It’s not just about the issue of a deal or no deal, but about the time after the exit: we urgently need clarity on what the future relationship will look like.”

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He says that, for example, customs controls in the case of an unregulated Brexit would be significantly more expensive. A bill blocking a no-deal Brexit is on course to pass into law before Parliament is suspended next week. The British Parliament’s upper chamber, the House of Lords, voted early Thursday to push through the bill. The bill’s supporters had feared its opponents in the Lords could try to stop it by filibustering. But in a session that lasted until 1.30 a.m. in London, peers agreed to return the bill to the Commons on Monday for any amendments before passing into law.

Lawmakers in the House of Commons hope to pass the bill into law — a process that can take months — in days because Prime Minister Johnson plans to suspend Parliament at some point next week until Oct. 14. The PM is looking for ways to bring about a national election after rebellious British lawmakers moved to block his plan to leave the European Union next month without a divorce deal and rejected his call to trigger a snap poll.

READ: UK PM Boris Johnson Loses Working Majority In British Parliament

A setback for the PM

The UK Prime Minister is looking for new ways to bring about a national election after rebellious British lawmakers rejected his call to trigger a snap poll and moved to block his plan to leave the European Union next month without a divorce deal. Events have spiraled out of Johnson’s control. He leads a government with no majority in Parliament and may not be able to secure an election that could change that fact.

The latest setback for Johnson came Wednesday evening after he called for a national election on Oct. 15, saying it was the only way out of Britain’s Brexit impasse after lawmakers moved to block his plan to leave the European Union next month without a divorce deal. But Parliament turned down his motion and the prime minister indicated he would try again, saying an election was the only way forward for the country and urging opposition lawmakers to “reflect overnight and in the course of the next few days.”

READ: Boris Johnson Loses Parliamentary Majority As MP Joins Lib Dems