THERESA May was a quiet supporter of remaining in the EU before she became the person tasked with delivering the UK's exit from the institution.

But does the PM actually want to leave the EU, and did she campaign to stay or go? Here's what we know.

Is Theresa May a Remainer?

In the months before the 2016 Referendum, Theresa May was in the remain camp but was noticeably quiet in her campaigning.

As Home Secretary she toed the party line that then PM David Cameron had set out.

But the MP for Maidenhead did have moments where she strongly discouraged Brexit, warning voters that a Leave result could have seriously damaging ramifications for the economy and security of the UK.

Mrs May also said that leaving the EU would be “fatal for the Union with Scotland”, as the Scottish National Party (SNP) would most likely try again for independence if Scotland voted to remain while the UK as a whole voted to leave.

But she did say that whatever happened, Britain should leave the European Court of Human Rights.

She highlighted the problems that the ECHR had made for her as Home Secretary, including delaying the extradition of Abu Hamza, nearly stopping the deportation of Abu Qatada, and when the ECHR “tried to tell Parliament that – however we voted – we could not deprive prisoners of the vote”.

May did not touch on immigration at all during the campaign – a noticeable omission given her Cabinet role.

As Home Secretary, she brought in controversial measures to reduce migration into the UK, including a minimum income requirement.

And her "Go Home" adverts attracted widespread condemnation after critics accused her of spearheading a message of hate across Britain.

What are the Prime Minister's views on Brexit?

"Brexit means Brexit" May is fond of saying, but what does she really think of it?

After the shock referendum result in June 2016 Theresa May performed a quick turnaround, apparently parking her Remain leanings to one side.

Within a week of Cameron's resignation she had put herself forward for the Tory leadership and was voted in unopposed.

As a Remainer, she tried to appeal to both camps, promising "the best possible deal was we leave the EU" and to "make Britain work for everyone".

In an apparent bid to keep Brexiteers happy, she appointed some of the most prominent Leave campaigners to key Cabinet roles, including Boris Johnson as Foreign Secretary, David Davis as Brexit Secretary and Liam Fox as International Trade Secretary.

But May has failed to get all her party – or a Parliamentary majority – behind the deal she's agreed with the EU.

After surviving a vote of no confidence in her leadership from her own party in December 2018, she spoke of a "renewed mission – delivering the Brexit people voted for, bringing the country back together and building a country that really works for everyone".

Since then, two of her "meaningful votes" have been opposed by MPs, and she's set to put another one before the Commons in March just a week before the UK is due to leave the EU.

What has May said about No Deal?

On March 13, 2019, Parliament voted outright to keep a No Deal off the table by 312 to 308.

The government wanted to keep control of the Brexit process and keep an unregulated exit on the table and so ordered Conservative MPs to vote against it.

But a total of 13 government ministers defied those orders by abstaining against the vote.

Speaking after the result of the vote was read out, Mrs May said: "The options before us are the same as they always have been.

"The legal default in EU and UK law is that the UK will leave without a deal unless something else is agreed. The onus is now on every one of us in this House to find out what that is."

May has been open about her attitude to MPs either accepting her deal or facing crashing out of the EU, saying: "No Deal is better than a bad deal" after EU leaders rejected her Chequers deal.

May had appeared to be using the prospect of a No Deal to take Britain one step closer to the Brexit cliff edge and has urged the Commons to "hold our nerve".

She has frequently made statements to the effect of: “If you don’t want no deal, you have to agree a deal."

But now that the option is no longer on the table, it remains to be seen how May will get any kind of deal past a divided Parliament.

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