‘MPs could seek to keep Britain in the European single market even if the public vote in the referendum to leave the European Union, in a move which anti-EU Tories said was “unacceptable” and would cause a “constitutional crisis”. Membership of the House of Commons is overwhelmingly pro-EU, with just over 70 per cent of its present members campaigning for Remain at the referendum on June 23. However unnamed ministers have told the BBC that in the event of a vote to leave, pro-EU MPs could engage in what one called a “reverse Maastricht” process.’- Daily Telegraph
Editorials
>Today:
‘The rival EU referendum camps have clashed over the economy, after David Cameron said Brexit would “put a bomb” under the UK’s prospects. The Prime Minister accused the Leave campaign of an “undemocratic and reckless” failure to explain to voters how they see Britain’s economic future in the case of a Brexit vote in the June 23 referendum. But Boris Johnson said it was a “delusion” to think Britain could boost its prosperity by “bartering away our freedom and democracy”.’ – Daily Telegraph
>Today: ToryDiary: If Osborne really wants to “get stuck in”, why won’t he face Boris in the TV debates?
>Yesterday: Howard Flight’s column: The economic case for Brexit
‘While topline figures in this week’s poll suggest the Remain campaign has improved its vote share advantage over the Leave campaign among the population as a whole since last week, among those definite to vote the opposite is true – with the Leave campaign narrowing the gap among those certain to vote. Whether this week’s change primarily is due to increased sample volatility in last week’s ORB poll because of the bank holiday weekend, or whether it represents a true change in the public’s attitudes, only time will tell.’ – Sir Lynton Crosby, Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday:
‘Brexit campaigners have complained that EU rules have stopped the UK from deporting 50 foreign criminals, including the Italian murderer of headteacher Philip Lawrence. Vote Leave published a dossier on Tuesday listing the cases, saying it was evidence of Britain being safer outside Europe…Dominic Raab, a justice minister, said: “This is yet more evidence of how EU membership makes us less safe. Free movement of people allows unelected judges in the rogue European court to decide who we can and can’t deport. This puts British families at risk.’ – The Guardian
‘Nigel Farage will question David Cameron’s patriotism and “integrity” in the second major live referendum television debate as he seeks to paint the Prime Minister as untrustworthy across a range of issues. The UK Independence Party leader will highlight the Government’s failure to address the risk of Turkish accession to the EU, poor border security, illegal immigration and protecting Britain’s fishing stocks from foreign trawlers. Mr Farage, who has prepared for the debate by not having an alcoholic drink for a week, will question Mr Cameron’s patriotism and paint Mr Cameron as a member of the ruling class who benefits from remaining in the EU.’ – Daily Telegraph
>Today: Liam Fox on Comment: Cool it! This referendum ought to be about the issues, not personal attacks.
‘Speaking at his union’s conference the lefty boss cracked the joke about the Cabinet Minister, saying “Priti Patel, surely a contradiction in a name.” The comment was immediately condemned by her Brexit backing colleagues, with Tory MP James Cleverly asking if Mr Roache was “sexist, racist, blind or all three”. Fellow Conservative MP Anne-Marie Trevelyan added: “This abuse is a new low for the Remain campaign — and is exactly the kind of negativity that voters up and down the country are rejecting. I trust there will be widespread condemnation of these comments.” – The Sun (£)
‘Lord Heseltine has laid out his plans to rejuvenate Teesside, once at the heart of the industrial revolution, but now described by him as “a scene of desolation, a memory of industrial activity now gone” along four miles of its south bank. The former deputy prime minister was asked by the government to look at how to attract investment to the area following last year’s closure of the Redcar steel plant, costing nearly 3,000 jobs. In Tees Valley: Opportunity Unlimited, he recommended combining business advice and support into one service, transforming education and skills provision and looking at extending the Transpennine electrification scheme to Teesside.’ – FT
>Yesterday: MPsETC: The likely Conservative candidate for North East Mayor has resigned from the Party
‘Sir Roy McNulty, the chairman of Gatwick, told the Prime Minister in a letter published today that Gatwick would only charge airlines £15 per passenger to use its facilities if it is given permission to build a second runway. A Gatwick source said this compared with Heathrow’s planned charge of £25 per head, a figure which was likely to rise to between £35 and £40 if it is allowed to build a third runway, although this was denied by Heathrow.’ – Daily Telegraph
‘The shadow chancellor is considering supporting a universal basic income, a policy that would award a fixed amount of money to every person in place of means-tested benefits. John McDonnell, who pledged a “new economics” in his conference speech last September, is said to be considering adopting the policy after a report published by the campaigning group Compass came out in favour of the proposal. Mr McDonnell told The Guardian that the policy “makes an interesting case for a universal and unconditional payment to all.” – The Times (£)
>Today: Chris Grayling’s column: The three tasks which are key to victory in 2020
‘A poll for The Times illustrates the lack of disposable income for many British households as they try to square static wages with rising living costs. Thirty-one per cent of middle-class voters — so-called ABC1s including professional, junior managerial and administrative workers — would struggle with a sudden bill of up to £500, the YouGov survey found. Forty-six per cent of manual workers and the unemployed, known as the C2DE category, would not be able to afford the bill.’ – The Times (£)
‘The SNP in Westminster will vote against the government’s so-called snoopers’ charter today after the party failed to secure its desired changes. Joanna Cherry, the SNP’s justice spokeswoman, wrote to Theresa May, the home secretary, last week to warn that the party would vote against the bill unless she looked again at rules around warrants, internet searches, journalists’ sources and MPs private communications. Ms Cherry said that the government ran the “real risk of putting opposition parties in the position of having to vote against the bill in its entirety”.’- The Times (£)
>Today: Ruth Davidson’s column: The Scottish Government must think again on its flawed Named Persons scheme
‘The criminal inquiry into the Rotherham grooming scandal has become Britain’s biggest child abuse investigation, with 10,000 leads being pursued. It is likely to run for at least eight years at a cost of more than £30 million, it was revealed yesterday. Crimes were allegedly committed over 16 years against more than 1,000 vulnerable girls by hundreds of suspects, and the case — said to be still in its early phase — has already been split into eight investigations.’ – The Times (£)
‘Hillary Clinton has crossed the threshold of 2,383 delegates needed to clinch the Democratic presidential nomination, becoming the first woman in American history to be the presidential nominee of a major party, the Associated Press reported late Monday. The feat, from a “a burst of last-minute support from superdelegates”, according to the AP, was immediately contested by the rival campaign of Bernie Sanders, which argued that Clinton had not reached the crucial target through pledged delegates alone. It also said that Sanders would continue to campaign through the Democratic convention in July.’ – The Guardian