Johnson orders ministers to come up with fresh Irish proposal…

“Boris Johnson returned to London on Thursday evening and ordered ministers to draw up a new Irish border policy to ensure the UK leaves the European Union with a deal in 10 weeks’ time. The Prime Minister appeared to punch the air in triumph as he entered Downing Street after a Paris meeting with Emmanuel Macron, in which the French president said the Withdrawal Agreement could be amended. Stephen Barclay, the Brexit Secretary, and his officials will now be ordered to “turbocharge” work on how to find alternative arrangements to the Northern Ireland backstop. Their work is expected to focus on examining proposals in a 270-page report drawn up by Greg Hands, the former Tory minister, and Nicky Morgan, now the Culture Secretary.” – Daily Telegraph

• EU is also ‘brainstorming’ alternatives, apparently – The Sun
• Prime Minister ‘punched the air’ as resistance ‘crumbled’ – Daily Express
• Brexiteers warn that stripping out the backstop is ‘not enough’ – Daily Telegraph
• Hard border will ‘fuel extremism’, says Ulster police chief – The Times
• Ellwood gives Johnson ‘shock vote of approval’ – Daily Express

EU leaders:

• Merkel ‘backtracks’ on 30 days comment – Daily Express
• ‘New hope’ as Macron says deal is ‘possible’… – The Times
• …or has he ‘dashed Johnson’s deal hopes’? – FT
• Apparently he said the backstop was ‘indispensable’ – The Guardian
• Paris won’t permit a ‘total reshuffling’ – Daily Mail

>Today: ToryDiary: Brexit, Johnson, Merkel, Macron – and 30 days in the wilderness

>Yesterday:

• Video: WATCH: Johnson meets Macron 1) The French President says that the UK’s future “cannot but be European”
• Video: WATCH: Johnson meets Macron 2) “I want a deal,” the Prime Minister declares

…as Hammond’s rebels to hold their own talks with Brussels

“Tory Remainers who are intent on stopping no-deal are preparing to hold their own talks with Brussels in an attempt to delay Brexit, The Times has been told. The rebels, who are described as the “Remain alliance” and are led by Philip Hammond, have been working on plans to push through legislation that will force Boris Johnson to request an extension of the Article 50 process. However, Downing Street sources have pointed out that Brussels could simply reject any request for an extension, even if Mr Johnson is legally bound to ask for one. One Tory rebel said that the group would hold its own discussions with Brussels and European leaders about the length and terms of any proposed extension to ensure it was accepted.” – The Times

• Pro-EU Tories delay their plot to thwart No Deal – The Sun
• Rebels ‘sceptical’ of current plans – The Guardian

More:

• Soubry u-turns on collaborating with Corbyn – Daily Express
• Opposition MPs to hijack his talks to demand he backs another interim Prime Minister – Daily Mail

>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Is Patel’s pledge to “end freedom of movement” merely smoke and mirrors?

Greg Hands: We already have workable proposals to avoid the Backstop

“When I heard German Chancellor Angela Merkel had invited Boris Johnson to put forward new proposals to solve the Northern Ireland backstop in the next 30 days, I was delighted. This might seem a tall order, to produce in just one month a Brexit solution that has eluded others for the past three years. But in recent months, I have been working closely with international technical experts – practitioners in borders, customs, logistics, transit and so on – to produce precisely that: a workable set of ‘alternative arrangements’ to prevent a hard border between the UK and Ireland.” – Daily Mail

• Brussels’ stand-off with Johnson borders on the absurd – Daniel Hannan MEP, The Sun
• Parliament has no right to plot a Brexit coup – Robert Tombs, The Times
• The EU cannot afford No Deal… but has a parachute handy – Fraser Nelson, Daily Telegraph

Editorial:

• The Prime Minister deserves a chance – The Times
• Varadkar’s intransigence has made No Deal more likely – The Sun
• Despite the tough love, a relative success – The Guardian

>Yesterday: Henry Hill’s Red, White, and Blue column: GERS Day – Scottish Government’s own statistics punch fresh hole in the case for independence

Letwin says he will stand down at next election

“Tory rebel leader Sir Oliver Letwin has announced he will stand down as an MP before the next general election. Remainer Sir Oliver has sparked outrage from his West Dorest constituency, which voted to leave the EU with a result of 51 percent to 46 with an 81 percent turnout in 2016. Regardless of his constituents, he has led a continuous and relentless plot to block Brexit and keep the UK shackled to the EU indefinitely. However, he has now announced he will not fight the next general election, which is expected to take place immediately after the October 31 deadline.” – Daily Express

Trump and Johnson to set out trade deal roadmap ‘within weeks’

“Trump and Boris Johnson will agree a roadmap to a trade deal when they meet at the G7 summit in France at the weekend, it has been reported. The pair will agree to start work immediately on drawing up a timetable for negotiations, which will be finalised in the coming weeks and is the first step in getting a post-Brexit trade deal. The timetable will set out a series of deadlines for how trade talks should progress in the next 12 months. Mr Johnson and the US President will then shake hands on the plan when they meet in New York in the last week of September at the UN General Assembly.” – The Sun

• My deal with South Korea is great news for global Britain – Liz Truss MP, Daily Telegraph

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