Henry Hill: The strange Scottish Conservative rebellion against the Withdrawal Agreement

If you’d had to guess which of their MPs would rebel on the deal, Lamont and Ross wouldn’t have made the top six.

May should quit if she loses next week – our special survey with The Times

Over half of party members favour ‘No Deal’ as their first preference, and more than seven in ten believe defeat on Tuesday means it time to go.

Henry Hill: Unionist parties unite against backstop as Varadkar rules out fresh talks

Also: Welsh Labour choose their new leader (and First Minister) this afternoon; Scottish Tories attack SNP over tax divergence plans.

Henry Hill: DUP alliance with Brexiteers holds firm as crucial vote looms

Also: Jones accused of ‘pre-judging’ allegations against former minister as inquiry continues; and May clashes with Sturgeon over independence.

Newslinks for Thursday 29th November 2018

Brexit 1) Wallace warns against security implications of a no-deal Brexit… “Britain will be at greater risk of terror attacks if… Read more »

Arise, Sir John!

A Brexiteer backbencher and former minister, who has not yet signalled how he intends to vote on the deal, has been knighted.

Henry Hill: Hammond and Johnson set to appear at the DUP conference

Also: Jones criticised for shielding ministers from independent scrutiny; and Mundell’s bizarre pop at ‘carpet-bagging’ colleagues.

A first glance at some of the main points in May’s deal

We set five tests for it. Does this draft agreement pass them? And does it really take back control of our borders, laws and money?

Hammond, Penrose, and Kwarteng join the Government as May circles the wagons

The Prime Minister has eschewed the chance to bind waverers with patronage in favour of promoting able loyalists who won’t make trouble.

Why the Scottish Conservatives feel so strongly about fish

Losing both them and the DUP will send a very strong signal to every Conservative MP about its implications for the Union.

Henry Hill: Bradley faces another week of fierce criticism over ‘flying visit’

Also: Scottish Tories attack SNP over income tax ‘gap’; no boost for Plaid from new leader; and DUP’s Brexit donation given a clean bill of legal health.

Our survey. More than four in ten Conservative members want May to step down immediately.

Four fifths of our panel remain opposed to her leadership, but within that group there has been a significant hardening of attitudes.

Matthew Vickers selected for Stockton South

The party has selected a local candidate to win back what was one of only a few Conservative footholds in the North East.

Henry Hill: Cox agrees to meet Tory MPs campaigning for troops who served in Northern Ireland

Also: May meets new Plaid leader in Downing Street; Bradley mulls ‘external mediator’ for devolution talks; SNP row over ‘People’s Vote’; and more.

The European Court of Human Rights has set a problematic precedent on religious freedom

In justifying their defence of Austria’s ‘blasphemy law’, its judges seem to be not just expanding but changing the relevant protections in the Convention.