“Theresa May will today unveil plans for a ‘Great Repeal Bill’ that will remove the act that took the UK into the EU. The Prime Minister will enshrine all European Union rules that currently apply in Britain into domestic law, allowing unnecessary ones to be abolished at a later date. Mrs May addresses the Conservative Party conference for the first time as leader, where she will attempt to convince her critics she does have a Brexit plan.” – Mail on Sunday
Editorial:
“It is abundantly clear that Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon is no longer alone in posing a danger to the future of the Union. Nowhere is the disconnect that exists between Carwyn Jones and Leanne Wood’s post-Brexit vision for Wales, versus the will of the electorate, amplified more than by the fact that both of their constituencies voted decisively to leave the EU. This violent leftward lurch of the Labour-Plaid Cymru coalition – compounded this week by the first minister’s endorsement of Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership and by Plaid’s repeated calls for independence – has left a vacancy in the centre ground of Welsh politics which Welsh Conservatives are ideally placed to fill.” – Sunday Times (£)
>Today: ToryDiary: May and Davis announce a bill to restore self-government. Next we need a date for Article 50 to be moved.
>Yesterday: Andrew RT Davies in Comment: The EU referendum has left Labour in Wales struggling to offer a clear vision
“A huge shake-up of employment rights to ensure workers are not ripped off by bosses was announced last night by Theresa May. The Prime Minister said the self-employed and those on temporary and zero-hours contracts needed job security and proper protection. On the eve of the Tory conference, Mrs May set her sights on the political centre ground, reaching out to the blue-collar workers who voted for Margaret Thatcher in large numbers.” – Mail on Sunday
More Number Ten:
>Today: Garry Heath in Comment: At this conference, our new leadership has a chance to show our members a little bit of love
“The national inquiry into child sex abuse is facing renewed calls to curb the scope of its investigation after the resignation of another member of its legal team. Abigail Bright, a barrister who was junior counsel to the investigation into alleged child sex offences by the late Lord Janner, emerged this weekend as the third lawyer to have stood down. Last week Ben Emmerson QC, lead counsel to the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse (IICSA), resigned. It was also revealed that his deputy, Elizabeth Prochaska, had quit two weeks ago.” – Sunday Times (£)
Comment:
“…if she has the courage to seize the moment, what she says and does over the next 72 hours could permanently define her, and define the destiny of the United Kingdom for the remainder of this century. No Prime Minister since the war has stood where May stands this morning. With no domestic opposition. No serious internal opposition. Sky-high public approval ratings. A virtually blank economic, social and diplomatic canvas upon which to paint her masterpiece. Yes, she faces daunting challenges. But they are her challenges. She is the future now.” – Mail on Sunday
“Ruth Davidson held secret talks with Boris Johnson to ensure that Scotland’s interests are put at the “front and centre” of the Brexit negotiations. Details of the showdown meeting emerged as the two rivals prepare to make key speeches on the first day of the Conservative conference in Birmingham today. The party’s Scottish leader famously clashed with Mr Johnson during a high-profile TV debate in June, during which she accused the Leave campaign of peddling “lies”. Speaking before the conference, Ms Davidson revealed she had a “very professional meeting” with the now Foreign Secretary at his Whitehall office last month.” – Sunday Express
>Today: ToryDiary: David Davis, Greg Clark, Liam Fox, Sajid Javid, Priti Patel: ConHome’s Party Conference fringe programme in full
“The number of foreign doctors working in the NHS should be cut after Brexit, with homegrown medics replacing them, the Health Secretary has declared. In one of the clearest indications yet of the Government’s vision for Brexit Britain, Jeremy Hunt questioned why more than a quarter of NHS doctors were foreign when scores of bright Britons were turned away from medical school. In an interview with The Mail on Sunday to mark the start of the Tory Party conference in Birmingham, he also… declared victory in his battle with junior doctors over a seven-day NHS service”. – Mail on Sunday
“A billion-pound building phase on new sumbarines to carry the controversial Trident missiles will begin this week. Defence Secretary Sir Michael Fallon announced £1.25 billion investment to start constructing the new Successor fleet for the nuclear deterrent system which are the “ultimate guarantee of our nation’s safety”. The cash for BAE Systems will be used in part to build the part of the submarine that controls the reactor at the Barrow-in-Furness yard in Cumbria.” – Sun on Sunday
“New links have emerged between the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, and dissident Irish republicans who have opposed the Northern Ireland peace process. McDonnell hosted an event in parliament to support republican prisoners including Marian Price, who was jailed for her role in a 1973 car bomb attack on the Old Bailey and later convicted of terrorist offences carried out after the Good Friday peace agreement. The meeting, in 2012, was to campaign for the release of Price and two other prisoners, Gerry McGeough and Martin Corey. A website devoted to McGeough’s campaign carries a photograph of McDonnell chairing the proceedings.” – Sunday Times (£)
More Left:
Comment:
Editorial:
“Lord Coe and Lord Mandelson could face the axe as Peers under new plans to cut numbers. The high profile pair are among 180 members of the second chamber whose attendance rate fell below a recommended 25% rate during the 2015-16 Parliamentary session. Mandelson attended 28 times out of maximum 151 days giving him a 19 per cent record, according to figures seen by The Sun on Sunday.” – Sun on Sunday