“The British people have taken the bold decision to chart a new course for this country outside the European Union. This Government is committed to delivering on their verdict. Unlike some politicians, I have heard the voice of the people and my commitment is to deliver the best possible deal for Britain. No ifs, no buts. As the economy adjusts to the new realities of leaving the EU, there will be both opportunities and challenges. Facing the future, we can take heart from the strength of the British economy in the lead up to the referendum and its remarkable resilience since.” – Sunday Telegraph
Comment:
Editorial:
“Prime Minister Theresa May has won a power struggle with Chancellor Philip Hammond by ordering him to take a ‘hands-off’ approach to other Ministers and stop trying to emulate his predecessor George Osborne. Mr Hammond will also formally ditch Mr Osborne’s austerity targets as he embarks on a drive to spend his way through the economic disruption caused by Brexit. But while Mr Osborne used to force other Ministers to give him their most eye-catching policy plans to announce as ‘rabbits out of hats’ in major Commons setpieces, Government sources pointedly said last night that Mr Hammond had agreed to stick to his ‘core job’ of balancing the books.” – Mail on Sunday
>Yesterday: Charlie Elphicke MP in Comment: We need a fair deal for drivers – and a cut in fuel duty
“Downing Street is ‘gunning for’ the head of the NHS for publicly contradicting Theresa May over funding for the Health Service, The Mail on Sunday has been told.Simon Stevens caused fury at No 10 by telling MPs that the Prime Minister had exaggerated the amount of extra money promised to the NHS – with one of Mrs May’s aides warning that they intended to ‘fix’ him. The row blew up after Mr Stevens told the Commons Health Select Committee last month that Mrs May was wrong to have claimed that the NHS would get an extra £10 billion a year between now and 2020-21, up from the £8 billion promised by former Chancellor George Osborne.” – Mail on Sunday
More NHS:
More May:
“Sixty Tory MPs including seven ex-Cabinet ministers have demanded Theresa May pulls Britain out of the single market and customs union amid fears her Brexit stance could be watered down. Michael Gove, Iain Duncan Smith, John Whittingdale and Theresa Villiers are among the leading Eurosceptics to put their names to the negotiation demand. The politicians have gone public through The Telegraph amid concerns that pro-EU figures in the Cabinet are fighting to soften the Government’s Brexit position.” – Sunday Telegraph
Comment:
>Today:
“Boris Johnson was at the centre of a Cabinet row last night over claims that he turned up at a vital Brexit meeting chaired by Theresa May with the wrong documents. A source said the Foreign Secretary sparked groans of disapproval at a meeting of the Cabinet’s Brexit committee on Thursday because he had read the wrong briefing notes ahead of the discussion. The news fuelled suggestions that the Prime Minister was ‘coming to the end of her tether’ over a series of gaffes by Mr Johnson on handling Britain’s exit from the EU.” – Mail on Sunday
“Porn websites that refuse to prevent children viewing explicit content will be blocked in a tough Government crackdown. Culture Secretary Karen Bradley wants to ban sites unless they agree to new age verification rules for viewers. She said: ‘We have appointed a regulator to make sure the right age checks are in place. ‘If sites refuse to comply, they should be blocked.’ The moves comes as research commissioned by children’s charity NSPCC and the Children’s Commissioner for England found that 53 per cent of children aged 11 to 16 had encountered porn online.” – Mail on Sunday
“Tory grandee Sir Edward Leigh claims there is a growing rebellion over plans to force MPs and peers to leave the Palace of Westminster for up to six years. He has written to MPs suggesting that the two-week sitting in September after the summer recess could be held at Edinburgh’s Holyrood or Cardiff’s Welsh Assembly to speed up the work and to avoid the exodus. Holyrood is thought to be the preferred option and Mr Leigh has already held talks with the Scottish National Party.” – Sunday Express
“Tony Blair is positioning himself to play a pivotal role in shaping Britain’s Brexit deal by scouting out a power base in Westminster, The Sunday Times has learnt. The former prime minister is setting up an institute close to Whitehall and has held talks with senior ministers and officials as he seeks to re-enter British politics. Blair’s move has raised eyebrows among several members of the cabinet, who claim he has used meetings about the Middle East and aid to seek to extract information and influence the government’s Brexit plans. A source who has discussed Brexit with Blair said: “He’s not impressed with Theresa May. He thinks she’s a total lightweight”… Blair is due to meet May for coffee soon. But the prime minister’s aides believe he is part of an “unholy alliance” of former ministers who are determined to disrupt Brexit.” – Sunday Times (£)
More Blair:
Comment:
“John McDonnell has described violent student riots as “the best of our movement” in damning video footage. The shadow Chancellor was filmed telling union activists that “one small spark” of tuition fee protests at Tory HQ in central London in November 2010 led to further demonstrations. He described the students’ actions as “kicking the **** out of Millbank” referring to the Westminster building. The senior Labour figure was captured just over a year later at a Unite The Resistance emergency meeting that support was “still there”.” – Sun on Sunday
More left:
“Defiant Nigel Farage hit back at Theresa May last night – and vowed to use his new alliance with Donald Trump to take the Commons by storm. The acting Ukip leader tore up his pledge to quit front-line politics after the EU referendum and said he would stand for Parliament if corruption claims against the Tories over his General Election defeat in South Thanet lead to a New Year re-run. Farage, 50, even joked about the possibility of golf fanatic Trump coming to the UK to campaign for him, saying the Kent constituency had ‘the best golf courses in Britain’.” – Mail on Sunday
“By toying with the Conservative Party, Farage has dragged it a long way in his direction. He is a hero to many in the Tory grassroots for bringing about the referendum that led to Brexit. There is little philosophically that divides him now from a Conservative MP or minister who currently inclines towards a hard Brexit to secure the control of borders… If May finds negotiating to get out of Europe more confrontational than she hoped, political expediency could drive her into Farage’s arms, to merge with his faction and form the right-wing libertarian nationalist Tory party that he dreams of precipitating. At that point Trump’s America would be the indispensable ally.” – Sunday Times (£)