“Jeremy Corbyn has been accused by his own of MPs of acting “irresponsibly and dangerously” by attending an event hosted by a far-left Jewish group which called for the destruction of Israel and dismissed the anti-Semitism row engulfing the party as “faux-outrage”. The Labour leader was photographed at a Passover Seder hosted by Jewdas, a satirical group which describes itself as “radical” and is highly critical of mainstream Jewish organisations. Last week Jewdas attacked the Board of Deputies of British Jews and the Jewish Leadership Council’s response to the Labour anti-Semitism scandal as “playing a dangerous game with people’s lives”. It also reportedly described the row as “the work of cynical manipulations by people whose express loyalty is to the Conservative Party and the right wing of the Labour Party”.” – Daily Telegraph
Comment:
“Britain will have at least two bumper new free trade deals signed and ready to implement on the day the transition period ends, according to internal government forecasts. Deals with the likes of Australia and New Zealand are expected to be prioritised so ministers can show voters they are delivering on referendum promises on the day Britain is finally free of EU rules on January 1 2021. These will be in addition to dozens of current free trade agreements that Britain currently enjoys as a member of the EU that Theresa May wants to roll over after Brexit. These include comprehensive trade deals with South Korea, Canada, South Africa and Chile.” – The Sun
Editorial:
“Australia is drawing up plans to demand Britain accepts hormone-infected beef as part of a Brexit trade deal. International Trade Secretary Liam Fox has dubbed the deal an early “win” and said it will reduce costs for British consumers. But in return, Britons will be told to scrap a 36-year EU ban on meat sold from cows pumped with growth hormones. But Australia blasted the ban as an attempt to shelter European farmers from competitors alongside levies of 12.8 per cent. Talks have been taking place for 18 months and sources have said lifting the ban is a key issue for the Aussies, who argue it violates World Trade Organisation rules.” – Daily Express
More Brexit
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: We advised scepticism about the Brexit conspiracy theories – and now The Observer is ‘clarifying’ its allegations
>Today:
Other foreign relations
Other UK news
“The African elephant is a species apart, a beautiful animal that inspires awe in any who see it. Safeguarding the future of this amazing animal is a mission our species cannot shirk. And the need for action is urgent because numbers are declining dramatically, driven by human greed for ivory. Long prized for ornaments and jewellery, ivory is seen as a symbol of wealth and social status, particularly in east Asia. And in recent decades, poaching has reached devastating levels. The numbers are stark — about 20,000 elephants are killed every year, or about 55 every day. The unthinkable could happen. Unless we take action to stop poaching, future generations will be deprived of one of the world’s most majestic and inspirational creatures. African leaders have called for an international response to this problem.” – The Times
More comment:
“Guilty until proven innocent. The tenure of Alison Saunders at the Crown Prosecution Service will be remembered for a monstrous inversion of that fundamental principle of British justice. I began to campaign for Saunders to be sacked after receiving emails from two Telegraph readers, shellshocked mothers whose sons were both wrongly accused of rape and left dangling in that Purgatory of the disbelieved…. I became convinced that Saunders was a menace. Obsessed with pursuing the VAGW (violence against girls and women) agenda, she was on a mission to boost the number of rape convictions and clearly could not give a damn about innocent men and boys who might suffer on the road to that goal. They were just collateral damage in a vengeful gender war.” – Daily Telegraph
More comment:
Editorial:
“Last Monday, I sat in a chair in a medical day unit while a chemotherapy went into my vein. A drug called Oxaliplatin which, with daily tablets of capecitabine to follow, are my ongoing treatment for bowel cancer. As I sat there, I was thinking that I was lucky. Lucky, because I went to see my GP (after much nagging from my wife) about nine months ago with spreading back pain, without any thought that it could be a cancer. Lucky, because my GP was perceptive enough to refer me to the hospital. Lucky that the investigation showed Stage 3 tumours with no spread to my liver.” – Daily Telegraph
More Conservatives
>Today: Justine Greening in Comment: How to reform tuition fees and student debt – with a Higher Education Fund