“David Davis has warned Theresa May that her ‘third way’ plan for Brexit is unworkable, it was reported last night. The Brexit Secretary is said to have sent the Prime Minister a letter outlining his opposition to proposals to be presented to the Cabinet tomorrow. He is said to be concerned that the EU will simply reject the plan out of hand. The letter warned the compromise the Prime Minister intends to present will fail because it is simply a customs partnership with extra technological elements. And it expresses fears that Brussels has already rejected the idea of allowing a third-party country – as Britain will be after Brexit – to police EU borders and that discussing such an option is a waste of time.” – Daily Mail
Comment:
>Today: ToryDiary: May’s emerging negotiation plan. A port in a storm – not the end of the journey.
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Our survey panel. It’s a record high for the view that the Prime Minister should leave Downing Street before the next election.
“Tory Brexiteers have been told by the chief whip that they do not have to vote for any Brexit deal they do not like. Julian Smith made the comment at a meeting of 40 Brexiteers, who warned him that the party has no future if it reneges on key Brexit commitments. Yesterday’s meeting was called after growing signs that Theresa May will try and impose the softest possible Brexit on the cabinet at Friday’s cabinet meeting at Chequers, prompting a backlash among Brexiteers. Mr Smith heard the concerns and responded by telling the room that “if you don’t like it, you don’t have to vote for it”. This surprised some Brexiteers. Jacob Rees-Mogg, leader of the pro-Brexit European Research Group (ERG), said afterwards that his MPs would not support a deal they did not like.” – The Times
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Comment:
>Yesterday:
“Michael Gove has suggested the Electoral Commission will face a legal challenge from Vote Leave after it emerged that the watchdog is expected to find that the campaign group broke electoral law and overspent during the Brexit referendum. The Environment Secretary, who played a prominent role in the Leave campaign said he had not read the findings but believed the process could now “go through the courts”. Mr Gove also denied having any knowledge of the alleged breaches, adding that he was “not involved in the day-to-day running of the campaign”. It comes just hours after Matthew Elliott, the former chief executive of the campaign group, revealed that the Electoral Commission had concluded that his team had exceeded spending limits by making a donation to another pro-Brexit campaign, BeLeave. The campaign is expected to challenge the commission’s findings when they are officially produced.” – Daily Telegraph
Comment:
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: The Electoral Commission is not fit for its crucial purpose
“The Prime Minister has said donations to the Scottish Conservatives are “accepted and declared in accordance with the law” following claims that a trust with links to the Tories may have been used to obscure the source of funds given to the party. The Prime Minister was challenged by SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford at PMQs over the Scottish Unionist Association Trust (SUAT), which has donated more than £319,000 to various Scottish Tory candidates and campaigns over the past 17 years. Under current Electoral Commission rules, unincorporated associations are not required to register and declare where they receive their money from provided they donate less than £25,000 per calendar year to political parties and candidates.” – The Scotsman
“The world is waiting to see how Theresa May will respond to Vladimir Putin after two innocent Britons were poisoned by the same nerve agent Russia used to attack a spy. Home secretary Sajid Javid will chair and emergency Cobra meeting in Downing Street today as the UK considers its response. Dawn Sturgess, 44, and her partner Charlie Rowley, 45, are fighting for life after they were exposed to Novichok in Amesbury on Saturday. They fell ill after coming into contact with the agent just 300 yards away from the site at which Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia collapsed. Theresa May is likely to pressure US President Donald Trump to raise the latest incident at his July 16 summit with his Russian counterpart in Helsinki, Finland.” – Daily Mail
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“The PM signalled she was ready to ban bouncy castles after two little girls died in separate incidents on the inflatables. Asked to urgently review regulations and bring in a temporary ban, Theresa May said if necessary “recommendations to improve safety” would be brought in as soon as possible. Former Tory minister Robert Halfon said action was needed after two “horrific tragedies”. He said he had been contacted by the grandmother of Summer Grant, seven, killed when a bouncy castle blew free from its moorings in 2016 in his Harlow constituency… In PMQs he asked Mrs May if she would put in place a temporary ban on bouncy castles and inflatables in public areas “until we know that they can be safe”.” – The Sun
>Yesterday: Robert Halfon MP’s column: What Hunt has done for the NHS, Hinds must do for schools. We need textbooks, not tanks.
“Theresa May has told NHS workers they deserved family-friendly hours and shift patterns as she marked the health service’s 70th birthday. The PM suggested her planned reforms would “go further” and could see hospital chiefs encouraged to overhaul rotas to give staff a better “work/life balance”. At a Downing Street reception she told staff : “I know that, sometimes, you can be frustrated by staff shortages, and that you rarely enjoy the flexibility or work/life balance that many people now take for granted… “The plan will go further, investing in the workforce and introducing modern working practices so that the NHS is not just one of the biggest employers in the world, but also one of the best – managed in a way that works for patients and staff alike.”” – The Sun
Comment:
Editorial:
“A new multimillion-pound court is to be set up to tackle cybercrime and fraud, with the hope of boosting the country’s status as a global legal centre, the lord chancellor said last night. The purpose-built court, which will also deal with business and property disputes, economic crime and civil cases, will hold 18 courtrooms and replace the outdated Mayor’s and City of London county court and City of London magistrates’ court. It has been developed in partnership with the judiciary and the City of London Corporation, which is to contribute the bulk of the project’s estimated £300 million cost. It will also include a new City of London police station. David Gauke, the lord chancellor and justice secretary, said: “The flag of English law is flown in countries across the globe, and London already leads the way as the best place to do business and resolve disputes. This state-of-the-art court is a further message to the world that Britain both prizes business and stands ready to deal with the changing nature of 21st century crime.”” – The Times
>Today: Richard Holden in Comment: The criminal justice reforms which could spare other innocent people from the ordeal I suffered
>Yesterday: Luke Graham MP in Think Tanks: Ministers should pursue the savings offered by embracing new technology
“Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey today issued a grovelling apology after the Whitehall spending watchdog accused her of misrepresenting its findings. Ms McVey said sorry for ‘inadvertently misleading’ MPs by wrongly claiming the National Audit Office (NAO) had concluded benefit reforms were working. The admission in the House came after the NAO went public with a spat over a report it published last month savaging the government’s flagship benefits shake-up. Universal Credit was designed to merge a slew of benefits and ensure people will be better off if they get a job. It aims to get an extra 200,000 people into work. But the NAO found it had taken years longer to introduce than it should have done, might cost more than the old system of handouts it is replacing, and has caused hardship among claimants.” – Daily Mail
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“The foreign secretary has admitted that the government made a series of blunders as it responded to hurricanes in the Caribbean last year. Boris Johnson said that the UK had “learnt important lessons” after the hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated British overseas territories including the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla and Turks and Caicos Islands. Mr Johnson said that he was “working to ensure an even stronger response to any hurricane this year” amid fears that damaged infrastructure could be destroyed. Irma caused damage that could cost more than £1 billion to repair and displaced 32,000 across the islands. The British response was criticised and Foreign Office officials have conceded that they were ill equipped to respond.” – The Times
“A feminist campaigner who’s never voted for a Tory MP is competing to be the Conservative candidate to take on Sadiq Khan as Mayor of London. Nimco Ali told The Sun the current Mayor is doing nothing for the Muslim community – and called on him to step up the failing fight against crime… Ms Ali, 35, decided to go for the position after getting fed up with the number of high-profile Tories who have refused to run. She is standing as a Conservative despite having never voted for the party in a General Election – a former Labour voter, she stood for the Women’s Equality Party last year. Ms Ali, a Muslim campaigner against FGM, told The Sun she’s unlikely to win the Tory nomination – but wants to send a message to Mr Khan.” – The Sun
>Today: Syed Kamall in Local Government: This time round, I’m not seeking to stand. But here’s an agenda for a Conservative Mayor of London.
“London’s new deputy mayor for transport has called Westminster council “hugely selfish” for abandoning plans to pedestrianise Oxford Street. Heidi Alexander, who is in her first month in the job, said it was “devastating and disappointing” that in June the council reneged on plans costing millions of pounds to develop London’s flagship shopping street. The former MP’s comments came as her boss, London mayor Sadiq Khan, banned Westminster council from using any funds from Transport for London, the city’s transport authority, to develop another strategy without his approval — fuelling an acrimonious row over what Ms Alexander called “the nation’s high street”. Oxford Street is Britain’s best-known shopping artery, with £5bn annual turnover, according to the New West End Company, which represents 600 local businesses.” – FT
“Labour are calling on the Government to instate a public bank holiday if England were to win the World Cup, Jeremy Corbyn’s spokesman has said. While the Labour leader remains cautiously optimistic about England’s prospects, his spokesman added that a one-off public holiday should be granted in the event that Gareth Southgate’s men pull-off the historic achievement. Speaking to reporters following Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday, they added: “The World Cup is a very special international competition. “It’s something that brings people together on a very large scale and we need recognition of that and recognition of the importance of football in the country.”” – Daily Telegraph
“Britain’s most powerful union leader has joined a group of feminist campaigners to sign a controversial letter that accuses some transgender rights activists of violent and intimidating behaviour. The Unite general secretary, Len McCluskey, was one of about 140 people, including Julie Bindel and Ruth Serwotka, who signed a letter in the Morning Star warning that a handful of recent episodes risked drawing “the whole of our progressive movement into disrepute”. The letter highlights a series of recent incidents, including the conviction of Tara Wood, 26, in April for the assault of Maria MacLachlan “a 60-year-old woman who had gathered with others in order to attend a meeting” to discuss “the potential impact on women and girls” of changes to the Gender Recognition Act.” – The Guardian
>Yesterday: Video: WATCH: May – We want to see changes of gender demedicalised
“Westminster has pledged to foot the £5million bill to police any visit Donald Trump makes to Scotland next week after demands from Nicola Sturgeon’s Government. First Minister Ms Sturgeon, who had an audience with the Queen today at Holyrood House in Edinburgh, said the decision was a ‘big result’ for Scotland. The US President is expected to spend at least one day of his UK trip playing golf on his courses in Scotland. More than 5,000 Police Scotland officers are expected to have to deploy around the visit, even if there are no public events. Scottish Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf wrote to Home Secretary Sajid Javid demanding Westminster pick up the bill as Mr Trump was here at Theresa May’s invitation.” – Daily Mail
>Today: Garvan Walshe’s column: Next week’s NATO summit will be a crucial test of the Trump Doctrine: pay up, or you’re on your own.
>Yesterday: Ben Roback’s column: This is the most unpredictable presidential visit to Britain in memory