“Theresa May could block Philip Hammond from publishing the economic modelling of a no deal Brexit before Parliament is asked to vote on the Prime Minister’s deal with Brussels. The Chancellor said last week that cross-Whitehall analysis looking at Brexit impacts which was published in January would be “refined” in the run up to the vote as he re-committed to providing MPs with the “appropriate analysis” before they decide. But Downing Street repeatedly refused to guarantee that MPs will be provided with forecasts of what a disorderly Brexit could mean for the UK before they vote to either accept or reject Mrs May’s agreement. It came as Mrs May said at the start of a trip to Africa that leaving the EU without a deal would not be the “end of the world” as she appeared to dismiss the Chancellor’s warnings about a no-deal Brexit.” – Daily Telegraph
“Philip Hammond has told Theresa May to “butt out” of his Budget as relations collapse again between Britain’s most powerful duo. In the Downing Street pair’s most recent clash, the Chancellor was left livid by the PM’s bid to raise the controversial plastic bag levy from 5p to 10p. Mrs May’s aides said last week she has already agreed to the rise, proposed by Environment Secretary Michael Gove. But Mr Hammond interrupted his holiday yesterday to insist no decision has been made. Allies of the Chancellor also revealed that No10 has been given a blunt message by him to stop publicly dictating what should be in his annual economic blueprint for the nation. Posting a tweet during a week off yesterday, Mr Hammond instead insisted all options to tackle plastic pollution still “remain open and under active consideration”.” – The Sun
Analysis:
Editorial:
“Theresa May shrugged off the threat of a ‘right wing coup’ from Boris Johnson today – vowing to fight the next election. The Prime Minister insisted she was in her job for the ‘long term’ despite a rising backlash among Tory grassroots over her soft Brexit plans. Mrs May sidestepped questions over whether she feared being booed at party conference, merely insisting she would deliver ‘important messages’ to the faithful. She also played down fears over ‘entryism’ with a wave of hardline Brexiteers said to be joining in expectation of a leadership contest. The combative stance came as Mrs May was grilled by reporters during a trip to Africa today. There has been mounting speculation over a move against her by Mr Johnson, who dramatically quit in protest at the Chequers plan earlier this summer.” – Daily Mail
Editorial:
>Today: ToryDiary: May’s courage, as she dances on, is admirable
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: The Conservative infiltration debate is all the wrong way round
“EU negotiator Michel Barnier threatened to boycott Brexit talks if Theresa May insisted on basing a deal on her Chequers plans, it emerged today. Mr Barnier furiously told officials the controversial proposals could save British businesses billions of pounds a year if they were able to trade in Europe free from many EU regulations. Mrs May’s plans – loathed by Brexiteers and criticised by the EU – imagine Britain voluntarily following EU rules on goods while leaving the single market and customs union to pursue trade deals and innovative services products. The prospect of the EU suspending negotiations will raise further the prospect of talks ending in failure and Britain crashing out without a deal… Politico revealed Mr Barnier’s threat after it was revealed by officials who attended a meeting on the Chequers plan.” – Daily Mail
Comment:
>Yesterday: Priti Patel MP in Comment: We must chuck Chequers, or disillusioned voters will reject mainstream politics
“Theresa May will pledge to use the UK aid budget to slash immigration into Europe as she visits Nigeria tomorrow. The Prime Minister is to unveil a series of commitments to cut ‘illegal and unsafe’ inflows from West Africa. Nigeria is believed to be the fifth-largest country of origin for victims of modern slavery in Britain – a cause that Mrs May has championed for years. The vile trade sees men, women and children tricked into making perilous journeys to Europe before being abused, treated as forced labour, or pushed into prostitution… Among the measures being outlined by Mrs May is new support to help migrants and modern slavery victims rebuild their lives in Nigeria.” – Daily Mail
“I recently returned from a Malaria No More UK trip to Kenya, where I saw the tragic costs of untreated Malaria and what Britain is doing to help the fight against this preventable disease. As a mother myself, it was heartbreaking to watch a young baby having to be resuscitated due to Malaria complications. I saw first-hand Global Britain in action, a nation that is outward looking and a force for good across the world. The Department for International Development’s budget for Kenya in 2018/19 is £111 million, the top three programmes are £20.7 Million for a Hunger Safety Net, £20 Million for Regional Economic Development and £10 Million for ‘Pamoja’, which provides clean water by constructing wells. Whilst I am pleased that good aid work is being done by Britain in Kenya, I know that throughout history, free markets, job creation and growth have been the most influential factors in lifting thousands of people out of poverty.” – Daily Telegraph
“A new £2m “county lines” unit will aim to stop children being exploited by gangs, the Government has announced. The hub set up by the Department for Education will provide funding and resources to local authorities struggling to tackle drug smuggling and child sexual exploitation. Figures released last year by the National Crime Agency showed that over a third of police forces reported evidence of child sexual exploitation in relation to county lines, the phenomenon where children and young people are exploited by criminals and used to traffic drugs in rural areas. The unit will be established in 2019, and will run for three years. It will address child sexual exploitation together with other crimes, such as gang and drug activity, which also exploit vulnerable children and can lead to children going missing from home or from care.” – Daily Telegraph
Comment:
“Gagging orders risk becoming a “tool for the weak to be beaten by the strong”, Ruth Davidson, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, has warned. Ms Davidson issued the warning after The Telegraph revealed that Labour frontbencher Khalid Mahmood used a non-disclosure agreement to silence his Jewish assistant, who took him to an employment tribunal on the grounds of religious discrimination. Ms Davidson said non-disclosure agreements are being used to protect the “rich and the powerful” as she called for Parliament to “look to its own” and investigate their use. Elaina Cohen’s employment tribunal case was resolved in an out-of-court settlement. Her non-disclosure agreement bars both her and Mr Mahmood, her former lover, from discussing the matter publicly.” – Daily Telegraph
“The former chief rabbi Lord Sacks today lashed Jeremy Corbyn as an ‘anti-Semite’ who ‘defiles our politics’. He said a tape of him attacking English Zionist Jews was the most offensive remark by a British politician since Enoch Powell’s Rivers of Blood speech in 1968. And he accused the Labour leader of supporting ‘racists, terrorists and dealers of hate who want to kill Jews and remove Israel from the map’. MailOnline revealed last week Mr Corbyn used a speech at the Palestinian Return Centre in London in 2013 to criticise a group of British Zionists. But Labour hit back at the former chief rabbi’s remarks, branding them ‘absurd and offensive’. Rows over anti-Semitism have rocked Labour all summer after the party refused to adopt in full an internationally accepted definition of hatred against Jews.” – Daily Mail
“Labour is becoming increasingly alarmed about the potential for a breakaway “centrist” party in the coming months as moderate MPs chafe under the leftwing leadership of Jeremy Corbyn. The idea of an “SDP mark 2” has been discussed ever since Mr Corbyn became leader of the UK opposition in 2015. The former backbencher has views considerably to the left of most of the Parliamentary Labour party. Only now, however, do senior figures around Mr Corbyn believe that the threat of a schism could be imminent. Some are already gaming when the split might occur and how much damage it would inflict. Others are taking seriously rumours that a new Europhile centrist party could be launched straight after Brexit — on April 1 next year — in order to campaign for the UK to rejoin the EU.” – FT
Comment:
Editorial:
>Today: Rob Halfon MP’s column: I agree with Corbyn about democratising the BBC (or, rather, he agrees with me)
“Alex Salmond has formally launched his legal action against the Scottish Government over its handling of sexual misconduct complaints against him. Two women have alleged he sexually harrassed them in late 2013, when he was First Minister. He strongly denies the claims. Mr Salmond is seeking a judicial review of a new complaints procedure that was introduced by the SNP administration in December. It emerged on Tuesday that his petition has been lodged with the Court of Session in Edinburgh. The court will now seek a response from the Scottish government. However, it is likely to be several weeks before there is a hearing before a judge. The move tips the SNP further towards civil war, with members and MPs split between camps supporting Mr Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon, his successor.” – Daily Telegraph
“A committee of MSPs has called on justice secretary Humza Yousaf to explain a decision to put on hold the controversial merger of British Transport Police and Police Scotland. Earlier this week, Mr Yousaf said he would “re-examine all options” for the devolution of railway policing. The Scotsman revealed earlier this month that controversial plans to merge BTP and Police Scotland are set to be scrapped. A report by Police Scotland, which was published on Monday, said it was not possible to give a “go-live” date for the merger due to ongoing concerns… On Monday, Mr Yousaf said ministers remained committed to full integration but that “interim arrangements” were needed to speed along the devolution of railway policing.” – The Scotsman
“DUP leader Arlene Foster has led a press conference on the steps of Stormont this morning, saying Northern Ireland ‘deserves better’ than almost 600 days without government. The former First Minister was speaking only hours before protests are to take place across Northern Ireland to mark the 589 days since the collapse of power sharing at Stormont. The power sharing executive collapsed when the late Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness of Sinn Fein resigned, citing the Renewable Heating Initiative scandal as a key reason. Mrs Foster was speaking today at Stormont where leading party members held up a banner saying “Sinn Fein – end your boycott”. “We deserve better, all of us,” Mrs Foster said.” – News Letter
“Twitter has removed another batch of accounts from its platform for participating in what it calls ‘coordinated manipulation.’ The social media giant announced late Monday that it had suspended another 486 accounts believed to be linked to Iran’s disinformation campaign, bringing the total number of deleted accounts to 770. Last week, Twitter announced it had taken down 486 accounts that were tied to Iran… Most of the suspended accounts are believed to be from Iran. Fewer than 100 were located in the US and they tweeted about 867 times, were followed by 1,268 accounts and had joined Twitter less than a year ago.” – Daily Mail
“Some people go into politics for world domination. Mark Prisk wants to do that now he has left office. The former housing minister says that his dream job would be to play Blofeld in the next James Bond movie. “I’m at that age,” the 56-year-old Tory MP explains. “I don’t think I could do Bond.” It was reading Ian Fleming’s novels as a teenager that first got Prisk interested in politics. “They led me to wonder what the Cold War was about,” he tells the Core Politics website. Having once played Herod in an am-dram production of Jesus Christ Superstar, Prisk is possibly well qualified to be a screen villain, but he admits to one shortcoming. “I need a cat,” he says. “That’s the main thing for Blofeld.”” – The Times