“Conservative MPs have demanded one of their colleagues should retire after he blocked a late-night motion that would have overturned the controversial Owen Paterson vote. Christopher Chope, the MP for Christchurch, blocked a motion rescinding the Leadsom Amendment that would have saved Mr Paterson from a six-week suspension while setting up a new standards committee and appeals process. MPs will now debate the issue for an hour today. Mr Chope is a long-time objector to bills going through on the nod, having blocked the upskirting bill and a law banning FGM on the same basis. This morning fellow backbenchers told The Telegraph the mood towards their colleague was “venomous”, with several suggesting he should quit or risk being deselected.” – Daily Telegraph
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“The UK’s terrorism threat level has been raised to severe, meaning an attack is “highly likely”, according to the government. The announcement follows a meeting of the Cobra emergency committee chaired by Boris Johnson on Monday afternoon, and comes a day after a bomb was detonated outside Liverpool Women’s Hospital. Speaking to reporters on Monday Priti Patel said the change was being made because two terror attacks had taken place within a month. David Amess, a Conservative MP, was stabbed to death during a constituency surgery in Southend, Essex, on 15 October. The home secretary said the Liverpool attack had had a “very significant impact across the community” and that her thoughts were with people in the city.” – The Independent
“Britain remains “unwavering” in its support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity amid a “concerning” build-up of Russian troops on its border, Boris Johnson’s spokesman has said. Jens Stoltenberg, secretary-general of Nato, said the western alliance was standing by Ukraine as he described a “large and unusual” concentration of Russian forces on the country’s borders. He called on Russia to be transparent about its military activities to reduce tensions in the region and prevent an escalation… In spring Russia caused major alarm in Nato when it appeared to be looking to intervene in Ukraine with a huge build-up of troops at the border. Ukrainian diplomats said last month they were worried that Russia could exploit the gas crisis to try to seize more territory.” – The Times
>Today: ToryDiary: Ministers should not pay the ayatollahs’ £400 million danegeld
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Russian aggression in Eastern Europe. And a bomb in Liverpool. China isn’t the only threat to our security.
“Boris Johnson has said that coal-fired power will become as socially unacceptable as lighting a cigar on a plane as he accused some nations of “dragging their heels” on the environment. A central pledge at the Cop26 conference in Glasgow to “phase out” coal was weakened to “phase down” after a last-minute intervention by India and China. The prime minister said last night that the change in the language was “frustrating”… He used an appearance in the Commons to criticise countries that “really should know better” for failing to deliver on their climate change commitments. He said, however, that Cop26 “proved the doubters and the cynics wrong” by keeping alive the aim of limiting global temperature rises to 1.5C.” – The Times
>Today: Sanjoy Sen in Comment: Don’t blame India for the compromise at COP26. It can’t risk plunging millions into poverty.
>Yesterday: Sam Hall in Comment: COP26 has kept 1.5 degrees alive. But more must be done to keep it well.
“Suspending parts of Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit arrangements unilaterally could be “the only way left” to protect its place in the Union, Boris Johnson has said. Addressing the Lord Mayor’s banquet at Guildhall, the prime minister again expressed frustration at the Northern Ireland protocol that sets out the post-Brexit relationship between the province and the EU. There is intense speculation that Johnson and Lord Frost, the Brexit minister, are gearing up to trigger Article 16 of the protocol, which would unilaterally suspend some border checks, although in recent days there have been more promising indications that a negotiated agreement may be possible… The passage came straight after what some interpreted as a jibe at the EU for its attempts to make vaccine manufacturers prioritise deliveries to the bloc.” – The Times
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>Today: Dr Gerard Lyons’ column: To ensure that the City continues to flourish, we need to make the most of Brexit.
“Ministers are set to require three vaccinations from those eligible for booster jabs in order to qualify as being fully vaccinated in areas where people must prove their status, such as travel or avoiding mandatory isolation. Downing Street sources said the intention was to end up in a place where three jabs, rather than two, was the requirement to obtain a Covid pass showing full vaccination – though currently only over-40s are eligible for the booster. If the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) continues to recommend boosters for all adults six months after their second jab, then the requirement could be in place in England by the early spring. News of the plan came as England’s chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, also warned there was “major concern” about vaccination rates among pregnant women – saying 98% of severely ill pregnant women in hospital had not been vaccinated.” – The Guardian
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Austria’s illiberal lockdown policy should make leaders think harder about their Covid measures
“The government has delayed plans to defund popular vocational qualifications taken after GCSEs, after outcry by further education leaders prompted it to rethink a central policy in its skills and training strategy. Nadhim Zahawi, education secretary, on Monday announced that the government would delay by one year its timetable for defunding existing qualifications, such as BTECs, while it rolls out T-levels, a new qualification set to become a main vocational option for pupils after GCSEs. “It is quite likely we will see many BTECs and other similar applied general-style qualifications continuing to play an important role in 16-19 education, for the foreseeable future,” Zahawi said at a reading of the government’s post-16 skills bill in the Commons.” – FT
“Clarissa Eden, memoirist, wife of Anthony Eden and niece of Winston Churchill, has died at the age of 101. When in May 1955 she walked into Downing Street with her husband Anthony, the newly elected prime minister, the wind could not have stood fairer for them. After the young Queen and Prince Philip, they were the most glamorous and powerful couple in the land. Lady Eden was only 34, her youth and good looks a refreshing contrast to the exhaustion exuded by the previous premier, her octogenarian uncle Sir Winston Churchill. Sir Anthony Eden was 23 years older than his wife yet still handsome, a natural performer in the new age of television, and genuinely popular. Foreign secretary during the war years and since 1950, he had just become the first leader of a government in a century to increase its majority.” – The Times