Flagship post-Brexit Australia trade deal ‘not actually very good’, MPs hear

Former minister George Eustice tells Commons senior civil servant in charge of negotiations should be replaced

The UK’s flagship post-Brexit trade deal with Australia is “not actually a very good deal”, former environment secretary George Eustice has said.

In highly critical comments, Eustice called for the resignation of Crawford Falconer, the interim permanent secretary for the Department for International Trade, telling the Commons Falconer “resented” people who understood technical trade issues better than him.

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UK gave away ‘too much for too little’ in free trade deal with Australia, says former minister, blaming Truss – as it happened

George Eustice says the free trade deal with Australia – hailed by Boris Johnson as one of the big gains from Brexit – was poor. This live blog is now closed

James Cleverly, the foreign secretary, was criticised last month for saying that gay football fans visiting Qatar for the Word Cup should “be respectful”, and make allowance for the country’s intolerance of homosexuality.

In an interview on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Cleverly defended his comments, saying that the Foreign Office always advises people to obey local laws when they are travelling. He told the programme:

My focus is to make sure that British visitors, particularly LGBTQ+ visitors to Qatar going to enjoy the World Cup, are safe and that they enjoy their tournament. So my advice was purely about ensuring that they have a safe and secure time at the World Cup.

We always say that you have to respect the laws of your host nation. That is a universal element of British travel advice.

I’ve spoken at length with the Qatari authorities on this and it’s worth bearing in mind that men and women don’t typically hold hands in Qatar, and other conservative Muslim countries like Qatar, so my strong advice is to look at the UK government’s travel advice.

This deal is just the same as previous deals - spending money and resources on intercepting and obstructing people crossing the Channel, while doing nothing to address their need for safe access to an asylum system.

The inevitable result will be more dangerous journeys and more profits led by ruthless smuggling gangs and other serious criminals exploiting the refusal of the UK and French government to take and share responsibility.

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CBI urges Jeremy Hunt to relax immigration rules to ease UK staff shortages

Lobby group says failure to tackle workforce shortages would be highly damaging for the economy

Britain’s foremost business lobby group has urged Jeremy Hunt to use this week’s autumn statement to shake up immigration rules to support companies struggling with chronic staff shortages and a looming recession.

The head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said urgent action was required from the chancellor on Thursday to bolster the economy, including “tough political choices” to allow more overseas workers in Britain as employers struggle with a desperate lack of staff.

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Denmark: British man being deported over late post-Brexit paperwork

Phil Russell says he was four days overdue sending an application to stay he did not know he needed

A British man living in Denmark is being deported from the country because he was four days late with an application to stay there post-Brexit.

Danish MP Mads Fuglede is fighting to stop the deportation which he says is a breach of the spirit of the withdrawal agreement to protect EU citizens’ rights. However, following elections last week and with no new government in sight in Copenhagen, he is worried help may not come in time for Philip Russell.

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Decline of UK manufacturing accelerates as government ‘abandons’ sector

Amid higher costs and worker shortages, British Chambers of Commerce says Brexit is another factor

When the minor ups and downs caused by the extra bank holiday for the Queen’s funeral are stripped out of the latest GDP figures, it is clear the long decline of Britain’s industrial base has accelerated.

Protected by the government through the coronavirus pandemic, this year, factory owners say ministers have abandoned them to cope with a long recession without so much as a glance in their direction.

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Wall Street surges and dollar tumbles as US inflation rate drops to 7.7% – business live

Dollar slides and stocks rally in New York on hopes that the Federal Reserve will slow its interest rate rises

The cost of living crisis is driving UK food banks to “breaking point” with almost 1.3m emergency parcels given to people over just six months.

The Trussell Trust charity has said families face record-breaking levels of need, with one in five individuals referred to its network now coming from working households.

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UK set for new wave of strikes as civil servants and train drivers vote for action – politics live

Around 100,000 civil servants, working in multiple government agencies, have voted to strike in a dispute over pay, pensions and jobs.

According to Pat Leahy, political editor of the Irish Times, the Irish government is doubtful about the prospect of a breakthrough in the coming weeks in the talks on the Northern Ireland protocol.

In his Sky News interview Chris Heaton-Harris, the Northern Ireland secretary, also suggested that large number of politicians in parliament are voting for Matt Hancock to perform “grim” tasks on I’m A Celebrity. My colleague Aubrey Allegretti has the story here.

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Minister and trade union lawyer clash over post-Brexit ‘sunset clause’

Nusrat Ghani accuses Unison representative of fearmongering after MPs hear laws could ‘disappear overnight’

The government has clashed with trade unions over claims that 20 days of statutory holiday and eight bank holidays, along with a “tapestry” of workers’ rights, are at risk under post-Brexit plans to remove EU laws from the UK’s statute books.

Shantha David, head of legal services at Unison, told a parliamentary committee examining the retained EU law (revocation and reform) bill that these rights “would no longer survive” if automatically removed via the “sunset clause” that will sweep away EU laws unless they are actively saved by a minister on 31 December 2023.

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Macron and Sunak ‘bromance’ signals intent to reset Franco-British ties

Clear wish in Paris to thaw relations that plummeted to their worst state in decades under Boris Johnson

When Emmanuel Macron rushed to hug the new UK prime minister at their first meeting in Egypt this week, some called it a “bromance”.

Even though the French president’s hands-on embrace of world leaders is almost always called a “bromance” – from Justin Trudeau to Mohammed bin Salman and Donald Trump (a relationship which eventually soured), Macron and Rishi Sunak’s grinning and back-slapping stood out as symbolic.

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UK must ‘step up to plate’ over Northern Ireland protocol, says Sinn Féin

Party vice-president Michelle O’Neill says government must find a way to make post-Brexit arrangements work

The Sinn Féin leader in Northern Ireland, Michelle O’Neill, has said the UK government needs to “step up to the plate” and find a way to make the Northern Ireland protocol work.

On Friday, the Northern Ireland secretary, Chris Heaton-Harris, said there will not be a Stormont election in December.

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No 10 refuses to endorse minister’s ‘bit of cheek’ asylum seeker comment – UK politics live

No 10 said Chris Philp had not spoken to the PM before accusing asylum seekers of ‘cheek’ for complaining about conditions

The Downing Street lobby briefing is over, and the prime minister’s spokesperson has just shot down reports that the proposed Sizewell C nuclear power plant could be shelved.

This morning the BBC was leading the news with a story saying this was an option. A government official told Simon Jack, the BBC’s business editor: “We are reviewing every major project – including Sizewell C.”

I’ve seen some reporting on that, but it is not accurate to say we are scrapping it. Our position on Sizewell C has not changed. It remains crucial to ending our reliance on fossil fuels, increasing our energy security and meeting our net zero ambitions.

We hope to get a deal over the line as soon as possible. There are negotiations are ongoing. Negotiations have been constructive.

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Labour in bid to avert Northern Ireland power cuts as result of Brexit legislation

Exclusive: Peter Hain to table amendment in House of Lords to protect single energy market

A Labour peer is launching a bid to avert a fresh energy crisis with potential power cuts and drastic electricity price rises in Northern Ireland as a result of proposed Brexit legislation.

The former Northern Ireland secretary Peter Hain will table an amendment to the Northern Ireland protocol bill in the House of Lords on Wednesday to protect the so-called single energy market (SEM), which allows power to be traded with the island of Ireland as one economic unit.

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Home Office is putting 2.6m EU citizens at risk of removal, court hears

Implementation of Brexit withdrawal agreement threatens rights of those with ‘pre-settled status’, watchdog argues

The government is putting 2.6 million EU citizens at risk of detention or removal from the country by the Home Office, the high court has heard.

The claim was made at a judicial review of the Home Office’s implementation of the part of the withdrawal agreement guaranteeing the rights of about 6 million EU citizens living in the country before Brexit.

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Northern Ireland power-sharing system not fit for purpose, says Irish PM

Micheál Martin says electoral system ‘should not be one that constantly reinforces polarisation’

Ireland’s prime minister has said the system of sharing power between unionists and nationalists in Northern Ireland is no longer fit for purpose and should be reviewed.

Micheál Martin’s remarks come amid claims the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) wants to delay a new Stormont assembly election as long as possible to give talks over the disputed Brexit protocol a chance to take off.

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Brexit red tape puts brakes on UK innovation and EU sales

Many new products now need multiple safety test facilities for home and abroad, say entrepreneurs

British inventions are being brought to market overseas because new Brexit safety certification rules mean they can’t be sold in the UK.

Trade bodies and entrepreneurs have blamed the government’s decision to stop accepting the European Union’s CE mark and instead create a new UK Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark showing that a product is safe.

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Rees-Mogg lambasts critics of EU laws bill after quitting government

Former business secretary tells opponents of bill they are fighting a Brexit battle all over again

The former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg launched a scathing attack on opponents of legislation he has tabled to sweep away EU law, telling them they are fighting a Brexit battle all over again.

Rees-Mogg quit his role after Rishi Sunak became prime minister, and less than two hours later returned to the backbenches to see a stand-in, the business minister Dean Russell, opening the second reading of the retained EU law (revocation and reform) bill.

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Rishi Sunak reshuffle: Braverman named home secretary, Gove returns as levelling up secretary, Mordaunt not promoted – as it happened

Braverman reappointed to post after resigning days ago; James Cleverly retained as foreign secretary; Oliver Dowden becomes Cabinet Office minister

The BBC’s political correspondent, Nick Eardley, has just summed things up on BBC Radio 4 like this: “Liz Truss faced one of the most daunting entries of modern times, Mr Sunak faces an even more daunting one – plus he has to pick a cabinet that will unite the party.”

When he becomes PM, Rishi Sunak will be doing many things for the first time in modern politics – he will be the first PM of colour, the first Hindu, the youngest since William Pitt the Younger.

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Rishi Sunak to meet King Charles on Tuesday morning before taking over as PM and says UK faces ‘profound economic challenge’ – as it happened

Rishi Sunak to meet monarch after Liz Truss chairs her final cabinet meeting at 9am

I’m Helen Sullivan, with for the next while. If you have questions or see news we may have missed, you can get in touch on Twitter here.

We’re expected to hear from Nadhim Zahawi, who made a dizzying U-turn from supporting Johnson to supporting Sunak yesterday, on Sky News at 07.05 this morning.

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Rishi Sunak urged to scrap ‘undemocratic’ proposals to axe 2,400 laws

Charities and trade unions among those calling on new PM to shelve bill that would scrap EU-era legislation protecting workers’ rights and the environment

Employers, trade unions, lawyers and environmentalists are calling on Rishi Sunak to scrap Jacob Rees-Mogg’s legislation that would sweep away 2,400 laws derived from the EU.

The retained EU law (revocation and reform) bill is due for its second reading in the House of Commons on Tuesday, which would scrap protections including the ban on animal testing for cosmetics, workers’ rights and environmental measures.

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Accept Brexit protocol talks and return to powersharing, DUP urged

Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker also says new elections will be called if deadline to return to Stormont passes

The Northern Ireland minister, Steve Baker, has made a direct appeal to the Democratic Unionist party to accept EU-UK negotiations on the Brexit protocol and return to powersharing in Stormont.

He also warned that if the DUP did not return to Stormont by Friday’s deadline, the government would call fresh assembly elections .

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