Category Archives: Brexit

EU leaders gather for summit as Boris Johnson scrambles to get backing for Brexit deal – Politics live

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Prime minister is racing to secure backing from Democratic Unionist party for deal, which EU said they could approve today

For those of you who missed this, late last night Louise Ellman, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, announced she was leaving the Labour Party because she could “no longer advocate voting Labour when it risks Corbyn becoming PM”.

Dame Louise, 73, who is Jewish, said she had been “deeply troubled” by the “growth of anti-Semitism” in Labour in recent years.

I have made the truly agonising decision to leave the Labour Party after 55 years. I can no longer advocate voting Labour when it risks Corbyn becoming PM. I will continue to serve the people of Liverpool Riverside as I have had the honour to do since 1997. pic.twitter.com/3BTzUacZvo

Lord Adonis is up and tweeting early, as he often does. He is reiterating his view that Johnson will end up being forced to ask the EU for an extension beyond 31 October.

Obviously Parliament cannot vote tomorrow on a deal which has not been agreed, let alone published, as a legal text. So he will still have to apply for an extension, which is the key operative fact today

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Brexit: Irish PM hints extra EU summit might be needed because ‘many issues’ still to be resolved– live news

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Prime minister will brief cabinet today on latest negotiations as UK and EU teams resume talks

These are from RTE’s Tony Connelly.

BREAKING: Michel Barnier has told EU Commissioners he is optimistic of getting a deal done today, @rtenews understands

2/ However, there still outstanding issues, so this could go right to the wire.

3/ It's understood VAT has emerged as a last minute problem: if NI remains inside the EU's VAT system, essential for North-South trade, then a new mechanism will have to be created for East-West trade, as the UK will be in its own VAT system

4/ However, it's understood officials are confident that a solution can be found.

5/ It's understood consent is also proving difficult, with a senior EU source saying the DUP are pushing to restore a tighter Stormont lock

6/ The third big hurdle is on the "level playing field" provisions. The EU is concerned at Boris Johnson's bid to dilute Theresa May's commitments to not stray far from the EU's environmental, state aid, social and labour standards

7/ The meeting of EU ambassadors, whom Barnier will brief, is still scheduled for 14hr CET, suggesting that the timings are still on course

ITV’s Robert Peston say the DUP are going back to Downing Street for another meeting.

DUP going back into Downing St, to try to find a way through roadblock. https://t.co/TDNS9amGqy

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Boris Johnson ‘on brink of Brexit deal’ after border concessions

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Negotiators understood to have agreed in principle to customs border down Irish Sea

Boris Johnson appears to be on the brink of reaching a Brexit deal after making major concessions to EU demands over the Irish border.

A draft text of the agreement could now be published on Wednesday if Downing Street gives the final green light, according to senior EU and British sources.

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Boris Johnson wins more backing from MPs for Brexit deal

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Eurosceptics and Labour MPs indicate they could back prime minister’s deal if he clinches agreement in Brussels

Boris Johnson is edging towards the parliamentary numbers needed to pass a Brexit deal after more hardline Eurosceptics and pro-deal Labour MPs indicated they could back a new agreement made with the EU.

The prime minister will need to win over almost all the 28 Tory “Spartans” who held out against Theresa May’s deal if he manages to bring an agreement back from Brussels, as well as either the Democratic Unionist party or a chunk of Labour backbenchers.

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Brexit: Jeremy Corbyn dismisses Queen’s speech as ‘farce’ – live news

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The day’s political developments as they happen, including the Queen’s speech, and Johnson and Corbyn speaking in the subsequent debate

Johnson says Labour’s plan to scrap Ofsted is “insane”.

He says that one nation Conservatives like himself support Ofsted because they believe in standards.

Back in the debate Labour’s Angela Eagle says Merseyside has lost 1,120 police officers. Why is it only being allowed to recruit 200 more.

Johnson says this is just the first wave of recruitment.

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Brexit talks fail to yield breakthrough with timely deal feared ‘impossible’

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Barnier warns negotiations may have to continue as UK’s Irish border plans are an ‘untested’ risk

A breakthrough in the Brexit talks has failed to materialise after a weekend of intensive negotiations, with European Union capitals concluding that it may now be impossible for the UK to leave the EU by 31 October with a deal.

In a briefing to EU ambassadors on Sunday evening, the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, raised the prospect of the talks having to continue after the forthcoming leaders’ summit on Thursday, such was the lack of progress.

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Support grows for a new Brexit poll amid fears over Johnson’s plan

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DUP raises doubts on customs union, while Labour says it will whip MPs to support a second referendum

Pro-remain MPs predicted on Saturday that they were gaining sufficient cross-party support to secure a second Brexit referendum as fresh doubts were raised over whether Boris Johnson can secure a deal with the EU that can pass through parliament.

Related: No-deal Brexit will wreck Tories’ reputation as party of business, says Lidington

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Brexit deal prospects look promising, says Nicky Morgan

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Minister voices hopes of progress after talks between UK and Ireland over border

The prospects of a Brexit deal with the EU appear to be “promising” after negotiations between Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar over the Irish border, Nicky Morgan has said.

A day after the British prime minister signalled the possibility of a U-turn on his plans, the culture secretary said the “mood music … seems positive, but clearly there are lots of details to be worked out.”

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Johnson’s major U-turn sets up 48 hours to clinch Brexit deal

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EU gives go-ahead to weekend meetings after PM appears to backtrack on customs stance

Boris Johnson has signalled that he will make a last-ditch U-turn on his plans for the Irish border, setting up 48 hours of intense negotiations that will make or break a Brexit deal.

On a day of rapid movement in talks, EU sources said the prime minister had conceded that there could not be a customs border on the island of Ireland – a critical step away from his previous position.

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Brexit: Barnier and Barclay hold talks after positive Johnson-Varadkar meeting on potential deal – live news

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Follow the latest political developments after Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar agreed there was a “pathway to a possible Brexit deal” after an unexpectedly constructive meeting

The Pro-Brexit Tory MP, Nigel Evans, has said members of the Eurosceptic European Research Group could vote for concessions on Northern Ireland if the DUP was in favour.

“I think it is very difficult to get it through without the DUP, but we have seen a shift from the DUP already,” he said according to PA.

“We’re going to look at the detail - none of us know.

“I believe it is three dimensional poker and we’re playing very high risk stakes here.

ITV’s Joe Pike has been told that the Labour defector, Angela Smith, now a Lib Dem MP, plans to stand against the Tory backbench shop steward Graham Brady.

She faces a tough battle: In 2017 Brady secured a majority of more than 6,000 votes over Labour with the LibDems a very distant third.

Angela Smith says: ‘Me and the @LibDems are confident we stand an excellent chance of winning the seat.’

The Altrincham constituency leans Remain and Sir Graham Brady is pro-Brexit.

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Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar say they ‘see pathway’ to Brexit deal

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Taoiseach ‘convinced’ UK and Ireland want an agreement in interests of all parties

Boris Johnson and Leo Varadkar have agreed there is a “pathway to a possible Brexit deal”, surprising sceptical EU officials with their upbeat assessment after more than three hours of private talks.

The British prime minister hosted his Irish counterpart at a country house in the north-west of England for talks on Thursday that had been expected to break down. But when the pair emerged from discussions they painted a more optimistic picture, suggesting the Brexit logjam could be broken by the end of the month.

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Brexit: Varadkar says new agreement ‘possible’ by end of October after talks with Johnson – live news

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Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happen, including Boris Johnson’s meeting with Leo Varadkar to discuss Brexit

Brexit party MEPs vote against plans to address Russian propaganda

Brexit party MEPs vote against plans to tackle Russian propaganda https://t.co/ZP99X4GXrN

A few key dates for the diary:

Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay will meet the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, in Brussels on Friday when they are expected to assess whether there are the grounds to move forward.

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Boris Johnson to meet Leo Varadkar over Brexit compromise

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Pair to meet in north-west England on Thursday and discuss Northern Ireland

Boris Johnson is set for a private meeting with the Irish taoiseach on Thursday in a last-ditch attempt to come to a Brexit compromise over Northern Ireland, after talks came to a sudden halt in Brussels.

Johnson and Leo Varadkar have opted to meet on “neutral” territory in the north-west of England rather than Dublin or London, as negotiations enter a make-or-break phase ahead of next week’s EU summit.

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Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal appears doomed as deadline looms

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EU may offer to extend Brexit talks to summer, despite PM’s insistence UK will leave on 31 October

Boris Johnson’s Brexit plan appeared to be all but dead on Tuesday night as the government admitted there was little prospect of a deal before 31 October, following a day of furious recriminations.

The prime minister spoke to the Irish taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, on the phone after a stormy 24 hours of briefing and counter-briefing, as concerns about his tactics were even raised in Johnson’s cabinet.

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Brexit: Tusk accuses Johnson of ‘stupid blame game’ as No 10 signals talks about to collapse – live news

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Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as doubts grow over future of Brexit negotiations

This is from Mujtaba Rahman, the Brexit specialist at the Eurasia consultancy.

Collapse of negotiations now leaves MPs with a huge dilemma. Do they put trust in Benn Act to be robust enough to prevent the no-deal Boris will now gravitate to? Or do they oust him in a VONC to make totally sure? Former more likely- still no sign of agreement on caretaker PM

And these are from the BBC’s Berlin correspondent, Jenny Hill.

Worth bearing in mind the following when looking at No 10’s interpretation of Merkel / Johnson call. 1. This confrontational language / style is unusual for Merkel 2. Germany - more than most - has been careful to avoid leaks / statements which wld inflame tensions between UK&EU

3. My understanding is that German govt still ready to work to find solution not least because....4. Germany doesn’t want no deal. Met president of German exporters assoc earlier - they are horrified by prospect

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PM urged to confront Trump over US tariffs on scotch whisky

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MPs say thousands of jobs, many in rural Scotland, could be at risk from planned 25% tax

MPs are calling on Boris Johnson to intervene directly with Donald Trump to prevent the US imposing punitive tariffs of 25% on imported scotch whisky later this month.

The US announced last week that scotch would be among a range of European goods subject to hefty import taxes from 18 October, as it hits back against the EU in the long-running trade dispute over subsidies for Airbus.

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No 10 continues to deflect blame for Brexit impasse on to EU

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PM calls on EU to engage but leaked document suggests it has refuted his plans in detail

Downing Street has sought to deflect the blame for the Brexit impasse on to Britain’s EU counterparts, as Boris Johnson’s plans continued to meet a frosty reception.

After the French president, Emmanuel Macron, set a deadline of Friday for progress towards a deal, the prime minister’s official No 10 spokesman repeatedly said Johnson was still waiting for the EU27 to engage with Britain’s plan.

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Revealed: the EU’s point-by-point rejection of Johnson’s Brexit plan

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Exclusive: Leaked papers obtained by the Guardian show extent of fundamental objections Brussels has raised

The European Union’s full devastating point-by-point rejection of Boris Johnson’s Brexit proposals for the Irish border has been revealed in documents obtained by the Guardian.

Leaked documents lay bare the scale of the multiple faults highlighted to David Frost, the prime minister’s chief negotiator, during the recent talks.

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‘It’s like a death sentence’: retired Britons in EU face loss of healthcare

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Reciprocal scheme in which NHS reimburses cost of treatment will cease under a no-deal Brexit

Britons with serious, sometimes terminal, illnesses who live in the EU say they have no certainty about how or even whether their healthcare costs will be covered after a no-deal Brexit and are suffering a “living nightmare” of anxiety and despair.

“It’s like a death sentence,” said Denise Abel, who moved to Italy in 2012. “It’s all you think about. I feel abandoned, betrayed and furious. There are no words for the rage I feel. We’re the collateral damage in the government’s war with the EU.”

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Macron gives Johnson until end of week to overhaul Brexit plan

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French president’s insistence that UK should give way raises chances of talks imploding

The French president has given Boris Johnson until the end of the week to fundamentally revise his Brexit plan, in a move that increases the chances of the negotiations imploding within days.

The UK proposals tabled last week are not regarded in Brussels as being a basis for a deal and Emmanuel Macron emphasised it was up to the UK to think again before an upcoming EU summit.

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