Category Archives: European Union

Brexit: no-deal exit edges closer as key Tories refuse to back Corbyn

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Oliver Letwin becomes latest figure to reject call for unity government led by Labout leader

Splits in the anti-no deal alliance of MPs in parliament threatened to stymie plans to stop a no-deal Brexit on Friday, as Conservatives and independent MPs ruled out backing plans brokered by Jeremy Corbyn.

The row between the Liberal Democrats and Labour deepened as the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, urged the Lib Dem leader, Jo Swinson, to seriously reconsider Corbyn’s offer to head a temporary government to stop a no-deal Brexit. The Lib Dem’s former leader Vince Cable demanded Corbyn name a unity figure whom he would back if his plan failed.

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Jo Swinson says she would work with Labour to avoid no-deal Brexit

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Lib Dem leader also says she thinks Corbyn-led unity government would not win MPs’ confidence

The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Jo Swinson, has reiterated that she would work with the Labour party to prevent a no-deal Brexit amid pressure from other opposition leaders, but underlined her belief that a Jeremy Corbyn-led unity government would not win the confidence of the House of Commons.

The Conservative grandee Ken Clarke and senior Labour MP Harriet Harman – the father and mother of the house – are prepared to lead the emergency government, Swinson added, saying she had won both of their assurances.

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Corbyn: Westminster should not block second Scotland poll

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Labour leader opposes UK breakup but says not parliament’s place to bar independence vote

Jeremy Corbyn has confirmed he believes Westminster should not block a second referendum on Scottish independence, but said he opposed the breakup of the UK.

Corbyn implicitly endorsed remarks by his close ally John McDonnell last week where he said a Labour government would not obstruct a fresh independence vote if there was sufficient support for one in the Scottish parliament.

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Labour bloc plans ‘radical’ move to push through Brexit deal

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Call for ‘dramatic intervention’ to thwart no-deal Brexit by passing withdrawal agreement

Labour MPs opposed to a second referendum are considering a “radical and dramatic intervention” to make clear to Jeremy Corbyn and Boris Johnson they are prepared to vote for a Brexit deal, with one estimating that dozens of colleagues are now ready to back the withdrawal agreement.

Stephen Kinnock, the Labour MP who coordinates around 30 MPs in a group called Respect the Result, said he believed that passing the withdrawal agreement was the most certain way of stopping the UK crashing out without a deal.

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Bercow will ‘fight’ to stop Johnson closing parliament for no deal

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Speaker insists House of Commons cannot be ‘shut down’ and will be heard

The House of Commons Speaker, John Bercow, has said he will “fight with every breath in my body” to stop Boris Johnson from proroguing parliament to force through a no-deal Brexit without the consent of MPs.

Related: No-deal Brexit would be a betrayal, says Philip Hammond

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Hungary’s far-right government vilifies Finland over rule of law inquiry

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PM Viktor Orbán and his spokesman launch series of attacks on Finnish presidency

Finland has pledged to pursue a hearing into alleged breaches of the rule of law by Hungary’s far-right government after a campaign of vilification led by the prime minister, Viktor Orbán.

Related: Europe must stop this disgrace: Viktor Orbán is dismantling democracy | Timothy Garton Ash

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Branding cheese as feta and gruyere may be banned in Australia under EU deal

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The trade minister, Simon Birmingham, has released a list of food products the EU wants protected as ‘geographical indicators’

Australia is gearing up for a fight with the European Union over the naming of hundreds of products including feta, gruyere and scotch beef as negotiations continue over an “ambitious” free trade agreement.

The trade minister, Simon Birmingham, has released a list of names the EU wants protected as part of the new trade deal – known as “geographical indications” or GIs – which are aimed at protecting European products.

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No-deal Brexit battle set to come to head in September

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Opponents of chaotic exit from EU still divided on strategy to outmanoeuvre Boris Johnson

Boris Johnson is preparing for a parliamentary battle against MPs trying to block a no-deal Brexit in the second week of September, as his cross-party opponents continue to be divided about the best way to stop the UK crashing out on 31 October.

A senior government source said Downing Street believed the first legislative showdown over no deal would be on 9 September, when parliament is due to debate a progress report on power-sharing in Northern Ireland.

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Sajid Javid’s plan to flood tills with Brexit 50p coins

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Chancellor said to be preparing to put millions of coins into circulation for 31 October leave date

The chancellor, Sajid Javid, is said to be drawing up plans for millions of 50p Brexit coins to be minted in time for Britain’s departure from the EU.

Javid has asked officials to look at whether it will be possible to produce the coins in volume ready for the UK’s scheduled EU leaving date of 31 October, according to the Sunday Telegraph.

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Brexit: no deal would harm UK security, senior officer warns

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Counter-terror chief raises ‘deep concerns’ as key crime-fighting tools will be lost

The UK’s safety and security would suffer from a no-deal Brexit and no amount of planning and preparation can erase the risk, Britain’s head of counter-terrorism has said.

The Scotland Yard assistant commissioner, Neil Basu, said key crime-fighting tools would be lost and their replacements would not be as good.

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Brexit: Michael Gove accuses ‘wrong and sad’ EU of intransigence

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Ireland warns on relations as Boris Johnson’s government seems intent on no-deal departure

Michael Gove has accused the European Union of intransigence over Brexit talks, calling it “wrong and sad”, as divisions between the UK and Brussels became further entrenched with the government seemingly intent on a no-deal departure.

Gove, who is in charge of no-deal preparations, reiterated Boris Johnson’s position that the only route to progress would be the EU starting again with withdrawal negotiations, something Brussels has repeatedly and consistently ruled out.

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Boris Johnson has no intention of renegotiating Brexit deal, EU told

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No-deal Brexit is British PM’s ‘central scenario’, chief Brussels envoy reportedly says

Boris Johnson has no intention of renegotiating the withdrawal agreement and a no-deal Brexit is his “central scenario”, European diplomats have been told, amid hardening evidence in Westminster that the government is expecting to crash out of the EU.

Brussels diplomats briefed after a meeting between the prime minister’s chief envoy and senior EU figures in Brussels said that Britain’s refusal to compromise was understood to have been clear to those attending.

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No-deal Brexit can still be averted, Labour says

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Jonathan Ashworth rebuts claim there is no time for an election to stop 31 October exit

Downing Street would be wrong to think it is too late for MPs to stop a no-deal Brexit, Labour has said.

The shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, said on Sunday he did not accept a claim, attributed to Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson’s key adviser, that even if MPs were to pass a vote of no confidence in the prime minister in the autumn, the electoral timetable means any general election would not take place in time to stop the UK from leaving the EU on 31 October.

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Edinburgh festival performers refuse sterling payments due to Brexit

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Artists ask to be paid in euros and dollars as pound continues to fall amid no-deal risk

Increasing numbers of artists are asking to be paid in dollars and euros instead of sterling because of Brexit uncertainty, the director of the Edinburgh international festival has said.

The three-week arts festival opened on Friday and includes 293 performances by 2,600 artists from 40 countries. Speaking during its opening weekend, Fergus Linehan, who has been its director since 2015, said many performers had refused to be paid in sterling.

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Migrant rescue ship with 40 people arrives in Malta after EU deal

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Vessel allowed entry under agreement that other countries will look after those onboard

A group of 40 migrants rescued by a German charity ship have landed in Malta and will be taken care of by other EU member states after a deal negotiated by Berlin.

The 40 people were rescued on Wednesday from a small boat off the Libyan coast by the ship Alan Kurdi, which belongs to the NGO Sea-Eye. The NGO then sailed them to southern Italy, saying the port of Lampedusa was the closest and safest harbour.

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Once migrants on Mediterranean were saved by naval patrols. Now they have to watch as drones fly over

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Experts condemn move to aerial surveillance as an abrogation of ‘responsibility to save lives’

Amid the panicked shouting from the water and the smell of petrol from the sinking dinghy, the noise of an approaching engine briefly raises hope. Dozens of people fighting for their lives in the Mediterranean use their remaining energy to wave frantically for help. Nearly 2,000 miles away in the Polish capital, Warsaw, a drone operator watches their final moments via a live transmission. There is no ship to answer the SOS, just an unmanned aerial vehicle operated by the European border and coast guard agency, Frontex.

This is not a scene from some nightmarish future on Europe’s maritime borders but a present-day probability. Frontex, which is based in Warsaw, is part of a £95m investment by the EU in unmanned aerial vehicles, the Observer has learned.

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Secret report reveals government fear of schools chaos after no-deal Brexit

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Risk of axed exams and food shortages, while informing the public ‘may cause panic’

Schools may have to close, exams could be disrupted and fresh food for pupils’ meals could run short because of panic buying with prices soaring by up to 20%, according to a secret Department for Education analysis of the risks of a no-deal Brexit obtained by the Observer.

The five-page document – marked “Official Sensitive” and with the instruction “Do Not Circulate” – also raises the possibility of teacher absences caused by travel disruption, citing schools in Kent as particularly at risk.

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Charming but dishonest and duplicitous: Europe’s verdict on Boris Johnson

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As the Brexit deadline looms, Europe remains wary of the poker player behind the clown mask

He is clever, cultivated, charming; witty, self-deprecating, wildly entertaining and oh so terribly British. Also dissembling, dishonest, dark, duplicitous, and a danger to his country and to Europe – a poker player whose bluff is about to be called.

As Boris Johnson settles into his new role, vowing, do or die, to take the UK out of the EU without a deal in 90 days unless the 27 nations ditch an accord that took two years to negotiate, European politicians and commentators are both fascinated and appalled.

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UK less able to cope with hard Brexit than it was in spring, say officials

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Exclusive: Analysis includes stark assessments of potential problems including panic-buying and civil disorder

The UK is currently less able to cope with a hard Brexit than it was in the spring, with the real risk of panic-buying in the run-up to Christmas and civil disorder if the country leaves the EU without a deal on 31 October, an official document reveals.

The prime minister, Boris Johnson, has made Michael Gove responsible for “turbo-charging” Brexit planning, and on Thursday the new chancellor, Sajid Javid, announced an extra £2.1bn of funding to prepare for a no-deal exit.

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Boris Johnson’s UK tour: did he show he could save the union?

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PM set out to prove his pledge to the ‘awesome foursome’ but not everything went to plan

Boris Johnson pledged his commitment to the “awesome foursome” of the UK when he was elected Conservative leader, and has since embarked on a whistlestop tour taking in the north of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. But how successful were the trips? Visits that involved keeping the prime minister away from booing protesters and, in some cases, journalists? Have they allayed fears that Johnson’s hardline Brexit strategy and the continuation of the union could be mutually exclusive?

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