EU

Guardian
Britain has been unnecessarily damaged by Brexit and “more will follow”, the vice-president of the European commission has written in a “love letter” to the British people in which he promises a warm welcome back should attitudes change. Frans Timmermans, who is Ursula von der Leyen’s deputy in her role as European commission president, writes that British scepticism of the EU had been an asset to the bloc as he expresses his own feelings of rejection ahead of the country’s impending departure on 31 January, likening himself to a jilted “old lover’s

Express
GERMANY is braced for more economic woes in 2020 as companies continue to suffer due to high taxes and a shortage of skilled workers. Angela Merkel, who is due to step down as Chancellor in 2021, will be faced with the prospect of weak forecasts as she heads into the New Year. A recent survey by Reuters showed representatives of major businesses expect next year to be another weak year for the economy. Dieter Kempf, president of BDI (Federation of German Industries) has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of the government and has urged politicians to wake up to the economic realities at and and quit their “slumbering”. In comments carried by cash.ch, Mr Kempf said: “We have become a slumbering country because we were really well-off for ten years.

Fisheries

Express
EUROPEAN Union access to British waters costs the UK a colossal £8billion annually despite the UK only having access nine percent of some fish, the nation’s fishing industries have raged. Fishing for Leave, which represents the UK’s booming fishing industry, has condemned the figure which is paid for by British taxpayers in addition to the annual EU membership fee estimated to be £350million weekly – or £4.2billion annually. They also gave an insight into what fish the EU has developed a taste for – herring and mackerel. A spokesman for Fishing for leave said: “Just these two species alone give a small snapshot of the huge £6-8billion adrenaline hit to British coastal communities we hope to repatriate with Brexit and see distributed to all fishermen and communities to see whole areas rejuvenated. “This should automatically happen upon withdrawal from the EU when the CFP and its unfair quota shares automatically ‘cease to apply’ as per Article 50. “When Britain reverts to international law under UNCLOS which confers exclusive sovereignty over all waters and resources within our Exclusive Economic Zone.

Brexit

Guardian
London is expected to co-host the next stage of post-Brexit negotiations with Brussels in a symbolic shift marking the UK’s position outside the EU after 31 January. The most likely location for the talks involving teams led by Michel Barnier for the EU and a yet-to-be-identified minister for the British government is the Cabinet Office in Whitehall. Brussels took centre stage over the past three years as the UK remained an EU member state.

Express
BORIS JOHNSON’s hopes of striking a trade deal with the EU by the end of the year have been rated as 50/50 by an influential US think tank – which also puts the chances of a similar agreement with the United States at just one in four in what will be a Presidential election year. The Washington-based Atlantic Council revealed its assessment during an analysis written by Robert A Manning is a resident senior fellow with the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security (SCSS), and Mathew J Burrows, the director of the Atlantic Council’s Foresight, Strategy, and Risks Initiative, also attached to the SCSS. After Mr Johnson’s Brexit deal was approved by MPs last week, Britain is on course to leave the EU by January 31 – but the pressure is on to strike a wide-ranging free trade agreement with the bloc by December 31, 2020, with the Withdrawal Agreement Bill including a commitment to make it illegal for Parliament to legislate for an extension to the transition period. However, such an FTA with Brussels is far from guaranteed, with former World Trade Organization (WTO) adviser David Tinline suggesting Mr Johnson’s determination to “get Brexit done” made a hard Brexit, or even one on WTO rules, highly probable.

Labour Party

Sun
JEREMY Corbyn was the reason why more than a third of 2017 Labour voters abandoned the party at the election earlier this month, a survey has revealed. More than 35 per cent of former Labour voters said he was the reason why they didn’t vote red this time around – more than any other reason given. The second biggest factor was Brexit, with one in five 2017 Labour voters ditching the party because of its chaotic policy of renegotiating our exit deal with Brussels before holding a second referendum. Twice as many of these were Leave voters than Remainers, according to a YouGov poll of 496 2017 Labour voters who did not vote for the party in 2019.

Boris bridge

Telegraph
Boris Johnson’s plan to build a bridge between Northern Ireland and Scotland is worth examining but the UK should pay for it, the Irish Prime Minister has said. Leo Varadkar said he had discussed the idea of a bridge with Mr Johnson recently, revealing he told the UK premier it was “worth examining”. Mr Johnson and the Democratic Unionist Party have spoken in favour of the idea, and last week the Prime Minister told reporters to “watch this space.” But Mr Varadkar said if a bridge was built, he would expect the UK to pay for it. He revealed Mr Johnson had said the EU would pay for the bridge, which Mr Varadkar said was “definitely not going to happen”.

Express
IRELAND’S Taoiseach (Prime Minister) has not ruled out the idea of building a bridge between Northern Ireland and Scotland – as long as the UK pays for it. Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the Democratic Unionist Party have spoken in favour of the idea. Last week Mr Johnson described it as a “very interesting idea”, adding: “Watch this space.” Leo Varadkar said he had discussed the idea with Mr Johnson recently, revealing he told the UK premier it was “worth examining”. But the Taoiseach said he had also told Mr Johnson he would expect the UK to pay for it. He said: ”At which point he suggested, ‘no, no, the EU is going to pay for it’. “So that’s definitely not going to happen, because neither Northern Ireland or Scotland are going to be in the EU.

The economy

Telegraph
Economic growth is set to take off from almost nothing in the final few months of this year to a solid rate at the end of 2020 and potentially a faster pace in the years ahead once the final Brexit deal is complete. However, a sharp boom is unlikely as businesses and traders await full details of the post-Brexit deal with the EU, preparing the way for a pickup in growth in 2021 and beyond. The new year should get an immediate boost from extra government spending, firstly on day-to-day consumption and then on investment once more money is ploughed into infrastructure, analysts predict.

Sun
BRITAIN’s economy has defied forecasts predicting it would be overtaken by France as a new report reveals we have cemented sixth place in the world. And by 2034 the UK’s economy is now predicted to be a quarter larger than France’s, according to research by the annual World Economic Rankings from the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). This is despite forecasts predicting Brexit would trigger an economic slowdown that would allow France to leapfrog Britain. France was due to overtake the UK economy in the 2016-19 period but failed to do so. The research also found that the USA now makes up for a quarter of the world’s GDP – the largest share of the world’s economy since 2007. And the American economy is not due to be overtaken by China until 2033 – three years later than forecast.

Press freedom

Times
There is no right not to be offended, the outgoing chairman of Britain’s leading press regulator has told campaigners. Sir Alan Moses, a former lord justice of appeal, defended freedom of speech, though he acknowledged that it could have “the most unpleasant” effect on victims. He said that state licensing of newspapers would be “fundamentally dangerous” and recalled the murder of a journalist in Malta to show the importance of a free press. Sir Alan, 74, told The Times that the media must be allowed to discuss sensitive subjects such as religion. He described offence complaints as one of the most challenging issues in press regulation, but said that the feelings of individuals could not automatically trump the right to free expression.

Health

Telegraph
Newly diagnosed cancer patients will be signed up for NHS fitness bootcamps, in a radical bid to boost survival. Thousands will be enrolled in “prehab“ schemes in the new year, with patients asked to complete around three weeks’ intensive exercise, before treatment gets underway. Experts say getting fighting fit can help the body tolerate gruelling regimes such as chemotherapy. But the plan is likely to prove controversial, as patients will be asked to sign up for the gym within around 48 hours of being given a devastating diagnosis.  Simon Stevens, NHS chief executive, said the radical approach aimed to “prime” the body for recovery, boosting strength before chemotherapy or major surgery.

Sun
CANCER patients will be prescribed gym classes within 48 hours of diagnosis under radical NHS plans to boost survival. Health service boss Simon Stevens says getting sick Brits “match fit” can improve their outcomes. But campaigners warn sending shell-shocked patients for workouts may prove unpopular. Early NHS trials show “exercise prescriptions” before therapy help tumour patients. Keeping active throughout treatment was found to improve levels of fatigue, anxiety, depression and quality of life. Cancer experts claim getting fighting fit, known as “prehab”, can help patients live longer. The NHS is planning a New Year rollout involving more than 4,000 recently diagnosed patients. Patients will get diet advice, free gym membership, and be told to have at least nine high-intensity workouts before surgery.

ITV News
The NHS is hoping that a new pre-treatment fitness programme will lead to better odds of survival for thousands of cancer patients. People who have been diagnosed with the disease are being given the option of entering into a ‘prehab’ regime of three fitness sessions a week, including a mix of high intensity cardio workouts and strength-based training. Alongside physical exercise, patients are also able to receive nutritional advice and mental health support – all of which can help reduce the side effects of chemotherapy and the amount of time spent in hospital, doctors said. “Cancer treatments now work better than ever, but they can really take a toll on your body,” NHS chief executive Simon Stevens said.

Foxhunting

Mirror
Fox hunts will meet across the country today – nearly 15 years after the bloodsport was banned.  The 2004 Hunting Act came into force on February 18, 2005 – stopping the cruel practice of hunting wild mammals, including foxes, deer and hares, with dogs. However, the ban has failed to prevent hunts meeting to carry out legal drag or trail hunts. Campaigners claim these are a “cover” for foxes to continue to be mauled to death by packs of hounds. The charity said it had received 184 reports of suspected illegal fox hunting since the season began in late October.

Times
Campaigners have declared that foxhunting will be consigned to history as a majority of MPs now declare themselves to be against it. Although foxhunting has been banned since 2004, there have been significant efforts in Westminster to bring back the practice, a Boxing Day tradition that continues in the form of trail hunts. There are expected to be more than 80 hunts today across the UK, with the majority taking place in England, according to the Countryside Alliance. David Cameron brought a vote on repealing the ban in 2015, but it was shelved after SNP opposition. Boris Johnson also dropped a vote on the ban from the Conservatives’ election manifesto.

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