Brexit
The Express reports on one of several aspects of the Brexit negotiations.
BRUSSELS was accused of overseeing an anti-British stitch-up today after appointing two federalist chums as its chief Brexit negotiators.
Leading Brexiteers reacted with dismay after Belgian politicians Guy Verhofstadt and Didier Seeuws, who worked together to champion an EU superstate, were handed the crucial roles in the exit talks.
Ukip’s Nigel Farage accused Brussels bureaucrats of being “puerile and partisan” with the appointments, with a Tory MEP described as part of a “back room deal” to stitch-up the Brexit negotiations.
Mr Seeuws acted as spokesman for the EU Parliament’s Liberal leader Mr Verhofstadt whilst the latter was the Belgian prime minister, during which time both argued vociferously for the effective creation of a United States of Europe.
Mr Verhofstadt has already made a number of inflammatory remarks about Britain’s decision to leave the EU, recently launching a six-point plan to take advantage of Brexit and create a European superstate.
The Guardian claims the EU is ganging up against us.
British-based financial institutions must be prevented post-Brexit from selling their services in the eurozone, Emmanuel Macron , the likely progressive left candidate for the French presidency has told the Guardian.
He said a ban on so-called financial passporting rights , seen as potentially highly damaging to the City of London and one of the most fraught issues in Brexit talks, “should not be seen as a technical issue but a matter of sovereignty”.
Financial services passporting allows banks and other financial companies, like insurers and accountancy firms, to operate across the European Union based on their authorisation in a single member state.
Macron, currently the best prospect of preventing a rightwing victory in next year’s presidential election, added he could not see how the UK could be granted a financial passport unless it contributed to the EU budget in the same way as Switzerland and Norway.
And the Express reports that senior Vote Leave leaders are watching the Prime Minister carefully.
LEADING Brexiteers are set to effectively resurrect the defunct Vote Leave campaign to prevent Theresa May from backsliding on leaving the European Union.
Key figures from the push to get Britain out of Brussels are forming a new pressure group to ensure the new PM sticks to the referendum result on key issues like migration.
The new campaign, which will be called Change Britain, will be headed up by Labour MP Gisela Stuart who lit up the EU referendum debate with her sparkling performances, according to Politico.
Key figures from the push to get Britain out of Brussels are forming a new pressure group to ensure the new PM sticks to the referendum result on key issues like migration.
The new campaign, which will be called Change Britain, will be headed up by Labour MP Gisela Stuart who lit up the EU referendum debate with her sparkling performances, according to Politico.
The Telegraph reports that the EU thinks we will eventually crawl back to them begging for readmittance.
Britain has become “completely lost” post Brexit and can eventually be expected to “plead” for a deal when it realises the weakness of its position at the negotiating table, senior European Commission officials now believe.
While officially pressing for Britain to invoke Article 50 and begin divorce talks, officials in Brussels are taking growing satisfaction in what they believe is paralysis and disarray in Theresa May’s new government, according to internal discussions seen by The Telegraph.
The spectacle of Mrs May rebuking David Davis , the Brexit minister, at Prime Minister’s Questions for prematurely revealing the government’s hand was taken as further evidence in Brussels that Downing Street does not have a coherent strategy for Brexit , according to one Commission insider.
Wales
The Guardian claims the Welsh government will demand input into the Brexit deal.
Carwyn Jones , the first minister of Wales, has warned that the UK faces being broken up if the four parliaments are not given a final say on any Brexit deal.
Jones, who leads Labour in Wales, said his country would not approve any Brexit deal that did not include guaranteed access to the single market.
The first minister, who is in the US to strengthen trade links, said he believed the interests of Wales were well served by membership of the UK, that the UK was better and stronger for encompassing Wales , a view he claimed was shared by a large majority of Welsh people.
And the UK could even break up, reports the Independent
The UK risks breaking up unless all home nations play a hands-on role in the Brexit negotiations, Wales’s First Minister Carwyn Jones has warned.
This week Prime Minister Theresa May has vowed she will not be giving a “running commentary” on her Government’s plans about leaving the European Union. But Welsh Labour leader Mr Jones believes that talks will fail if they just end up being a two-way dialogue between Brussels and London.
The former barrister, who is on a trade mission in the US, will speak about Britain’s vote to leave the EU at a speech in Chicago. He is expected to say: “Wales and the other devolved nations must play a full and active role in the negotiations to leave the EU, to ensure our interests are fully protected. Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast must also have seats at the table.
Education
Education chiefs don’t like the selective schools proposals put forward by the Prime Minister, says the Mail
The massed ranks of the educational establishment, dubbed ‘The Blob’ by Tories, yesterday reacted with fury to Government plans for a new wave of selective schools in England.
Militant teachers pledged to lobby MPs and parents over the radical overhaul, warning Theresa May that ‘this is not an argument that has been won’.
They were joined in their opposition by Ofsted chief Sir Michael Wilshaw, former education secretary and independent school pupil Nicky Morgan and the Labour Party, which has pledged to fight the plans ‘every step of the way’.
The Blob is a term used by Mrs Morgan’s predecessor Michael Gove to attack teachers, union leaders and other education professionals who resisted his school reforms.
Under the biggest education revolution in decades, the Prime Minister unveiled proposals to lift the longstanding ban on new or expanded grammars, with a £50million annual government subsidy to support new places.
Or the proposals surrounding faith schools, says the Mail
Theresa May faced a revolt yesterday over her faith school plans amid claims they could unwittingly lead to classrooms becoming incubators for extremism.
Under the proposals, faith schools will be allowed to select more pupils based on religion. Current rules limit oversubscribed new free faith schools to only selecting half of their intake by reference to faith.
Yesterday, Mrs May swept away this limit to the delight of the Catholic church, which has over 2,000 schools in England, educating almost 820,000 pupils.
The rule has been blamed for preventing new Catholic schools from opening. But she faced condemnation from critics, who warned of ‘ghettoisation’ and risks of potential radicalisation among pupils.
Within her own party, Tory MP Dr Sarah Wollaston branded the plans a ‘regressive step’ that she will vote against.
European travel
It seems that we may need visas to travel into Europe after Brexit, says Sky News
British citizens may have to apply for visas to travel to Europe after the UK leaves the EU, according to reports.
A scheme apparently being debated by the European Commission suggests the 26-nation passport-free Schengen zone, which does not include the UK, could operate a visa programme similar to the US waiver.
Currently UK passport holders can travel throughout member states without having to apply for short-term visas.
But Britain’s decision to leave the EU has left question marks over the criteria needed for UK nationals to visit the Schengen zone
The story is covered by the Star
HEADING off to Magaluf, Benidorm or Ibiza has long been an easy trip for Brits looking for a bit of continental fun in the sun.
But Brexit negotiations could see holidaymakers forced to apply for a visa before jetting off.
Senior EU politicians are putting together plans to make countries outside of the free movement “Schengen” zone apply for visas – similar to the system used by the US, Canada and Australia.
The system risks adding more stress to people looking for easy jetset thrills on the continent.
But officials are looking to bring in the restrictions to stop terrorists taking advantage of open European borders after attacks in France and Belgium.
And also reported by ITV News
Britons may require visas to travel throughout continental Europe once the UK leaves the EU, it has been reported.
A visa programme similar to the US waiver system is apparently being debated by the executive body of the EU, according to The Guardian.
Currently, British passport holders can travel throughout the 26-nation passport-free Schengen zone without having to apply for short-term visas.
But Britain’s decision to leave the EU has now left questions over the criteria needed for UK nations to visit the Schengen zone.
Financial centre
Reuters reports that the government has warned the EU not to break up the City’s financial district.
Chancellor Philip Hammond warned other European Union countries they would be making a “huge mistake” if they tried to break up London’s dominance as a global financial centre after the country leaves the bloc.
In a sign of tense negotiations that lie ahead as Britain tries to negotiate its exit from the EU while keeping as much access as possible to its single market, Hammond said London’s “complex ecosystem” of banks and financial services could not be replicated elsewhere.
“To break it up or try to damage it in the pursuit of some very narrow and hypothetical national advantage would be a huge mistake for any of our European Union partners to follow,” he told lawmakers.
“London’s financial services market supports the real economy across Europe, and not just in the UK. German car manufacturers, Italian manufacturers of consumer white goods use the City of London,” Hammond said.
Labour Party
The Sun claims Labour will not discuss Brexit at their conference.
HAPLESS Labour bosses failed to include Brexit from their upcoming party conference programme, sparking accusations the party are ducking the issue.
Despite overwhelming support in Labour heartlands for leaving the EU – and the party’s claim to be engaged in the Brexit debate – there is no mention of it in Labour’s conference timetable, released on Thursday.
Conservative MP Oliver Dowden said: “It is extraordinary that one of the biggest decisions that Britain has made since the war doesn’t even feature on Labour’s conference agenda.
“Labour don’t believe that Britain can thrive outside of the EU and have no plan to ensure we get the best deal for the British people.
“They are simply too divided, incompetent and chaotic to make Brexit work for Britain.”
And the Guardian suggests the Co-operative party could break away from its parent.
The Co-operative party aims to develop some “distinctive and independent” policy stances separate from those of Labour , its chairman has said before the party’s annual conference.
The political movement, whose strapline is “politics for people”, has been allied to Labour since 1927 , and 25 MPs currently sit in parliament on a joint ticket.
The party recently rejected speculation that it could be a vehicle for Labour MPs who oppose Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership to split away and form their own movement. It is staying neutral in the Labour leadership contest.
Gareth Thomas, the MP for Harrow West and Co-operative chair, said the party would be making more of an effort ahead of its 100-year anniversary in 2017 to develop a voice more of its own.
UKIP leadership
One of the leadership contenders has been criticised by party members, says Breitbart
UK Independence Party leadership candidate Lisa Duffy has drawn criticism from prominent members of the party after suggesting that Britons be “re-educated” towards left-wing, LGBT, identity politics.
Speaking to the LGBT in UKIP group, Ms. Duffy incorrectly identifies Northern Ireland as a “Catholic country” and says the nation is “behind the curve” on the issue of same-sex marriage.
Asked about Northern Ireland’s more traditional politics, she replied: “This is a Catholic country where they are behind the curve on issues such as this. I like to think that we seriously need to re-educate people and promote progression”.
Unite union
The Independent reports the union has bought its leader a flat.
The Unite union has defended giving its leader, Len McCluskey , £400,000 to help him buy a central London flat as “extraordinarily commonplace”.
Britain’s biggest union came under fire after it emerged it put forward 60 per cent of the cost of the £700,000 property, just south of the river Thames, in February this year.
One union insider said there would be “much disquiet” over the arrangement, at a time when many of Unite’s members are struggling, according to The Guardian.
But Howard Beckett, executive director for legal services at Unite, insisted its agreement with Mr McCluskey was not a loan, but an equity share arrangement – which was often used to help general secretaries buy homes in London.
And he insisted the deal would raise more money for Unite’s members when the property was eventually sold.
Theresa May is right about grammar schools, but she has opened up a can of worms with her announcement on ‘faith schools’. Catholic schools, OK – just. We are still a culture founded on Christian values and morals. But what’s to stop more and more islamic schools appearing to take advantage of this? We’ve seen the consequences of allowing fanatical muslims to take over the boards and teaching staff of islamic schools, segregating the sexes with obvious disadvantage to the girls, promoting anti-British sentiment; and I won’t be surprised if there are more exposures to come.
It really is time in this secular country (ie, church and state separate entities) that no religion is allowed to be running children’s education and indoctrinating them in their particular brand of superstition. We should follow the USA’s example and ban religion from schools, leaving it as a private subject for church and family life. At least it would give the children some mental freedom to make up their own minds about their beliefs instead of having a particular faith being rammed down their throats all day along with academic subjects.
Well, looks like Labour will do it again at their forthcoming Conference – ignore the biggest mammoth in the room and not bother to mention Brexit! (The Sun)
It’s like Ed Miliband all over again when he made a Conference speech before the 2015 election and managed to ‘forget’ to mention both immigration and the economy.
Still, what CAN Labour say about Brexit that won’t sound either hypocritical or backward-looking? We’ll have to excuse their reticence on the grounds of embarrassment.
Ironically visas are probably a very good idea because this country is so appallingly bad at encouraging foreign tourists from beyond (passport-free) Europe that we are “138th out of 140 countries in terms of tourism price competitiveness”. World Economic Forum 2013.
Any party that takes UK tourism seriously would find a very welcome economic benefit awaiting them and the prospect of having to produce visas on a large scale might just open a few eyes.
Any one know who the minister for tourism is? Which department? In charge of the 3rd largest source of overseas income….
An opportunity for Ukip I’d suggest.
European travel:
Let them impose visas, let’s just make sure that our government responds in a like manner.