Brexit

A little-known and little-noticed provision in the European Withdrawal Bill could be the key to triggering a referendum on any Brexit deal, writes ANDREW ADONIS Always read the small print. The monstrous EU Withdrawal Bill, meandering slowly through the Lords, contains a provision which virtually no-one noticed until a few weeks ago. In an apparently […]

Whatever else you can say about an assassination attempt with a powerful Russian nerve agent on its soil, it has certainly told Britain who its friends are. The US, the power the Brexiteers and their press supporters told us repeatedly would be our firmest ally after Brexit (party, and curiously, because Donald Trump’s mother liked […]

Michael Gove thinks he landed a blow on the EU over banning plastic straws. But, as JANE MERRICK​ discovers, environmental groups remain concerned about Brexit The wild-eyed optimism from Theresa May’s government over how Britain would fare post-Brexit has faded, replaced by something a little closer to reality. A year ago, Brexit secretary David Davis […]

Almost no one in Gibraltar wanted Brexit. Now, will the territory be sold out by British ministers desperate for a deal with the EU? HARRY RIDGEWELL goes there to find out As soon as you walk out of Gibraltar International Airport and turn onto Winston Churchill Avenue past the red pillar post boxes it’s obvious […]

Gibraltarians voted overwhelmingly to stay in the EU. And yet, Lib Dem leader VINCE CABLE argues in an exclusive article, they face the hardest Brexit of all Theresa May has been seriously hampered by her own Brexit negotiations with her misconceived and premature red lines. There was no need to rule out staying in the […]

The government has been accused of a “total betrayal” of EU nationals living in Britain who believed their future status had been secured post-Brexit. Former ambassador Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, who wrote Article 50 which triggered the formal withdrawal process, warned that the exodus of essential workers would only speed up. The independent crossbencher made […]

“A price worth paying” is the Brexiteers’ answer to everything. But, says MITCH BENN, they’ve yet to specify what it’s worth paying for I had a stand-up gig in Norwich the other night, and I’ll be honest, I wasn’t especially looking forward to it. It’s not that there’s anything objectionable about the comedy club in […]

The UK economy will benefit from sticking as closely as possible to European Union rules after Brexit, a senior MEP said after talks with Theresa May. Guy Verhofstadt, the European Parliament’s Brexit co-ordinator, said he wanted the UK to sign an association agreement with the EU to cover its relationship after leaving the bloc. Meanwhile, […]

Ousted Ukip leader Henry Bolton today attempted to channel Disraeli as he launched a new political party. Mr Bolton, unceremoniously axed from the Ukip leadership last month following a row over racist texts sent by his girlfriend, said OneNation would serve “a need for a truly professional political party that believes in Britain, that preserves […]

Donald Trump had Britain’s best interests at heart, said the Brexiteers. As he now threatens the world with a trade war, they’re being remarkably quiet One of the most curious assertions of the Brexiteers was that America, and, more specifically, Donald Trump, had Britain’s back. That, despite wildly diverging priorities and interests, Uncle Sam would […]

Patients’ lives could be put at risk after Brexit unless there is progress on continued research co-operation with the European Union, Labour is warning. Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth will say it is “utterly unacceptable” for there to be uncertainty about the arrangements after Brexit. He will also promise that Labour would ensure medics and […]

The prime minister has said the government was looking at customs arrangements between the United States and Canada as a possible solution to the Irish border issue – despite it having armed guards. Speaking in the House of Commons, Theresa May, in answer to a question from Labour MP Emma Reynolds, said: “There are many […]

Theresa May has attempted to set out details of her vision for a future economic relationship with the EU. In a speech at London’s Mansion House, the prime minister set out five “foundations” to underpin the new relationship – including binding commitments to fair competition and a new arbitration mechanism to resolve disputes. She repeated […]

Nigel Farage unfathomably makes his 32nd Question Time appearance tonight. This drinking game might get you through it The last leader but five of a party of a party with no MPs and which controls no councils will take up his regular seat tonight on the BBC’s flagship current affairs show. His appearance has sparked […]

Former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith has confessed he has not actually seen the Sir John Major speech he has spent much of the past day touring studios attacking. The ex-Work and Pension Secretary has described Sir John’s speech, in which the former prime minister attacked the government’s Brexit strategy, as “strangely bitter” and “rather […]

Liberal Democrat MP JAMIE STONE recalls a painful childhood memory and why it reminds him of the importance of a united Europe It was the late 1960s, it was March, and my parents had left the Highlands for a few days in order to try to sell their wares in London – they ran a […]

Boris Johnson has been branded a “disgrace” after failing to answer questions in the Commons about his suggestion that a hard border in Northern Ireland remained a possibility. MPs heckled and jeered the foreign secretary who left the chamber after prime minister’s questions – despite an urgent question from Labour on his comments. The former […]

Boris Johnson yesterday dismissed concerns that leaving the customs union could lead to a hard Irish border by comparing it to driving from Camden to Islington in London. Here’s why he’s wrong The foreign secretary yesterday sought to assuage concerns about the potential return of a hard border to the island of Ireland, drawing on […]

International trade secretary Liam Fox used a setpiece Brexit speech today to lash out at opponents, taking a swipe at Labour and dismissing his former permanent secretary who had questioned the government’s approach. Sir Martin Donnelly, who left his role as permanent secretary to Dr Fox’s Department of International Trade last year, today said that […]

Philip Hammond was left bamboozled in the Commons after being mocked for Boris Johnson’s remarks comparing the Irish border to that between Camden and Islington. Labour’s Stella Creasy (Walthamstow) asked the chancellor to explain the benefits or otherwise of the plans the government “appears to have for a customs union between Camden, Islington and Westminster”. […]

Britain leaving the European customs union to strike free trade deals with countries outside the EU is “giving up a three-course meal for the promise of a packet of crisps”, a top ex-civil servant has said. Sir Martin Donnelly, who left his role as permanent secretary to Liam Fox’s Department of International Trade last year, […]

Jacob Rees-Mogg, Kate Hoey, David Davis, Boris Johnson and that big red bus. Just some of the subjects covered by correspondents in this week’s mailbag. David Davis’ Vienna speech (it meant nothing to me) seemed to indicate that there would be no bonfire of regulations and standards after Brexit. Yet this is exactly where people […]

Even by his own standards, the hypocrisy of Boris Johnson’s attack on Jeremy Corbyn’s motives is breathtaking. It was, as a piece of naked hypocrisy, so brazen one could almost stand back and simply admire the sheer chutzpah. Almost. Boris Johnson’s response to Jeremy Corbyn’s setpiece Brexit speech, delivered – inevitably – in the form […]

Remaining in the single market would leave many voters feeling the referendum result had been ignored, Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell said today. Dismissing polls which have shown that an overwhelming majority of Labour members and supporters support Britain remaining in the customs union and single market after leaving the EU, Mr McDonnell insisted wider […]

Britain will be more like Love Actually than a Mad Max-style dystopia after it leaves the EU, Andrea Leadsom claimed today. The Commons leader and ill-fated Tory leadership contender likened the UK’s life outside the EU to the twee, dated romantic comedy, as she dismissed suggestions that it was heading towards an apocalypse. Brexit secretary […]

Patriotism and duty are strong, guiding, working-class emotions, says YASMIN ALIBHAI-BROWN. We need posters of Jeremy Clarkson saying ‘YOUR COUNTRY NEEDS YOU to be in the EU’ I wonder how London’s weathered cabbies reacted to the recent Jacob Rees-Mogg programme on LBC. I bet they loved the 18th Century throwback just as they do the […]

As tickets for this year’s event go on sale, the dangers posed to it by leaving the EU become ever clearer, says Lib Dem MP CHRISTINE JARDINE Imagine the FIFA World Cup coming to the UK every summer and you begin to understand the value of, and the impact on, the country’s economy that the […]

The UK government has offered to change key Brexit legislation to ensure the “vast majority” of devolved powers returning from Brussels go straight to the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales. The Holyrood and Cardiff Bay administrations have refused to recommend granting legislative consent for the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill as it stands claiming it […]

Uncertainty related to Brexit is having a negative impact on sailing, skiing and other sports that rely on free movement within the European Union, members of the House of Lords have been warned. Experts representing national governing bodies, players’ associations and sports charities gave evidence today to a sub-committee hearing on what effect leaving the […]

Tories pushing for a Hard Brexit are putting Scottish devolution at risk, the country’s deputy first minister has warned. John Swinney claimed that key legislation necessary for Britain to leave the European Union “undermines the principles of devolution and the powers of the Scottish Parliament that the people of Scotland campaigned so long to win”. […]

Jeremy Corbyn’s position on Brexit is “evolving and deepening”, a shadow cabinet supporter of close ties with the EU has claimed. Shadow Northern Ireland secretary Owen Smith – who challenged Mr Corbyn for the Labour leadership in 2016 – told ITV’s Good Morning Britain he wanted the UK to remain in the single market and […]

Remainers have launched a campaign bus claiming the cost of quitting the European Union will be £2bn a week. The staggering figure is based on analysis of leaked government reports predicting that all Brexit scenarios will significantly hit the economy. Emblazoned with the slogan “Is it worth it?”, the bus will be touring the country. […]