I tried to find an upside to no deal. I couldn’t Awful as it might be, perhaps crashing out will cure the country of its Brexit fever? No – the only option is to fight it
‘It’s possible that no deal will act as a slow puncture for the economy.’ A Fishing for Leave protest in Newcastle, March 2019
Think of it as a coping strategy. Just as supporters of a team knocked out of the cup console themselves that “Now we can concentrate on the league”, so I have tried to reassure myself that a no-deal crash-out from the EU might not be such a disaster. That, you never know, it might even be a good thing.
Such a strategy remains necessary because no deal still waits for us on the other side of summer. It is, as the Brexiter ultras delight in pointing out, the legal default. It remains the law of the land unless and until MPs vote for something else. True, on Thursday, MPs placed an obstacle in the path of the likely next prime minister, preventing Boris Johnson from simply suspending parliament – which would have been a dictator’s move as well as a **** move – by requiring the Commons to sit through October. But that only makes no deal harder; it does not make it impossible. All it will take is MPs who were once staunch in their opposition to leaving the EU without a deal to fold. Amber Rudd has done it. This week Labour’s Sarah Champion did it. More could follow. For that reason, remainers need to gird ourselves for Halloween, to have a comfort blanket in the drawer, ready to cling to if the worst happens. Which is why I’ve been busy knitting these past few weeks, coming up with the arguments that might help us self-soothe. Here goes.
Perhaps no deal is what it will take to cure the country of its Brexit fever. Maybe nothing less than a complete severance of all ties is the only way to snap ourselves out of this delirium. Until now, for example, the Brexiters have been able to cast every hitch and disappointment as the handiwork of wicked remainers bent on thwarting Britain’s destiny. If there’s been no stampede of unicorns towards the sunlit uplands, that’s because the faint-hearts and fifth columnists connived with Brussels to deny the British people their will. A no-deal exit would end that betrayal myth once and for all. Nigel Farage, Jacob Rees-Mogg and the others would have got everything they wanted. They would be unable to cry treachery, because we would have left the EU the way they demanded we leave. They’d be unable to blame remainers or the judges or the BBC or the universities, because no one would have stood in their way. It will be their Brexit and they will have to own it.
Next, the Brexiters have dismissed every warning as Project Fear, including Thursday’s estimate from the Office for Budget Responsibility that no deal will kick a £30bn dent in the public finances, a projection that the OBR’s head explained was calculated on “relatively benign” figures and was avowedly “not at the most pessimistic end of the spectrum”. So perhaps the only way the Brexiters will ever be convinced is when they see and feel the consequences of no deal not as rhetoric from their political adversaries but as cold, hard reality – when they, or their constituents, see the lorries backed up for miles at Dover, the supermarket shelves empty of food, the medical supplies running out. Above all, perhaps it will take the pain and chaos of a crash-out from the EU finally to lay to rest the imperial delusion that has long underpinned the Brexit cause. For decades, the conventional wisdom held that it took the humiliation of Suez to wake the British governing class from its dreams of empire and to realise Britain’s true, more modest place in the world. But the Brexit process has surely revealed the opposite: that those fantasies endured long after 1956; that the notion of Britain as a global superpower, held back and denied glory by pettifogging continentals, refused to die. Perhaps, then, it will take the blow to national pride inflicted by a disastrous exit from the EU to force Britain’s rulers to see the country as it actually is: no longer a global superpower, but instead a proud, successful nation whose strength depends not on breaking from its nearest neighbours but, in part, on its close ties to them.
These are the patches I’ve been stitching into a quilt ready to clutch the day Johnson and his enablers lead us to catastrophe. Like anyone who’s ever lost something precious, I’d find a way to tell myself it was for the best. But, sad to say, it won’t work. I look upon this blanket of comfort and find it thin and threadbare. For one thing, how plausible is it to imagine that, even if Brexit is the total rupture Farage yearns for, he won’t still insist that the people were betrayed and that this Brexit was insufficiently pure? The betrayal myth will not be dispelled by anything so weak as mere facts. Nor can we rely on the realisation of all those forecasts dismissed as Project Fear to shake Brexiters’ faith. Even if there are no tomatoes in Asda and no insulin in the hospitals, Rees-Mogg won’t blame himself or his fellow fanatics: he’ll blame the government (or Theresa May, if Johnson gives him a job) for failing to prepare properly. And if, more likely, dawn breaks on 1 November and the sky has not fallen in, the Brexiters will claim victory. “See!” they’ll chirrup. “All those doom-mongers were wrong. Everything’s fine.” Because it’s possible that no deal won’t trigger an instant calamity, but rather act as a slow puncture for the economy, tipping us into recession, steadily destroying 200,000 jobs and shrinking wages. Expectations of a no-deal exit are so low, if Britons are not living in the streets wearing animal skins and foraging for weevils by Christmas, the Brexiters will declare it a triumph.
And even if it is an immediate disaster, visible on day one, there are few guarantees that leavers would admit their error and seek once more the embrace of Brussels. As Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform puts it, “Just because babies are dying, does that mean they’ll say we were better off in the EU?” Aren’t they just as likely to blame the beastly Europeans for inflicting such a hellscape on an innocent nation? After all, even Boris Johnson once thought Britain could leave the EU and keep its seat on the European council of ministers. The Brexiters will cry, “How we were to know that leaving the EU meant leaving the EU?” And if they don’t blame Brussels, they’ll blame someone else: foreigners, minorities, anyone but themselves. Most important, even if a no-deal Brexit delivered sweet vindication for remainers, it would taste bitter. No deal remains an appalling prospect; to flirt with it is, as Grant observes, “playing with people’s lives and livelihoods”. We cannot wish disaster on the country solely to exorcise our demons. Instead we have to keep fighting it with all our might – knowing there will be no comfort blanket to soothe us.
Tories' ‘insulting’ public sector pay offer will be paid for with more cuts Labour said the 'shameful' pay rise offer will leave workers worse off compared with private sector counterparts
Labour today blasted an “insulting” public sector pay rise which will leave workers worse off compared with private sector counterparts. Police officers are set to receive a 2.5% pay rise, soldiers a 2.9% increase and teachers and other school staff 2.75%, while dentists and consultants will get 2.5% and senior civil servants 2%.
But the rises are due to come from existing budgets – forcing cuts elsewhere.
I watched Newsnight last night where 4 "experts" attempted to predict what happens next.
They were all completely different, other than assuming Boris was our new PM on Tuesday, and reflected our current uncertain future.
The first one thought unsuccessful negotiations, followed by a no confidence vote, then an Article 50 extension, followed by an election, and a Hung Parliament, with 4 parties gaining a similar number of seats. Resulting in absolutely no progress at all.
The second, optimistically forecast successful negotiations, a new deal which gets through Parliament, leave on 31st October, general election, resulting in big Tory majority.
Number 3, failed renegotiations, failed no confidence vote on promise of referendum Article 50 extension, second referendum resulting in remain.
Lastly, practically the same old deal, sold as a new deal, that doesn't get through Parliament, failed no confidence vote as Tories promising to vote against the Government bottle it, and leave with no deal on 31st October.
I suppose you could pick holes in all four arguments.
There are some serious questions to answer.
Will the EU reopen the Withdrawal Agreement?
What can be done about the backstop?
How many Tories are prepared to vote against the Government in a no confidence vote?
Will the number be enough to offset the Labour MPs that will support the Government?
Footage of Iran's Revolutionary Guards seizing control of the British-flagged oil tanker, Stena Impero, appears on a number of Sunday's front pages. The Sunday Telegraph says ministers are drawing up plans to target the Iranian regime with sanctions in response. According to the paper, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is expected to announce a package of diplomatic and economic measures in the Commons, including possible asset freezes. In the Sunday Times, an un-named former cabinet minister accuses Mr Hunt and outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May of being distracted by the Tory leadership contest and having "taken their eyes off the ball" over the Iranian threat. A similar accusation is made by the former First Sea Lord, Admiral Lord West, in the Observer. He says whoever wins the contest is going to have to face a major international crisis as soon as he's in post. "It can't be ignored because of Brexit," he warns.
For its lead story, the Sunday Times says senior figures from five EU countries have established contacts with Boris Johnson's team in a bid to thrash out a new Brexit plan that would avoid a no-deal departure. It reports that Simon Coveney, the deputy Prime Minister of Ireland - one of the countries - has written an article for the paper saying the withdrawal agreement is "not up for negotiation", but also making clear that Dublin wants to avoid a no-deal Brexit at all costs. The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, is pictured on a number of front pages loading suitcases into his official car in Downing Street, which the Sunday Telegraph says sent Whitehall tongues wagging. But the Mail On Sunday leads with Mr Johnson's plans for moving into Number Ten. According to the paper, Mr Johnson - the favourite to become prime minister - has been criticised for spending thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money on new furniture, including a bed, because his estranged wife has kept his belongings. The paper says he had told civil servants he "didn't have any stuff"
Brexit news: Conservatives plotting to change rules to stop Johnson being toppled by own party as soon as he becomes PM
Senior Tories are considering changing party rules to stop Boris Johnson facing a no-confidence vote within the first year of being prime minister, by preventing a vote of no-confidence in the leader being called until they had been in office for at least 12 months. It came after Philip Hammond suggested he would be willing to vote against the next Conservative government in a vote of no confidence if it pursued a no-deal Brexit.
The chancellor’s latest comments followed a claim by leading Tory Eurosceptic Jacob Rees-Mogg, a supporter of Mr Johnson, that suspending parliament so that MPs cannot stop the next prime minister forcing through a no-deal Brexit “may have to happen”. The leading Tory Eurosceptic said he did not support a lengthy prorogation but that parliament could have to be closed for one or two days.
Brexit funder Arron Banks threatens Netflix over Great Hack documentary Legal threat comes as campaigners warn UK government that courts are being used to intimidate journalists
The businessman Arron Banks and the unofficial Brexit campaign Leave.EU have issued a legal threat against streaming giant Netflix in relation to The Great Hack, a new documentary about the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the abuse of personal data. The threat comes as press freedom campaigners and charity groups warn the government in an open letter that UK courts are being used to “intimidate and silence” journalists working in the public interest. In a joint letter to key cabinet members, they call for new legislation to stop “vexatious lawsuits”, highlighting one filed last week by Banks against campaigning journalist Carole Cadwalladr. Award-winning reports by Cadwalladr, a freelance journalist who works for the Observer, have led to multiple investigations by regulators, and a $5bn fine for Facebook. “The legal claim against Ms Cadwalladr, issued on 12 July by lawyers acting for Arron Banks, is another example of a wealthy individual appearing to abuse the law in an attempt to silence a journalist and distract from these issues being discussed by politicians, the media and the public at a critical time in the life of our democracy,” the letter says.
Banks had not seen The Great Hack, which comes out on general release on Netflix this week, when he instructed lawyers over the documentary.
Labour MPs are furious as local party votes to expel former chief whip Hilary Armstrong had criticised Corbyn over Labour’s antisemitism crisis
Labour MPs expressed outrage last night after a local constituency party voted to expel former chief whip Hilary Armstrong from the party for accusing Jeremy Corbyn of a lack of leadership over antisemitism.
Brexit Party worker, 19, says he's behind leaks that toppled UK ambassador to US Young journalist Steven Edginton says he is feared that he is being targeted by security services after helping leak Sir Kim Darroch's criticism of Donald Trump
He also claimed he worked with the political journalist Isabel Oakeshott to build up the story but decided to 'leave my name out of it'.
Boris Johnson's weekly column makes the lead for the Daily Telegraph. In it, he insists Britain can leave the EU with a deal by 31 October if it "rediscovers its sense of mission". The Telegraph sees his pop at "pessimists" as a reference to the chancellor - after Chancellor Phillip Hammond said yesterday it wasn't possible to get a Brexit deal by the end of October. The paper also looks ahead to the days following what it expects to be Mr Johnson's "coronation" tomorrow. The European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker could be invited to Chequers this weekend, the Telegraph says. But the Times reports that Mr Johnson has already been warned by EU leaders that his plan to avert a no-deal Brexit risks being scuppered by "unrealistic" demands over the Irish backstop. The paper says the European Commission has prepared a multi-billion pound aid package for Ireland, to offset the impact of no deal.
The Daily Mirror leans heavily on nautical metaphors, saying the "hapless" Mr Johnson is expected to "take the helm" of the "floundering Tories" as Britain faces "almighty storms". It says following Iran's seizure of a British-flagged tanker, the UK needs a considered leader, but it'll instead be lumbered with an inept clown. But the paper says Mr Johnson can celebrate amid the turmoil - following a multi-million pound offer on his former marital home. The front page of the Daily Mail continues the paper's push for social care reform. More than three quarters of a million elderly people have been refused state support, according to the paper, since the government pledged to reform the care system in March 2017. The Mail says those with dementia have borne the brunt of the delay - and notes that both Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt have backed its calls for an urgent overhaul.
Brexit news: UK trade envoy quits in protest over no-deal policy threatening £800m Canada agreement Exclusive: Andrew Percy attacks ‘cack-handed’ move to scrap import tariffs if UK crashes out in October – triggering Ottawa’s refusal to ‘roll over’ existing EU deal
One of Liam Fox’s trade envoys has quit in protest that the government’s no-deal Brexit policy threatens the demise of an existing trade deal with Canada worth £800m. Andrew Percy attacked the “cack-handed” move to scrap or slash tariffs on almost all imports if the UK crashes out of the EU – blaming it for Ottawa’s refusal to “roll over” its existing deal with the EU.
The Conservative MP felt “patronised” by the international trade secretary when he warned him the announcement would backfire, The Independent understands, walking away after almost two years in the Canada role.
The resignation is major embarrassment for Mr Fox, who has pledged to “replicate” all 40 trade agreements the UK enjoys as an EU member, to avoid any “disruption of trade” if Brexit goes ahead.
The controversy will also dog Boris Johnson if he wins the Tory leadership race and carries out his threat of a no-deal Brexit.
Where are the sensible Tory MPs who could save us from Brexit? An ally of Mr Percy told The Independent: “Andrew warned them back in March, as soon as the UK’s no-deal tariffs were published, that it would mean the Canadians would not go for rolling over the Ceta [Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement] deal.
“He could see they were getting 95 per cent of what they wanted if a no-deal happened, that the tariffs were better than what is in Ceta – so why would they rush to sign up to what the UK wanted? “He said it was such a cack-handed approach, but he was patronised by a couple of ministers – including Liam Fox – and told that everything was going to be fine.
I sat at the EU’s negotiating table for years – and saw how great Britain’s influence was
Brexiters claim the UK is the victim of Brussels bureaucracy. The truth is that it has shaped EU decisions for decades
The Conservative party’s choice of a new leader will also impact on Britain’s influence in the world. Friendship, not showmanship, is valued by foreign governments. Bluster at home diminishes lustre abroad.
Over many years, Brexiters constructed a fable that presents the UK as the helpless victim of an unaccountable bureaucracy in Brussels. Their version of history has become ever more at odds with reality. Brave Britannia is increasingly portrayed as a heroic underdog determined to fight for its independence from Europe. It matters not a jot that the organisation from which the UK is purportedly seeking to escape is a decent grouping of democratic nations that the UK willingly joined, which it helped significantly to shape and of which at least half the British people now very much wish their country to remain a member.
It is probably impossible to break the link between the fantastical tale and its fanatical followers. However, in the hope that rational argument still has some role to play in British public debate, the record should be set straight regarding the reality of the influence that Britain has brought to bear in shaping EU decisions and indeed the European project as a whole.
'They don't get it!' Tory Minister shamed after no deal Brexit warning – 'Totally deluded' CONSERVATIVE Minister Tobias Ellwood claimed the UK would be forced to go “crawling back” to the European Union if Britain left the bloc without a deal at the end of October this year. But, the Tory Minister sparked fury among some on social media with his criticism of a no deal Brexit.
Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary, who is tipped to become the next Tory leader and Prime Minister next week, has said he is willing to pull the UK out of the EU without a deal by the end of October this year. But, Conservative Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood delivered a stark warning about the prospect of a no deal Brexit. During an interview with Sophy Ridge on Sky News, the Tory Minister claimed the UK would be forced to go “crawling” back to the bloc just “moments” after leaving with no deal, sparking fury with some listeners.
He said: “I really get frustrated with this energy towards no deal. I know, all my parliamentary colleagues on all sides of the House recognise the dangers of no deal. “The fact that we keep talking about it, it isn’t a solution. I am very concerned. I am going to make it very very clear, I want us to move away from discussion about no deal at all. “I believe a deal is absolutely possible. The fact we keep talking about no deal fuels the small caucus of people who see that as their destination. No deal is not a destination. You run away from the EU and say ‘fine we don’t want to have a deal’. “You will still have to crawl back literally moments later to say ‘how is our financial services going to operate? How is our operations with peace going to work? How is citizens rights going to work?'
Chief trade negotiator trousers £380,000 despite no new post-Brexit trade deals Crawford Falconer is one of Whitehall's best paid officials
Britain's chief trade negotiator took home £380,000 last year - despite failing to sign a single new post-Brexit trade deal. Crawford Falconer earns £265,000, but according to the Mail on Sunday he received an extra £101,000 in pension contributions and was given £19,000 to help him relocate to Britain.
International Trade Secretary Liam Fox had promised to sign 40 free trade deals the "second after" Brexit . At Tory Party conference in 2017, Dr Fox said: "I hear people saying 'oh we won't have any [free trade agreements] before we leave'. Well believe me we'll have up to 40 ready for one second after midnight in March 2019," he told cheering Tory activists. The Trade Secretary added that "All these faint hearts saying we cannot do it - it's absolute rubbish." But in the end only six trade deals were close to completion, eight were 'off-track' and another 19 were 'significantly offtrack' by March 2019
Boris Johnson is set to be crowned Prime Minister tomorrow - but six ministers threaten to quit in protest and a further six Tory MPs could DEFECT to the Lib Dems
I know I said I wouldn't post on here about Brexit again but have just seen this from my local council. For gawds sake we're leaving the E.U. (allegedly),not trying to survive some sort of post apocalyptic catastrophe that's gonna end up in a dystopian Mad Max kind of world. P.S. The same council have voted to build themselves some nice new offices at a cost of £10million (while cutting services) and despite building new offices about 10 years ago.
Could you confirm that you understand this, as they seem to keep getting away with it, without being challenged very much?
The Massive No Deal Brexit trade policy lie.
The likes of Nigel Farage, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Tim Martin, keep putting this forward.
One of the big selling points of Brexit, was that once we left the customs union we would be allowed to negotiate our own trade deals with other countries. Enabling our economy to flourish by negotiating massive trade deals with the rest of the world. As members we are unable to do this, as the EU negotiate deals for the bloc.
This makes sense as the bloc carries more weight than each individual member, purely on customer numbers. Never mind the chaos that would be caused by individual member countries negotiating different deals with the same countries.
As members we have the right to trade with around 168 other countries, that are WTO members, on WTO rules.
WTO rules involve tariffs. Tariffs are like a tax, and increase prices for consumers. The reason that countries do trade deals, is to reduce or remove tariffs. Although they can also be used to protect various industries.
So as EU members we can trade tariff free with the other 27 EU members plus around 70 other countries that the EU currently has trade deals with. Plus all the WTO members, with the incorporation of tariffs.
Even though tariffs increase prices for consumers, they can be used as a protection for some industries. So if we wanted to do a free trade deal with say New Zealand, we may wish to remove tariffs on their wine, which would make Tim Martin happy, as he apparently imports lots of it, we may wish to continue with tariffs on lamb. If we removed the lamb tariff, as they are able to produce it cheaper than us, we would put our sheep farmers out of business.
So leaving the EU with no deal, means we lose tariff free trade with the EU plus the 70 countries covered by EU trade deals.
The story that is advocated by the politicians quoted above, and many others is as follows,
They are now calling it a WTO Brexit, rather a no deal Brexit.
This means we trade with everyone on WTO rules, this means tariffs on everything, and increased prices for consumers.
Their answer to this is that we can remove all the tariffs.
They claim this will mean cheaper prices for consumers.
This is not true, as it will just mean the same prices, in areas where there are currently no tariffs. Although, as the value of the pound is expected to fall in the case of no deal, all imports will become more expensive for consumers as a result.
The obvious thing is that if we unilaterally removed tariffs on our imports, nobody will want to do a free trade with us. Why would they?
Another obvious effect is that by doing this we put ourselves at a huge disadvantage. Lets say we remove tariffs on cars. So there would be no tariff on car imports. Why would the Germans reciprocate. They would surely prefer to export cars to us tariff free, but maintain the tariffs on the cars that we export to them.
To do this would be bonkers.
WTO rules mean that if you remove tariffs, you remove them for everyone. You couldn't impose a tariff on New Zealand lamb, and not charge it on Australian lamb. So if you remove the lamb tariff, this would apply to everyone.
Why would the EU ever be keen to do a deal, if all their members could export to us tariff free, and we had to pay tariffs to them?
Why would anyone even want to talk to us about a trade deal?
Canada have stopped talking to us about a trade deal because of this.
Unfortunately the end of the referendum campaign, did not signal the end of the lies.
A "fantasist whose lies should never have been believed" is how the Daily Telegraph describes Carl Beech - the man convicted for perverting the course of justice with claims about a paedophile ring. The paper describes the investigation into his allegations as "a saga of lies, staggering police incompetence and shocking political gullibility" which "shredded the reputations of innocent people". The Daily Mail calls the police inquiry "shambolic" and "diabolical" and asks why no police officers have been held to account. Its columnist, Richard Littlejohn, thinks Labour's deputy leader, Tom Watson, should be have been in the dock for championing Beech's cause in a "ghastly, politically-motivated crusade". The Sun's headline is "Witch-hunt whitewash...cops and Watson dodge rap". The Daily Express says lessons must be learned - and implemented quickly.
All the papers report the election of Jo Swinson as the Liberal Democrats' new leader. The website BuzzFeed News has been speaking to her friends and rivals for a profile piece - and reports claims that she has "high expectations" of those working for her and once reduced a young female member of staff to tears. A spokeswoman for Ms Swinson tells the website she is unaware of the specific incident and so is unable to comment. A source close to the Lib Dem leader points out that women leaders are often portrayed as "difficult" while men are "decisive and strong". The Guardian thinks Ms Swinson arrives at "probably the best time to be a Liberal Democrat for a decade" and that her party must strive to play a part in moulding the future of Britain. But it must now work on its policies, the paper believes: "Once Brexit has happened, 'Stop Brexit' ceases to function as a USP," it says.
The Times carries a warning from Justice Secretary David Gauke that the Tories will lose millions of traditional Conservative voters to the Lib Dems if Boris Johnson wins the leadership contest and takes Britain towards a no-deal Brexit. He tells the paper he wants to see Mr Johnson succeed in striking a new deal with the EU but that he doesn't believe it's possible before 31 October. The Guardian says rebel Conservative MPs are warning that Mr Johnson will not survive as prime minister unless he softens his approach to Brexit. But the Telegraph's Tim Stanley says compromising now would be a catastrophe: Brexit isn't just about trade and jobs, he says - voters for Brexit were willing "to put liberty before comfort and security".
If Boris Johnson can’t stomach young, anti no-deal Tories like me, he won’t get far with the rest of the electorate I asked the soon-to-be prime minister how he’d attract young people to a party that’s only offering catastrophe for their futures, and the answer was even more disappointing than I expected
1/5 Made-up quote for The Times Johnson was sacked from The Times newspaper in the late 1980s after he fabricated a quote from his godfather, the historian Colin Lucas, for a front-page article about the discovery of Edward II’s Rose Palace. “The trouble was that somewhere in my copy I managed to attribute to Colin the view that Edward II and Piers Gaveston would have been cavorting together in the Rose Palace,” he claimed. Alas, Gaveston was executed 13 years before the palace was built. “It was very nasty,” Mr Johnson added, before attempting to downplay it as nothing more than a schoolboy blunder.
A couple of weeks ago, I went to a “Back Boris” rally in Kent. I wasn’t there out of loyalty, to network, or even to hold Boris Johnson to account. What I was looking for was a sense of reassurance that my party, and my country, were in safe hands. I didn’t find it. As a young Conservative, I am increasingly troubled by the direction my party is heading. Its descent into far-right euroscepticism, entirely divorced from concerns of evidence or fact, is a far cry from the moderate party representing sensible fiscal policy that I’ve been involved with since my first year at university. Its identity shift seems to be partly a wrongheaded attempt to beat Nigel Farage and his ex-Ukip-turned-Brexit-Party-base at their own game. The problem is, it isn’t working. Farage will always be better at being Nigel Farage than the Conservative Party will. Our desperate attempts to imitate him are pushing away young voters and members – like myself – who see their futures threatened by the prospect of Brexit. Along with many other young Conservative members, I voted for the Liberal Democrats in the EU elections. Unless my party elects a leader who drastically changes course, I will do so again in a general election.
2/5 Sacked from cabinet over cheating lie Michael Howard gave Boris Johnson two new jobs after becoming leader of the Conservatives in 2003 – party vice-chairman and shadow arts minister. He was sacked from both positions in November 2004 after assuring Mr Howard that tabloid reports of his affair with Spectator columnist Petronella Wyatt were false and an “inverted pyramid of piffle”. When the story was found to be true, he refused to resign.
It was with this in mind that I spent that Thursday afternoon at the Back Boris rally in Dover. I didn’t know what to expect – but my hopes weren’t especially high. Last week, a young Conservative I know from Northern Ireland asked Johnson an important question about combating the Tory membership’s increasingly ambivalent attitude towards the union. Rather than confront the problem, Johnson denied the existence of such an attitude: “not anywhere near me there isn’t.”
This flat out rejection of the facts did not bode well – nor did what came next: empty rhetoric about the power of the British “brand”, patriotic platitudes, and the inevitable dead cat joke; in this instance at the expense of America, described as “our spiritual, cultural and intellectual child.”
3/5 Broken promise to boss In 1999 Johnson was offered editorship of The Spectator by owner Conrad Black on the condition that he would not stand as an MP while in the post. In 2001 he stood - and was elected - MP for Henley, though Black did allow him to continue as editor despite calling "ineffably duplicitous"
The exchange was met with immediate laughter from the audience, with the young conservative all but forgotten. Silly Boris, poking fun at those uppity Americans. Brave Boris, for telling it like it is. Clever Boris, for making us all feel better – because for a moment there, we felt like there was a serious question you hadn’t answered. What was it again?
Once inside the rally, I was immediately and acutely aware that I was the youngest person there by a considerable margin. Identikit Conservative members wearing shirts and chinos (ok, guilty as charged) were everywhere – and yet I felt lonely. Some of these people, according to recent Yougov polling, support reinstating the death penalty – where’s the equality of opportunity in that?
4/5 Misrepresenting the people of Liverpool As editor of The Spectator, he was forced to apologise for an article in the magazine which blamed drunken Liverpool fans for the 1989 Hillsborough disaster and suggested that the people of the city were wallowing in their victim status. “Anyone, journalist or politician, should say sorry to the people of Liverpool – as I do – for misrepresenting what happened at Hillsborough,” he said.
Then I saw Johnson walking through the lobby. I rushed over to him, introduced myself as a young Conservative who had voted for the Lib Dems in the European Elections, and asked my key question: Brexit is a failed project – most young people can see that now. How will you attract young people to a party that offers only catastrophe for their futures?
“Well, you go out and get them then, sign them up.” Then he was gone. I stood there, rocking slightly. I couldn’t quite believe what I had heard. This man not only didn’t have a plan for the future of the party – he was either incapable or not invested enough to pretend he did.
I was expecting bluster, a joke or two, maybe even just to be waved off as a “Remoaner”. What I wasn’t expecting was for him to be visibly flustered, shaken at the idea that someone at this event didn’t support him unconditionally. It was bizarre. After all the hype around his bumbling charm and easy air, here before me was a man who seemed unable to stand up to a 24-year-old, let alone a foreign leader such as Trump or Putin.
5/5 ‘I didn’t say anything about Turkey’ Johnson claimed in January, that he did not mention Turkey during the EU referendum campaign. In fact, he co-signed a letter stating that “the only way to avoid having common borders with Turkey is to vote Leave and take back control”. The Vote Leave campaign also produced a poster reading: “Turkey (population 76 million) is joining the EU”
People believe many different things about “BoJo”, but they all fundamentally come down to two illusions about him. The first is that he’s a serious person who will take a stance on what he believes is right rather than try to please the audience of whatever room he finds himself in. The second, which is more difficult to shake off, is that he’s any good at doing so. Johnson is only charming if you’re willing to play along. That room in Dover was already on his side – as are the majority of the 0.25 per cent of the population who are given a say on who the next prime minister should be. But if the whole UK were a roomful of one hundred people, how many would be laughing now? And what will happen when the laughter stops entirely?
As you would expect, the figure of Boris Johnson looms large this morning. Alongside the headline "I'm the dude", the Daily Telegraph carries a picture of the new prime minister saluting photographers on the steps of Conservative Party headquarters. It says he will spend his first 100 days in No 10 focusing solely on Brexit. The Daily Express carries a picture of a determined looking Mr Johnson, with the headline: "Hang on to your hats...here comes Boris." In contrast, The Independent online carries a caricature of Mr Johnson on the front page - in Churchillian pose - with the headline "Welcome to Brexit's Darkest Hour". And the Daily Mirror has a series of pictures of the new prime minister in various comical poses with the headline: "It's really not funny any more"
There's lots of speculation about the kind of team the new prime minister will build around him. The Telegraph says he will assemble a majority Brexiteer cabinet as he clears out one-time Remainers to get Britain ready for leaving the EU on 31 October. The paper says he will also make it the most ethnically diverse cabinet in history and with an increased number of female secretaries of state. Under the headline "Johnson goes to work", the Times says he's expected to promote the Brexiteer Priti Patel to the key post of home secretary in his new cabinet. According to the paper, Jeremy Hunt's future is in doubt after he resisted demotion from foreign secretary. The paper says the defeated leadership contender is understood to have turned down the post of defence secretary in the new cabinet. According to the i newspaper, among those who could see a return from the backbenchers are Sir Michael Fallon, Andrew Mitchell and Iain Duncan Smith.
The Financial Times says Boris Johnson enters No 10 just as a new warning is issued about the economic risks of leaving the EU without a deal. It highlights a report from the International Monetary Fund which says a no-deal Brexit is one of the chief threats to the world economy. In an editorial, the paper says that rarely has a peacetime British prime minister confronted circumstances as grave as those awaiting Mr Johnson. Rarely too, the paper says, has an incoming premier appeared, by temperament, character and record, so unequal to the magnitude of the task. It says he has no right to pursue a no-deal departure without seeking a genuine mandate from the British people, either in a general election or a new referendum. The Sun strikes a more upbeat note believing the new prime minister will be able to unite the country by showing his true colours as a tolerant and inclusive politician. It describes Boris Johnson as an "inspiring blast of optimism after years of purgatory".
Boris Johnson will enter Downing Street today before unveiling his cabinet and it is expected to be one of the most diverse ever, as names emerge of a Brexiteer-heavy team to lead Britain into its withdrawal from the European Union (pictured, left panel: Sajid Javid, Gavin Williamson, Michael Gove, Grant Shapps; Centre: Priti Patel; right panel: Jeremy Hunt, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Alok Sharma, Mark Spencer). Hardliner Priti Patel is expected to make an astonishing comeback to the upper echelons as Mr Johnson wrangles with how to deliver on his promise to place a woman in one of the 'top four' spots. Sajid Javid, who contested the leadership, is widely expected to become the next chancellor after Philip Hammond said he wouldn't serve under Mr Johnson. Meanwhile, Jeremy Hunt has reportedly been offered the defence secretary job, something he is said to have rejected because he sees it as a demotion. Another comeback is anticipated in Gavin Williamson, one of Mr Johnson's campaign backers, who was sacked from Theresa May's cabinet over Huawei leaks. Jacob Rees-Mogg, chairman of the European Research Group of Eurosceptic MPs, is tipped for a senior role, possibly as chief secretary to the Treasury. And Michael Gove will also be hoping for a promotion from his role as environment secretary, although hopes of a senior position must be tempered by the fact he dashed Mr Johnson's last run to become Prime Minister.
The sense of shock caused by the scale of change in the new cabinet is palpable. The Times describes Boris Johnson's defenestration of 11 members of Theresa May's top team - another six resigned - as an "afternoon of carnage" and "the most brutal cabinet purge in modern political history". Recalling that the new prime minister recently said his favourite film moment was the "retribution scene" in The Godfather, the Daily Telegraph calls it a "political massacre" and a "breathtakingly swift transition". It says he immediately showed his authority by sacking the man he beat, Jeremy Hunt, when he turned down the role of defence secretary. "Ruthless Johnson takes his revenge" is the headline in the Guardian; it sees the sackings of Mr Hunt, Penny Mordaunt, Liam Fox and Greg Clark as a "merciless purge" of his detractors in Mrs May's cabinet.
The Daily Mail speaks of a "massacre", "Boris's Bloodbath" and the new prime minister coming out "all guns blazing". The Daily Express says he has stamped his authority with a "historic clear-out" and waved in a "new era". Striking a similar note, the i's headline is "Brexiteers take over". It is "Boris's Brexit Party" in the online Independent. The Financial Times reports that he has "ripped apart" the previous team and put in its place a "hardcore" line-up of Brexiteers. It describes Mr Johnson's speech on Downing Street as "defiant and brutal" - not even mentioning Mrs May by name, while accusing her of indecision.
In his speech, the Times says Mr Johnson dashed hopes that he might soften his negotiating stance on Brexit - issuing a "no ifs or buts" promise to leave the EU at the end of October. The paper reports that EU officials reacted with dismay. Both it and the FT quote the Irish Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar, rejecting as "totally not in the real world" Mr Johnson's claim that a new deal could be agreed - without the Irish backstop. According to the Sun, Mr Varadkar was - in effect - accusing the new prime minister of "living in fantasy land"; it says the remarks are likely to enrage Brexiteers. The paper also quotes EU sources as dismissing Mr Johnson's speech as a "rant".
The Daily Mirror - not Boris Johnson's biggest fan - leads on what it describes as his first gaffe as prime minister: discussing his private chat with the Queen at Buckingham Palace. The Mirror says he broke protocol by revealing that she had told him: "I don't know why anyone would want the job." Despite the scale of the cabinet cull, there were survivors. The Sun focuses on one in particular - Larry the cat. It says No 10 has confirmed that Downing Street's chief mouser - the black and white tabby who moved in with David Cameron in 2011 - will be staying on.
‘Johnson is very good at making stuff up because he started with the biggest invention of all: himself.’ Illustration
All Boris Johnson's pledges in his first speech as Prime Minister - fact-checked Boris Johnson has rattled out a load of shiny policies on the steps of 10 Downing Street in his first day as Prime Minister. But how good are they really? We've looked at the facts
Boris Johnson's victory drivel was the half-arsed babble of a fraud The Mirror's Kevin Maguire dissects the Prime Minister-elect's first speech after being elected Tory leader
Boris Johnson's new Cabinet will meet at 8:30 this morning to start the battle for Brexit just hours after the new Prime Minister made his final appointment. Names of new ministers continued to emerge until two minutes to midnight last night as Mr Johnson assembled his team after an unparalleled bloodbath of Theresa May's ministers. The Cabinet includes Dominic Raab, the new Foreign Secretary, as Mr Johnson's de facto deputy, and also saw jobs found for the PM's brother Jo and for senior Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg. Jo Johnson, the new Universities minister, and Boris's staunch backer Mr Rees-Mogg, the new Leader of the House of Commons, were among those heading to and from Downing Street late into the night. Priti Patel became Home Secretary and Sajid Javid was promoted to Chancellor in one of the most ethnically diverse sets of ministers ever assembled. Michael Gove was also handed an influential job as Cabinet Office minister despite his turbulent history with Mr Johnson - and is expected to focus on contingency plans for Brexit as a 'Minister for No Deal'. Another of the former premier's close allies, Ben Wallace, is Defence Secretary, while Liz Truss has gone to Trade and Theresa Villiers takes over at Environment.
Lurking in the corner as Boris enters No 10, the 'evil genius' behind Brexit who'll spread fear across Whitehall: GUY ADAMS examines Dominic Cummings's reputation as a ruthless svengali
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Awful as it might be, perhaps crashing out will cure the country of its Brexit fever? No – the only option is to fight it
‘It’s possible that no deal will act as a slow puncture for the economy.’ A Fishing for Leave protest in Newcastle, March 2019
Think of it as a coping strategy. Just as supporters of a team knocked out of the cup console themselves that “Now we can concentrate on the league”, so I have tried to reassure myself that a no-deal crash-out from the EU might not be such a disaster. That, you never know, it might even be a good thing.
Such a strategy remains necessary because no deal still waits for us on the other side of summer. It is, as the Brexiter ultras delight in pointing out, the legal default. It remains the law of the land unless and until MPs vote for something else. True, on Thursday, MPs placed an obstacle in the path of the likely next prime minister, preventing Boris Johnson from simply suspending parliament – which would have been a dictator’s move as well as a **** move – by requiring the Commons to sit through October. But that only makes no deal harder; it does not make it impossible. All it will take is MPs who were once staunch in their opposition to leaving the EU without a deal to fold. Amber Rudd has done it. This week Labour’s Sarah Champion did it. More could follow. For that reason, remainers need to gird ourselves for Halloween, to have a comfort blanket in the drawer, ready to cling to if the worst happens. Which is why I’ve been busy knitting these past few weeks, coming up with the arguments that might help us self-soothe. Here goes.
Perhaps no deal is what it will take to cure the country of its Brexit fever. Maybe nothing less than a complete severance of all ties is the only way to snap ourselves out of this delirium. Until now, for example, the Brexiters have been able to cast every hitch and disappointment as the handiwork of wicked remainers bent on thwarting Britain’s destiny. If there’s been no stampede of unicorns towards the sunlit uplands, that’s because the faint-hearts and fifth columnists connived with Brussels to deny the British people their will. A no-deal exit would end that betrayal myth once and for all. Nigel Farage, Jacob Rees-Mogg and the others would have got everything they wanted. They would be unable to cry treachery, because we would have left the EU the way they demanded we leave. They’d be unable to blame remainers or the judges or the BBC or the universities, because no one would have stood in their way. It will be their Brexit and they will have to own it.
Next, the Brexiters have dismissed every warning as Project Fear, including Thursday’s estimate from the Office for Budget Responsibility that no deal will kick a £30bn dent in the public finances, a projection that the OBR’s head explained was calculated on “relatively benign” figures and was avowedly “not at the most pessimistic end of the spectrum”. So perhaps the only way the Brexiters will ever be convinced is when they see and feel the consequences of no deal not as rhetoric from their political adversaries but as cold, hard reality – when they, or their constituents, see the lorries backed up for miles at Dover, the supermarket shelves empty of food, the medical supplies running out.
Above all, perhaps it will take the pain and chaos of a crash-out from the EU finally to lay to rest the imperial delusion that has long underpinned the Brexit cause. For decades, the conventional wisdom held that it took the humiliation of Suez to wake the British governing class from its dreams of empire and to realise Britain’s true, more modest place in the world. But the Brexit process has surely revealed the opposite: that those fantasies endured long after 1956; that the notion of Britain as a global superpower, held back and denied glory by pettifogging continentals, refused to die. Perhaps, then, it will take the blow to national pride inflicted by a disastrous exit from the EU to force Britain’s rulers to see the country as it actually is: no longer a global superpower, but instead a proud, successful nation whose strength depends not on breaking from its nearest neighbours but, in part, on its close ties to them.
These are the patches I’ve been stitching into a quilt ready to clutch the day Johnson and his enablers lead us to catastrophe. Like anyone who’s ever lost something precious, I’d find a way to tell myself it was for the best.
But, sad to say, it won’t work. I look upon this blanket of comfort and find it thin and threadbare. For one thing, how plausible is it to imagine that, even if Brexit is the total rupture Farage yearns for, he won’t still insist that the people were betrayed and that this Brexit was insufficiently pure? The betrayal myth will not be dispelled by anything so weak as mere facts.
Nor can we rely on the realisation of all those forecasts dismissed as Project Fear to shake Brexiters’ faith. Even if there are no tomatoes in Asda and no insulin in the hospitals, Rees-Mogg won’t blame himself or his fellow fanatics: he’ll blame the government (or Theresa May, if Johnson gives him a job) for failing to prepare properly.
And if, more likely, dawn breaks on 1 November and the sky has not fallen in, the Brexiters will claim victory. “See!” they’ll chirrup. “All those doom-mongers were wrong. Everything’s fine.” Because it’s possible that no deal won’t trigger an instant calamity, but rather act as a slow puncture for the economy, tipping us into recession, steadily destroying 200,000 jobs and shrinking wages. Expectations of a no-deal exit are so low, if Britons are not living in the streets wearing animal skins and foraging for weevils by Christmas, the Brexiters will declare it a triumph.
And even if it is an immediate disaster, visible on day one, there are few guarantees that leavers would admit their error and seek once more the embrace of Brussels. As Charles Grant of the Centre for European Reform puts it, “Just because babies are dying, does that mean they’ll say we were better off in the EU?” Aren’t they just as likely to blame the beastly Europeans for inflicting such a hellscape on an innocent nation? After all, even Boris Johnson once thought Britain could leave the EU and keep its seat on the European council of ministers. The Brexiters will cry, “How we were to know that leaving the EU meant leaving the EU?” And if they don’t blame Brussels, they’ll blame someone else: foreigners, minorities, anyone but themselves.
Most important, even if a no-deal Brexit delivered sweet vindication for remainers, it would taste bitter. No deal remains an appalling prospect; to flirt with it is, as Grant observes, “playing with people’s lives and livelihoods”. We cannot wish disaster on the country solely to exorcise our demons. Instead we have to keep fighting it with all our might – knowing there will be no comfort blanket to soothe us.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/19/upside-no-deal-crashing-out-country-brexit
Labour said the 'shameful' pay rise offer will leave workers worse off compared with private sector counterparts
Labour today blasted an “insulting” public sector pay rise which will leave workers worse off compared with private sector counterparts.
Police officers are set to receive a 2.5% pay rise, soldiers a 2.9% increase and teachers and other school staff 2.75%, while dentists and consultants will get 2.5% and senior civil servants 2%.
But the rises are due to come from existing budgets – forcing cuts elsewhere.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/tories-insulting-public-sector-pay-18343746
They were all completely different, other than assuming Boris was our new PM on Tuesday, and reflected our current uncertain future.
The first one thought unsuccessful negotiations, followed by a no confidence vote, then an Article 50 extension, followed by an election, and a Hung Parliament, with 4 parties gaining a similar number of seats. Resulting in absolutely no progress at all.
The second, optimistically forecast successful negotiations, a new deal which gets through Parliament, leave on 31st October, general election, resulting in big Tory majority.
Number 3, failed renegotiations, failed no confidence vote on promise of referendum
Article 50 extension, second referendum resulting in remain.
Lastly, practically the same old deal, sold as a new deal, that doesn't get through Parliament, failed no confidence vote as Tories promising to vote against the Government bottle it, and leave with no deal on 31st October.
I suppose you could pick holes in all four arguments.
There are some serious questions to answer.
Will the EU reopen the Withdrawal Agreement?
What can be done about the backstop?
How many Tories are prepared to vote against the Government in a no confidence vote?
Will the number be enough to offset the Labour MPs that will support the Government?
Can Parliament definitely stop no deal?
What are MPs prepared to do to avoid an election?
There are interesting times ahead.
Footage of Iran's Revolutionary Guards seizing control of the British-flagged oil tanker, Stena Impero, appears on a number of Sunday's front pages.
The Sunday Telegraph says ministers are drawing up plans to target the Iranian regime with sanctions in response.
According to the paper, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is expected to announce a package of diplomatic and economic measures in the Commons, including possible asset freezes.
In the Sunday Times, an un-named former cabinet minister accuses Mr Hunt and outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May of being distracted by the Tory leadership contest and having "taken their eyes off the ball" over the Iranian threat.
A similar accusation is made by the former First Sea Lord, Admiral Lord West, in the Observer.
He says whoever wins the contest is going to have to face a major international crisis as soon as he's in post. "It can't be ignored because of Brexit," he warns.
For its lead story, the Sunday Times says senior figures from five EU countries have established contacts with Boris Johnson's team in a bid to thrash out a new Brexit plan that would avoid a no-deal departure.
It reports that Simon Coveney, the deputy Prime Minister of Ireland - one of the countries - has written an article for the paper saying the withdrawal agreement is "not up for negotiation", but also making clear that Dublin wants to avoid a no-deal Brexit at all costs.
The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, is pictured on a number of front pages loading suitcases into his official car in Downing Street, which the Sunday Telegraph says sent Whitehall tongues wagging.
But the Mail On Sunday leads with Mr Johnson's plans for moving into Number Ten.
According to the paper, Mr Johnson - the favourite to become prime minister - has been criticised for spending thousands of pounds of taxpayers' money on new furniture, including a bed, because his estranged wife has kept his belongings.
The paper says he had told civil servants he "didn't have any stuff"
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-49060440
Brexit news: Conservatives plotting to change rules to stop Johnson being toppled by own party as soon as he becomes PM
Senior Tories are considering changing party rules to stop Boris Johnson facing a no-confidence vote within the first year of being prime minister, by preventing a vote of no-confidence in the leader being called until they had been in office for at least 12 months.
It came after Philip Hammond suggested he would be willing to vote against the next Conservative government in a vote of no confidence if it pursued a no-deal Brexit.
The chancellor’s latest comments followed a claim by leading Tory Eurosceptic Jacob Rees-Mogg, a supporter of Mr Johnson, that suspending parliament so that MPs cannot stop the next prime minister forcing through a no-deal Brexit “may have to happen”. The leading Tory Eurosceptic said he did not support a lengthy prorogation but that parliament could have to be closed for one or two days.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-news-live-boris-johnson-confidence-vote-philip-hammond-eu-a9012551.html
Legal threat comes as campaigners warn UK government that courts are being used to intimidate journalists
The businessman Arron Banks and the unofficial Brexit campaign Leave.EU have issued a legal threat against streaming giant Netflix in relation to The Great Hack, a new documentary about the Cambridge Analytica scandal and the abuse of personal data.
The threat comes as press freedom campaigners and charity groups warn the government in an open letter that UK courts are being used to “intimidate and silence” journalists working in the public interest.
In a joint letter to key cabinet members, they call for new legislation to stop “vexatious lawsuits”, highlighting one filed last week by Banks against campaigning journalist Carole Cadwalladr.
Award-winning reports by Cadwalladr, a freelance journalist who works for the Observer, have led to multiple investigations by regulators, and a $5bn fine for Facebook.
“The legal claim against Ms Cadwalladr, issued on 12 July by lawyers acting for Arron Banks, is another example of a wealthy individual appearing to abuse the law in an attempt to silence a journalist and distract from these issues being discussed by politicians, the media and the public at a critical time in the life of our democracy,” the letter says.
Banks had not seen The Great Hack, which comes out on general release on Netflix this week, when he instructed lawyers over the documentary.
https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2019/jul/20/arron-banks-netflix-threat-great-hack-documentary
Hilary Armstrong had criticised Corbyn over Labour’s antisemitism crisis
Labour MPs expressed outrage last night after a local constituency party voted to expel former chief whip Hilary Armstrong from the party for accusing Jeremy Corbyn of a lack of leadership over antisemitism.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/jul/20/labour-mps-furious-as-local-party-votes-to-expel-hilary-armstrong
Young journalist Steven Edginton says he is feared that he is being targeted by security services after helping leak Sir Kim Darroch's criticism of Donald Trump
He also claimed he worked with the political journalist Isabel Oakeshott to build up the story but decided to 'leave my name out of it'.
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/brexit-party-worker-19-says-18489365
Boris Johnson's weekly column makes the lead for the Daily Telegraph.
In it, he insists Britain can leave the EU with a deal by 31 October if it "rediscovers its sense of mission".
The Telegraph sees his pop at "pessimists" as a reference to the chancellor - after Chancellor Phillip Hammond said yesterday it wasn't possible to get a Brexit deal by the end of October.
The paper also looks ahead to the days following what it expects to be Mr Johnson's "coronation" tomorrow.
The European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker could be invited to Chequers this weekend, the Telegraph says.
But the Times reports that Mr Johnson has already been warned by EU leaders that his plan to avert a no-deal Brexit risks being scuppered by "unrealistic" demands over the Irish backstop.
The paper says the European Commission has prepared a multi-billion pound aid package for Ireland, to offset the impact of no deal.
The Daily Mirror leans heavily on nautical metaphors, saying the "hapless" Mr Johnson is expected to "take the helm" of the "floundering Tories" as Britain faces "almighty storms".
It says following Iran's seizure of a British-flagged tanker, the UK needs a considered leader, but it'll instead be lumbered with an inept clown.
But the paper says Mr Johnson can celebrate amid the turmoil - following a multi-million pound offer on his former marital home.
The front page of the Daily Mail continues the paper's push for social care reform.
More than three quarters of a million elderly people have been refused state support, according to the paper, since the government pledged to reform the care system in March 2017.
The Mail says those with dementia have borne the brunt of the delay - and notes that both Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt have backed its calls for an urgent overhaul.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-49066875
Brexit news: UK trade envoy quits in protest over no-deal policy threatening £800m Canada agreement
Exclusive: Andrew Percy attacks ‘cack-handed’ move to scrap import tariffs if UK crashes out in October – triggering Ottawa’s refusal to ‘roll over’ existing EU deal
One of Liam Fox’s trade envoys has quit in protest that the government’s no-deal Brexit policy threatens the demise of an existing trade deal with Canada worth £800m.
Andrew Percy attacked the “cack-handed” move to scrap or slash tariffs on almost all imports if the UK crashes out of the EU – blaming it for Ottawa’s refusal to “roll over” its existing deal with the EU.
The Conservative MP felt “patronised” by the international trade secretary when he warned him the announcement would backfire, The Independent understands, walking away after almost two years in the Canada role.
The resignation is major embarrassment for Mr Fox, who has pledged to “replicate” all 40 trade agreements the UK enjoys as an EU member, to avoid any “disruption of trade” if Brexit goes ahead.
The controversy will also dog Boris Johnson if he wins the Tory leadership race and carries out his threat of a no-deal Brexit.
Where are the sensible Tory MPs who could save us from Brexit?
An ally of Mr Percy told The Independent: “Andrew warned them back in March, as soon as the UK’s no-deal tariffs were published, that it would mean the Canadians would not go for rolling over the Ceta [Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement] deal.
“He could see they were getting 95 per cent of what they wanted if a no-deal happened, that the tariffs were better than what is in Ceta – so why would they rush to sign up to what the UK wanted?
“He said it was such a cack-handed approach, but he was patronised by a couple of ministers – including Liam Fox – and told that everything was going to be fine.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-news-latest-trade-envoy-quit-deal-canada-a9012421.html
Brexiters claim the UK is the victim of Brussels bureaucracy. The truth is that it has shaped EU decisions for decades
The Conservative party’s choice of a new leader will also impact on Britain’s influence in the world. Friendship, not showmanship, is valued by foreign governments. Bluster at home diminishes lustre abroad.
Over many years, Brexiters constructed a fable that presents the UK as the helpless victim of an unaccountable bureaucracy in Brussels. Their version of history has become ever more at odds with reality. Brave Britannia is increasingly portrayed as a heroic underdog determined to fight for its independence from Europe. It matters not a jot that the organisation from which the UK is purportedly seeking to escape is a decent grouping of democratic nations that the UK willingly joined, which it helped significantly to shape and of which at least half the British people now very much wish their country to remain a member.
It is probably impossible to break the link between the fantastical tale and its fanatical followers. However, in the hope that rational argument still has some role to play in British public debate, the record should be set straight regarding the reality of the influence that Britain has brought to bear in shaping EU decisions and indeed the European project as a whole.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jul/22/eu-negotiating-table-influence-britain-uk-brussels
CONSERVATIVE Minister Tobias Ellwood claimed the UK would be forced to go “crawling back” to the European Union if Britain left the bloc without a deal at the end of October this year. But, the Tory Minister sparked fury among some on social media with his criticism of a no deal Brexit.
Boris Johnson, the former foreign secretary, who is tipped to become the next Tory leader and Prime Minister next week, has said he is willing to pull the UK out of the EU without a deal by the end of October this year. But, Conservative Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood delivered a stark warning about the prospect of a no deal Brexit. During an interview with Sophy Ridge on Sky News, the Tory Minister claimed the UK would be forced to go “crawling” back to the bloc just “moments” after leaving with no deal, sparking fury with some listeners.
He said: “I really get frustrated with this energy towards no deal. I know, all my parliamentary colleagues on all sides of the House recognise the dangers of no deal.
“The fact that we keep talking about it, it isn’t a solution. I am very concerned. I am going to make it very very clear, I want us to move away from discussion about no deal at all.
“I believe a deal is absolutely possible. The fact we keep talking about no deal fuels the small caucus of people who see that as their destination. No deal is not a destination. You run away from the EU and say ‘fine we don’t want to have a deal’.
“You will still have to crawl back literally moments later to say ‘how is our financial services going to operate? How is our operations with peace going to work? How is citizens rights going to work?'
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1155961/Brexit-news-UK-EU-Boris-Johnson-news-Conservative-Party-European-Union
Crawford Falconer is one of Whitehall's best paid officials
Britain's chief trade negotiator took home £380,000 last year - despite failing to sign a single new post-Brexit trade deal.
Crawford Falconer earns £265,000, but according to the Mail on Sunday he received an extra £101,000 in pension contributions and was given £19,000 to help him relocate to Britain.
International Trade Secretary Liam Fox had promised to sign 40 free trade deals the "second after" Brexit .
At Tory Party conference in 2017, Dr Fox said: "I hear people saying 'oh we won't have any [free trade agreements] before we leave'. Well believe me we'll have up to 40 ready for one second after midnight in March 2019," he told cheering Tory activists.
The Trade Secretary added that "All these faint hearts saying we cannot do it - it's absolute rubbish."
But in the end only six trade deals were close to completion, eight were 'off-track' and another 19 were 'significantly offtrack' by March 2019
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/chief-trade-negotiator-trousers-380000-18498113
The Massive No Deal Brexit trade policy lie.
The likes of Nigel Farage, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Tim Martin, keep putting this forward.
One of the big selling points of Brexit, was that once we left the customs union we would be allowed to negotiate our own trade deals with other countries. Enabling our economy to flourish by negotiating massive trade deals with the rest of the world. As members we are unable to do this, as the EU negotiate deals for the bloc.
This makes sense as the bloc carries more weight than each individual member, purely on customer numbers. Never mind the chaos that would be caused by individual member countries negotiating different deals with the same countries.
As members we have the right to trade with around 168 other countries, that are WTO members, on WTO rules.
WTO rules involve tariffs. Tariffs are like a tax, and increase prices for consumers. The reason that countries do trade deals, is to reduce or remove tariffs. Although they can also be used to protect various industries.
So as EU members we can trade tariff free with the other 27 EU members plus around 70 other countries that the EU currently has trade deals with. Plus all the WTO members, with the incorporation of tariffs.
Even though tariffs increase prices for consumers, they can be used as a protection for some industries. So if we wanted to do a free trade deal with say New Zealand, we may wish to remove tariffs on their wine, which would make Tim Martin happy, as he apparently imports lots of it, we may wish to continue with tariffs on lamb. If we removed the lamb tariff, as they are able to produce it cheaper than us, we would put our sheep farmers out of business.
So leaving the EU with no deal, means we lose tariff free trade with the EU plus the 70 countries covered by EU trade deals.
The story that is advocated by the politicians quoted above, and many others is as follows,
They are now calling it a WTO Brexit, rather a no deal Brexit.
This means we trade with everyone on WTO rules, this means tariffs on everything, and increased prices for consumers.
Their answer to this is that we can remove all the tariffs.
They claim this will mean cheaper prices for consumers.
This is not true, as it will just mean the same prices, in areas where there are currently no tariffs. Although, as the value of the pound is expected to fall in the case of no deal, all imports will become more expensive for consumers as a result.
The obvious thing is that if we unilaterally removed tariffs on our imports, nobody will want to do a free trade with us. Why would they?
Another obvious effect is that by doing this we put ourselves at a huge disadvantage. Lets say we remove tariffs on cars. So there would be no tariff on car imports. Why would the Germans reciprocate. They would surely prefer to export cars to us tariff free, but maintain the tariffs on the cars that we export to them.
To do this would be bonkers.
WTO rules mean that if you remove tariffs, you remove them for everyone. You couldn't impose a tariff on New Zealand lamb, and not charge it on Australian lamb. So if you remove the lamb tariff, this would apply to everyone.
Why would the EU ever be keen to do a deal, if all their members could export to us tariff free, and we had to pay tariffs to them?
Why would anyone even want to talk to us about a trade deal?
Canada have stopped talking to us about a trade deal because of this.
Unfortunately the end of the referendum campaign, did not signal the end of the lies.
A "fantasist whose lies should never have been believed" is how the Daily Telegraph describes Carl Beech - the man convicted for perverting the course of justice with claims about a paedophile ring.
The paper describes the investigation into his allegations as "a saga of lies, staggering police incompetence and shocking political gullibility" which "shredded the reputations of innocent people".
The Daily Mail calls the police inquiry "shambolic" and "diabolical" and asks why no police officers have been held to account.
Its columnist, Richard Littlejohn, thinks Labour's deputy leader, Tom Watson, should be have been in the dock for championing Beech's cause in a "ghastly, politically-motivated crusade".
The Sun's headline is "Witch-hunt whitewash...cops and Watson dodge rap". The Daily Express says lessons must be learned - and implemented quickly.
All the papers report the election of Jo Swinson as the Liberal Democrats' new leader.
The website BuzzFeed News has been speaking to her friends and rivals for a profile piece - and reports claims that she has "high expectations" of those working for her and once reduced a young female member of staff to tears.
A spokeswoman for Ms Swinson tells the website she is unaware of the specific incident and so is unable to comment.
A source close to the Lib Dem leader points out that women leaders are often portrayed as "difficult" while men are "decisive and strong".
The Guardian thinks Ms Swinson arrives at "probably the best time to be a Liberal Democrat for a decade" and that her party must strive to play a part in moulding the future of Britain.
But it must now work on its policies, the paper believes: "Once Brexit has happened, 'Stop Brexit' ceases to function as a USP," it says.
The Times carries a warning from Justice Secretary David Gauke that the Tories will lose millions of traditional Conservative voters to the Lib Dems if Boris Johnson wins the leadership contest and takes Britain towards a no-deal Brexit.
He tells the paper he wants to see Mr Johnson succeed in striking a new deal with the EU but that he doesn't believe it's possible before 31 October.
The Guardian says rebel Conservative MPs are warning that Mr Johnson will not survive as prime minister unless he softens his approach to Brexit.
But the Telegraph's Tim Stanley says compromising now would be a catastrophe: Brexit isn't just about trade and jobs, he says - voters for Brexit were willing "to put liberty before comfort and security".
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-49078994
oices/boris-johnson-no-deal-brexit-tory-leadership-prime-minister-a9015171.html
If Boris Johnson can’t stomach young, anti no-deal Tories like me, he won’t get far with the rest of the electorate
I asked the soon-to-be prime minister how he’d attract young people to a party that’s only offering catastrophe for their futures, and the answer was even more disappointing than I expected
1/5 Made-up quote for The Times
Johnson was sacked from The Times newspaper in the late 1980s after he fabricated a quote from his godfather, the historian Colin Lucas, for a front-page article about the discovery of Edward II’s Rose Palace. “The trouble was that somewhere in my copy I managed to attribute to Colin the view that Edward II and Piers Gaveston would have been cavorting together in the Rose Palace,” he claimed. Alas, Gaveston was executed 13 years before the palace was built. “It was very nasty,” Mr Johnson added, before attempting to downplay it as nothing more than a schoolboy blunder.
A couple of weeks ago, I went to a “Back Boris” rally in Kent. I wasn’t there out of loyalty, to network, or even to hold Boris Johnson to account. What I was looking for was a sense of reassurance that my party, and my country, were in safe hands. I didn’t find it.
As a young Conservative, I am increasingly troubled by the direction my party is heading. Its descent into far-right euroscepticism, entirely divorced from concerns of evidence or fact, is a far cry from the moderate party representing sensible fiscal policy that I’ve been involved with since my first year at university. Its identity shift seems to be partly a wrongheaded attempt to beat Nigel Farage and his ex-Ukip-turned-Brexit-Party-base at their own game. The problem is, it isn’t working.
Farage will always be better at being Nigel Farage than the Conservative Party will. Our desperate attempts to imitate him are pushing away young voters and members – like myself – who see their futures threatened by the prospect of Brexit. Along with many other young Conservative members, I voted for the Liberal Democrats in the EU elections. Unless my party elects a leader who drastically changes course, I will do so again in a general election.
2/5 Sacked from cabinet over cheating lie
Michael Howard gave Boris Johnson two new jobs after becoming leader of the Conservatives in 2003 – party vice-chairman and shadow arts minister. He was sacked from both positions in November 2004 after assuring Mr Howard that tabloid reports of his affair with Spectator columnist Petronella Wyatt were false and an “inverted pyramid of piffle”. When the story was found to be true, he refused to resign.
It was with this in mind that I spent that Thursday afternoon at the Back Boris rally in Dover. I didn’t know what to expect – but my hopes weren’t especially high. Last week, a young Conservative I know from Northern Ireland asked Johnson an important question about combating the Tory membership’s increasingly ambivalent attitude towards the union. Rather than confront the problem, Johnson denied the existence of such an attitude: “not anywhere near me there isn’t.”
This flat out rejection of the facts did not bode well – nor did what came next: empty rhetoric about the power of the British “brand”, patriotic platitudes, and the inevitable dead cat joke; in this instance at the expense of America, described as “our spiritual, cultural and intellectual child.”
3/5 Broken promise to boss
In 1999 Johnson was offered editorship of The Spectator by owner Conrad Black on the condition that he would not stand as an MP while in the post. In 2001 he stood - and was elected - MP for Henley, though Black did allow him to continue as editor despite calling "ineffably duplicitous"
The exchange was met with immediate laughter from the audience, with the young conservative all but forgotten. Silly Boris, poking fun at those uppity Americans. Brave Boris, for telling it like it is. Clever Boris, for making us all feel better – because for a moment there, we felt like there was a serious question you hadn’t answered. What was it again?
Once inside the rally, I was immediately and acutely aware that I was the youngest person there by a considerable margin. Identikit Conservative members wearing shirts and chinos (ok, guilty as charged) were everywhere – and yet I felt lonely. Some of these people, according to recent Yougov polling, support reinstating the death penalty – where’s the equality of opportunity in that?
4/5 Misrepresenting the people of Liverpool
As editor of The Spectator, he was forced to apologise for an article in the magazine which blamed drunken Liverpool fans for the 1989 Hillsborough disaster and suggested that the people of the city were wallowing in their victim status. “Anyone, journalist or politician, should say sorry to the people of Liverpool – as I do – for misrepresenting what happened at Hillsborough,” he said.
Then I saw Johnson walking through the lobby. I rushed over to him, introduced myself as a young Conservative who had voted for the Lib Dems in the European Elections, and asked my key question: Brexit is a failed project – most young people can see that now. How will you attract young people to a party that offers only catastrophe for their futures?
“Well, you go out and get them then, sign them up.” Then he was gone. I stood there, rocking slightly. I couldn’t quite believe what I had heard. This man not only didn’t have a plan for the future of the party – he was either incapable or not invested enough to pretend he did.
I was expecting bluster, a joke or two, maybe even just to be waved off as a “Remoaner”. What I wasn’t expecting was for him to be visibly flustered, shaken at the idea that someone at this event didn’t support him unconditionally. It was bizarre. After all the hype around his bumbling charm and easy air, here before me was a man who seemed unable to stand up to a 24-year-old, let alone a foreign leader such as Trump or Putin.
5/5 ‘I didn’t say anything about Turkey’
Johnson claimed in January, that he did not mention Turkey during the EU referendum campaign. In fact, he co-signed a letter stating that “the only way to avoid having common borders with Turkey is to vote Leave and take back control”. The Vote Leave campaign also produced a poster reading: “Turkey (population 76 million) is joining the EU”
People believe many different things about “BoJo”, but they all fundamentally come down to two illusions about him. The first is that he’s a serious person who will take a stance on what he believes is right rather than try to please the audience of whatever room he finds himself in. The second, which is more difficult to shake off, is that he’s any good at doing so.
Johnson is only charming if you’re willing to play along. That room in Dover was already on his side – as are the majority of the 0.25 per cent of the population who are given a say on who the next prime minister should be.
But if the whole UK were a roomful of one hundred people, how many would be laughing now? And what will happen when the laughter stops entirely?
https://www.independent.co.uk/v
As you would expect, the figure of Boris Johnson looms large this morning.
Alongside the headline "I'm the dude", the Daily Telegraph carries a picture of the new prime minister saluting photographers on the steps of Conservative Party headquarters. It says he will spend his first 100 days in No 10 focusing solely on Brexit.
The Daily Express carries a picture of a determined looking Mr Johnson, with the headline: "Hang on to your hats...here comes Boris."
In contrast, The Independent online carries a caricature of Mr Johnson on the front page - in Churchillian pose - with the headline "Welcome to Brexit's Darkest Hour".
And the Daily Mirror has a series of pictures of the new prime minister in various comical poses with the headline: "It's really not funny any more"
There's lots of speculation about the kind of team the new prime minister will build around him.
The Telegraph says he will assemble a majority Brexiteer cabinet as he clears out one-time Remainers to get Britain ready for leaving the EU on 31 October.
The paper says he will also make it the most ethnically diverse cabinet in history and with an increased number of female secretaries of state.
Under the headline "Johnson goes to work", the Times says he's expected to promote the Brexiteer Priti Patel to the key post of home secretary in his new cabinet.
According to the paper, Jeremy Hunt's future is in doubt after he resisted demotion from foreign secretary. The paper says the defeated leadership contender is understood to have turned down the post of defence secretary in the new cabinet.
According to the i newspaper, among those who could see a return from the backbenchers are Sir Michael Fallon, Andrew Mitchell and Iain Duncan Smith.
The Financial Times says Boris Johnson enters No 10 just as a new warning is issued about the economic risks of leaving the EU without a deal.
It highlights a report from the International Monetary Fund which says a no-deal Brexit is one of the chief threats to the world economy.
In an editorial, the paper says that rarely has a peacetime British prime minister confronted circumstances as grave as those awaiting Mr Johnson. Rarely too, the paper says, has an incoming premier appeared, by temperament, character and record, so unequal to the magnitude of the task.
It says he has no right to pursue a no-deal departure without seeking a genuine mandate from the British people, either in a general election or a new referendum.
The Sun strikes a more upbeat note believing the new prime minister will be able to unite the country by showing his true colours as a tolerant and inclusive politician.
It describes Boris Johnson as an "inspiring blast of optimism after years of purgatory".
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-49092664
Boris Johnson will enter Downing Street today before unveiling his cabinet and it is expected to be one of the most diverse ever, as names emerge of a Brexiteer-heavy team to lead Britain into its withdrawal from the European Union (pictured, left panel: Sajid Javid, Gavin Williamson, Michael Gove, Grant Shapps; Centre: Priti Patel; right panel: Jeremy Hunt, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Alok Sharma, Mark Spencer). Hardliner Priti Patel is expected to make an astonishing comeback to the upper echelons as Mr Johnson wrangles with how to deliver on his promise to place a woman in one of the 'top four' spots. Sajid Javid, who contested the leadership, is widely expected to become the next chancellor after Philip Hammond said he wouldn't serve under Mr Johnson. Meanwhile, Jeremy Hunt has reportedly been offered the defence secretary job, something he is said to have rejected because he sees it as a demotion. Another comeback is anticipated in Gavin Williamson, one of Mr Johnson's campaign backers, who was sacked from Theresa May's cabinet over Huawei leaks. Jacob Rees-Mogg, chairman of the European Research Group of Eurosceptic MPs, is tipped for a senior role, possibly as chief secretary to the Treasury. And Michael Gove will also be hoping for a promotion from his role as environment secretary, although hopes of a senior position must be tempered by the fact he dashed Mr Johnson's last run to become Prime Minister.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/business/fears-for-sunderland-plant-as-nissan-silent-on-reports-10000-jobs-at-risk-worldwide/ar-AAEMUBr?ocid=spartandhp
The sense of shock caused by the scale of change in the new cabinet is palpable.
The Times describes Boris Johnson's defenestration of 11 members of Theresa May's top team - another six resigned - as an "afternoon of carnage" and "the most brutal cabinet purge in modern political history".
Recalling that the new prime minister recently said his favourite film moment was the "retribution scene" in The Godfather, the Daily Telegraph calls it a "political massacre" and a "breathtakingly swift transition".
It says he immediately showed his authority by sacking the man he beat, Jeremy Hunt, when he turned down the role of defence secretary.
"Ruthless Johnson takes his revenge" is the headline in the Guardian; it sees the sackings of Mr Hunt, Penny Mordaunt, Liam Fox and Greg Clark as a "merciless purge" of his detractors in Mrs May's cabinet.
The Daily Mail speaks of a "massacre", "Boris's Bloodbath" and the new prime minister coming out "all guns blazing".
The Daily Express says he has stamped his authority with a "historic clear-out" and waved in a "new era".
Striking a similar note, the i's headline is "Brexiteers take over". It is "Boris's Brexit Party" in the online Independent.
The Financial Times reports that he has "ripped apart" the previous team and put in its place a "hardcore" line-up of Brexiteers.
It describes Mr Johnson's speech on Downing Street as "defiant and brutal" - not even mentioning Mrs May by name, while accusing her of indecision.
In his speech, the Times says Mr Johnson dashed hopes that he might soften his negotiating stance on Brexit - issuing a "no ifs or buts" promise to leave the EU at the end of October.
The paper reports that EU officials reacted with dismay. Both it and the FT quote the Irish Prime Minister, Leo Varadkar, rejecting as "totally not in the real world" Mr Johnson's claim that a new deal could be agreed - without the Irish backstop.
According to the Sun, Mr Varadkar was - in effect - accusing the new prime minister of "living in fantasy land"; it says the remarks are likely to enrage Brexiteers.
The paper also quotes EU sources as dismissing Mr Johnson's speech as a "rant".
The Daily Mirror - not Boris Johnson's biggest fan - leads on what it describes as his first gaffe as prime minister: discussing his private chat with the Queen at Buckingham Palace.
The Mirror says he broke protocol by revealing that she had told him: "I don't know why anyone would want the job."
Despite the scale of the cabinet cull, there were survivors. The Sun focuses on one in particular - Larry the cat.
It says No 10 has confirmed that Downing Street's chief mouser - the black and white tabby who moved in with David Cameron in 2011 - will be staying on.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/blogs-the-papers-49106075
‘Johnson is very good at making stuff up because he started with the biggest invention of all: himself.’ Illustration
All Boris Johnson's pledges in his first speech as Prime Minister - fact-checked
Boris Johnson has rattled out a load of shiny policies on the steps of 10 Downing Street in his first day as Prime Minister. But how good are they really? We've looked at the facts
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnsons-pledges-first-speech-18769325
Boris Johnson's victory drivel was the half-arsed babble of a fraud
The Mirror's Kevin Maguire dissects the Prime Minister-elect's first speech after being elected Tory leader
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/politics/boris-johnsons-victory-drivel-half-18675724
Boris Johnson's new Cabinet will meet at 8:30 this morning to start the battle for Brexit just hours after the new Prime Minister made his final appointment. Names of new ministers continued to emerge until two minutes to midnight last night as Mr Johnson assembled his team after an unparalleled bloodbath of Theresa May's ministers. The Cabinet includes Dominic Raab, the new Foreign Secretary, as Mr Johnson's de facto deputy, and also saw jobs found for the PM's brother Jo and for senior Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg. Jo Johnson, the new Universities minister, and Boris's staunch backer Mr Rees-Mogg, the new Leader of the House of Commons, were among those heading to and from Downing Street late into the night. Priti Patel became Home Secretary and Sajid Javid was promoted to Chancellor in one of the most ethnically diverse sets of ministers ever assembled. Michael Gove was also handed an influential job as Cabinet Office minister despite his turbulent history with Mr Johnson - and is expected to focus on contingency plans for Brexit as a 'Minister for No Deal'. Another of the former premier's close allies, Ben Wallace, is Defence Secretary, while Liz Truss has gone to Trade and Theresa Villiers takes over at Environment.
Lurking in the corner as Boris enters No 10, the 'evil genius' behind Brexit who'll spread fear across Whitehall: GUY ADAMS examines Dominic Cummings's reputation as a ruthless svengali
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7283037/The-evil-genius-Brexit-wholl-spread-fear-Whitehall.html