“Remain Tory rebels have rallied around Theresa May over fears a decisive defeat this week could cause a party crisis and pave the way for Boris Johnson to become leader. In an unusual show of unity across the party’s Brexit divide, Amber Rudd, the pro-Remain former home secretary, and the Eurosceptic Iain Duncan Smith issued a joint call to ‘every Conservative’. The pair said the party needed to ‘march in lockstep’ with the Prime Minister ahead of a series of pivotal Commons votes on the Government’s Withdrawal Bill. Failure to pull together would ‘risk losing the precious chance to go on implementing policies that transform lives,’ the pair warned. Labour, the SNP and the Liberal Democrats need only about a dozen Tories to join them to throw May’s Brexit strategy into chaos when the bill arrives in the Commons.” – Mail on Sunday
>Today: ToryDiary: The EU Withdrawal Bill. Let’s get on with it.
“We found ourselves on different sides of the debate during the EU referendum but today we are united in our determination to make Brexit a success for Britain. Just like the country as a whole, Conservatives have different perspectives on exactly what our future relationship with the EU should look like. It should surprise no one that on something as complex as Brexit, people of good faith who share common political principles can disagree. Leaving the EU after over 40 years of membership inevitably poses questions which defy easy answers. But when it comes to delivering the legislation necessary to make Brexit a smooth and orderly process, we both agree that every Conservative should march in lockstep behind the Prime Minister as she delivers on the vote.” – Sunday Telegraph
“In what may prove an ominous development for May, her Brexit-backing ministers, including Michael Gove, whose personal rivalries have often been as deep as those with remainers, held several phone calls to co-ordinate their position. When Davis emerged, both Fox and Johnson had 15-minute audiences with May, reinforcing the demand for an end date. A source close to Davis said: “One of the differences is that DD, Boris, Liam and Gove are talking to each other and singing from the same hymn sheet.”… Davis would have been joined by fellow Department for Exiting the European Union ministers Steve Baker and Suella Braverman, both former heads of the European Research Group (ERG) – the hardline Brexiteers now led by Jacob Rees-Mogg – and others. “Steve and Suella were prepared to go,” a former cabinet minister said.” – Sunday Times
Comment:
Editorial:
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: The Brexit negotiation and the Government’s position. There is a glimmer of light.
“Sajid Javid, the new home secretary, has torn up plans to offer European migrants preferential access to Britain after Brexit. It has put him at odds with the Treasury and some other ministers who still want to offer EU citizens a special deal in the hope of better access to EU markets. The Brexit war cabinet was supposed to discuss the post-Brexit immigration system on Thursday, but the plan was pulled amid claims of a split… On Wednesday, Javid is expected to announce details of the rules on settled status for EU migrants already in the UK. But his blueprint for what happens after Brexit is set to be a flashpoint in the cabinet and between Britain and the EU.” – Sunday Times
Comment:
Editorial:
“Donald Trump was accused of snubbing Theresa May for the second time in 48 hours yesterday, as he charged other nations, including Britain, with ‘robbing’ the US. The US President’s latest rebuff to the Prime Minister came when he failed to mention her name as he left the G7 summit after a blazing trade row with fellow world leaders. Denying claims of a rift, Mr Trump said he got on well with Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron and Justin Trudeau – but omitted to mention Mrs May. It came a day after he refused to grant her a one-to-one meeting during the two-day event in Canada, and after Mrs May had arrived at the summit to reports that Mr Trump was tired of her ‘schoolmistress’ tone.” – Mail on Sunday
Comment:
“Theresa May has sparked a fresh immigration row after ruling out major changes in the wake of the Windrush scandal. She has set herself on a collision course with new Home Secretary Sajid Javid by appearing to reject an overhaul of how migrants are treated. The Prime Minister said the public wanted to know ‘that we are dealing with people who come to the country illegally’. Her remarks come days after Mr Javid promised a ‘fairer, more compassionate immigration system’ following the Windrush controversy, during which some Caribbean migrants who have lived in the UK for decades were told they were here illegally. He has also disowned Mrs May’s pledge to create a ‘hostile’ climate for illegal migrants by vowing instead to oversee a ‘compliant environment’.” – Mail on Sunday
“Chris Grayling was losing his grip on the rail network last night as insiders accused him of trying to dodge responsibility for chaos, and train staff threated to walk off the job because they felt threatened by furious passengers. Industry sources accused the transport secretary of “scapegoating” train firms and Network Rail (NR) while failing to acknowledge his own department’s shortcomings may have contributed to the cancellation of thousands of trains. Services run by two of Britain’s biggest franchises, Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) and Northern, have been in chaos since new timetables were introduced on May 20, with the disruption expected to continue for weeks.” – Sunday Times
Editorial:
“Digital IDs should be introduced to stop mob rule and end anonymity online, the security minister has said. Ben Wallace, the MP for Wyre and Preston North and Minister of State for Security and Economic Crime, said bullying and grooming takes place on social media because people believe they can’t be identified. He added that websites should be able to identify people online in the same way that banks do… The system may be based on existing Verify systems the government use or on the age-verification procedure that will soon be needed to access online pornography. However, the latter had been delayed over concerns of how it will work. On the HMRC website users have to take identity documents such as a passport or driver’s license to the Post Office or another partner organisation to verify their identity.” – Mail on Sunday
“Organised gangs will be targeted in a major crackdown in the fight against ‘waste’ criminals. Fly-tipping and illegal dumping grounds that cause misery for communities will be the focus of a new review. The activities are often used as a cover for other crimes such as theft, human trafficking, fraud, drugs supply and money laundering. The Environment Agency uncovered more than 850 new illegal waste sites last year and two are closed down every day… Environment Secretary Michael Gove, exclusively told The Sun on Sunday: “Waste crime is big business, costing society around £600million a year. It’s bad for local communities, bad for the economy – and bad for the environment.” – Sun on Sunday
“Britain could be heading for tax rises to fund a major cash boost for the NHS because Philip Hammond is refusing to allocate funds from a Brexit dividend, Government sources claim. Senior Tories accused the Chancellor of being “politically tin-eared” amid a Cabinet battle over the financing of a funding increase to mark the 70th anniversary of the health service next month. Last night a friend of the Chancellor said the claims were “incorrect”, adding: “Clearly any Chancellor would use every available source of funding to support our public services.” Mr Hammond is alleged to be ignoring calls to use the savings Britain will make in contributions to Brussels after Brexit, to the NHS. During the referendum campaign the Vote Leave campaign claimed that could amount to £350 million per week, which it said could then be spent on the NHS.” – Sunday Telegraph
“The former MP for Kensington and Chelsea called for Grenfell Tower to be torn down to stop it becoming a shrine – just days after the fire in which 72 people died. Victoria Borwick warned the demolition should take place ‘as soon as possible because otherwise it will just become a memorial’, and with the Notting Hill carnival in the summer ‘it does not bode well’. The remarks came in a private email which also suggested the local community was difficult to help in the aftermath of the disaster a year ago because ‘rather like gangs, they don’t go into another territory’. Last night, furious survivors said the comments were ‘upsetting’ and showed a lack of understanding of local people.” – Mail on Sunday
“A Tory MP has sparked outrage for suggesting police should stop and search ethnic minorities more “because they commit more crime”. Philip Davies said in a parliamentary debate that black people were “more likely to be murderers” and “to use a knife or sharp instrument to kill”, according to statistics. He also said it was “perfectly obvious” they were more likely to be searched for drugs than white people “because more [black] people are convicted of those crimes”, adding that among Asian offenders, the greatest number – 28 per cent – had committed drug offences. The MP for Shipley argued that white people were “far more likely” to be discriminated against by police and were “the community that is much more likely to be stopped and searched and yet found to have done nothing wrong”.” – Sunday Express
“A Labour government would introduce a so-called #MeToo revolution in the workplace, Jeremy Corbyn will announce today. In a speech at the Bakers, Food and Allied Workers Union conference in Southport, the Labour leader will vow to end the “scourge of sexual harassment” and unveil policies including a ban on contracts that stop victims of sexual assault from speaking out. Labour would also force employers to publish their anti-harassment policy and state what they are doing to improve conditions for women, while doubling the time frame to six months for victims of sexual discrimination to launch employment tribunals. In a bid to prevent reruns of the Presidents Club scandal – the charity dinner where hospitality workers were allegedly harassed and silenced by non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) – the party would make employers responsible if customers abuse staff at work.” – Sunday Times
“Diane Abbott has been criticised for attending a fundraising event for a controversial transgender lobby group that advocates giving hormone drugs to children. The Shadow Home Secretary spoke at a meeting last month, organised by Labour’s hard-Left faction Momentum, in aid of Action for Trans Health (ATH). ATH has called for the NHS to prescribe cross-sex hormones to patients of any age. At present, the hormones – which develop male characteristics in girls and vice versa – are only prescribed to transgender patients aged 16 and over… A spokeswoman for Ms Abbott said the MP had ‘no information that this event is either linked with or intended to raise money for Action for Trans Health’.” – Mail on Sunday
“More than 110 MPs have told Theresa May to act on the funeral poverty “crisis” after a Sunday Times investigation found some councils ban poor families from attending their loved ones’ funerals. The MPs signed a letter to the prime minister describing our findings as “a national disgrace”. They demand a system to stop councils using “sickening” tactics to deter poverty-stricken residents applying for public-health or pauper’s funerals. “Councils across the UK are indulging in cynical punishment of the poor. A no-frills funeral is one thing, but it is unfathomable that the poorest families are being banned from attending those funerals full stop,” it reads… The campaign is led by Carolyn Harris, Labour MP for Swansea East, whose son, Martin, 8, was killed in a road accident in 1989. She used a loan and a “whip-round” to pay for the funeral.” – Sunday Times
“The hidden scale of Kremlin links to the biggest donor to the Brexit campaign are revealed today. Arron Banks, the millionaire businessman who helped fund Brexit, was offered a business deal involving six Russian goldmines. He also had undisclosed meetings with the Russian ambassador to Britain – set up by a suspected Russian spy – and paid a previously unknown visit to Moscow at the height of the campaign. The revelations raise explosive questions about attempts by Moscow to influence the referendum result. Emails by Banks and his sidekick, Andy Wigmore, shown to The Sunday Times, reveal the men made repeated contact with Russian officials to discuss business opportunities and issues of mutual interest during the referendum campaign and its aftermath.” – Sunday Times
“Today’s revelations are the result of an investigation that I was carrying out with Lord Ashcroft for a book we are writing together about the state of the British armed forces. Unfortunately, limited material was hacked and passed to third parties. So I have decided to talk to The Sunday Times. Warfare has never been simply about bombs and bullets. We have been researching how else our adversaries seek to weaken us. One way is by cultivating relationships with political figures and attempting to turn them into agents of influence. Russia is expert at this. The offer of lucrative business opportunities is a typical tool. The insidious effects of such activities are explored in White Flag?, due to be published this autumn.” – Sunday Times
“Nicola Sturgeon appeared to hint she might not call for a second independence referendum this autumn, despite insisting the case for leaving the UK was ‘getting stronger by the day’. The First Minister is committed to updating Scots about when she might seek to have such a vote later this year, when more details about Brexit are known. But she complained the UK Government had been left ‘paralysed’ on the issue. She went on to tell the SNP conference in Aberdeen that persuading more Scots of the case for independence was still more important than the timing of a second ballot… With the EU Withdrawal Bill heading back to the House of Commons on Tuesday, she also said it was ‘decision time for the Tories’ in the row over devolved powers.” – Mail on Sunday
>Yesterday: Andy Maciver in Comment: The risk of the indyref myth