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Brexit: Michael Gove insists UK will still leave EU on 31 October – live news
Brexit: Michael Gove insists UK will still leave EU on 31 October – live news
(32 minutes later)
Asked if the EU was going to be open to an extension, its chief negotiator Michel Barnier told reporters that European Council President Donald Tusk would consider the next stage.
Our country faces a fundamental choice about the future of our economy and the living standards of our people. #Ridge pic.twitter.com/vB0osDgR2o
He said there was a “very short and normal meeting” of EU ambassadors meet this morning to take the next steps to ratify the withdrawal agreement.
Michael Gove has disclosed the government’s Operation Yellowhammer contingency plan to handle a no-deal Brexit is being “triggered”.
“Tomorrow I will await the European Parliament.”
The chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, in charge of preparations for a no-deal outcome, said the risk of such a scenario had increased due to MPs forcing the government to ask Brussels for another delay to the Brexit date.
The MoS’s Harry Cole on the current state of Parliament
Some Westminster observers viewed the move as a bid to increase pressure on MPs to back prime minister Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal.
Gove told Sky News: “The risk of leaving without a deal has actually increased because we cannot guarantee that the European Council will grant an extension.
“And that is why I will, later today, be chairing a Cabinet committee meeting, extraordinarily on a Sunday, in order to ensure that the next stage of our exit preparations and our preparedness for no-deal is accelerated.
“It means that we are triggering Operation Yellowhammer.
“It means that we are preparing to ensure that, if no extension is granted, we have done everything possible in order to prepare to leave without a deal.”
(4/4) The DUP does not seek a second referendum; merely implementation of the first. The people of the United Kingdom were asked whether the UK should leave the EU, not whether Great Britain should leave Northern Ireland behind. Leaving as one nation remains our goal.
(3/4) DUP support for the Letwin amendment was a situation that could have been easily avoided had the PM kept to words he penned to Jean-Claude Juncker just a matter of two weeks ago.
(2/4) The DUP wants to “get Brexit done” but it must be a Brexit for the whole of the United Kngdom. Our position has been clear and it has been consistent.
DUP MP Sammy Wilson on supporting the Letwin amendment and the party’s position.
(1/4) The votes of DUP MPs were significant in the passing of the Letwin amendment, but it is far from the first time that DUP votes have been crucial on the issue of Brexit. In nearly half of all votes, it has been DUP MPs who have ensured progress towards our exit from the EU.
Asked if the EU would be open to an extension, Michel Barnier told reporters that the European council president, Donald Tusk, would consider the next stage.
Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, said there had been a “very short and normal meeting” of EU ambassadors this morning to take the next steps to ratify the withdrawal agreement.
“Tomorrow I will await the European parliament,” he said.
The Mail on Sunday’s Harry Cole on the current state of parliament:
There is a real feel of 2009 to this Parliament. The arrogance of the pre expenses crisis Commons has seeped back in a different form. 2010 election saw 150 stand down and scores lose their seats. Can’t help but feel like a similar clear out is coming down the line.
There is a real feel of 2009 to this Parliament. The arrogance of the pre expenses crisis Commons has seeped back in a different form. 2010 election saw 150 stand down and scores lose their seats. Can’t help but feel like a similar clear out is coming down the line.
Scottish Conservative MP Luke Graham has insisted a no deal Brexit is what the party has been trying to avoid all along.
The Scottish Conservative MP Luke Graham has insisted a no-deal Brexit is what the party has been trying to avoid all along.
“What we saw in the last week is the prime minister actually deliver a deal that delivers on a lot of the objectives that we were trying to achieve as a country,” he told the BBC’s Sunday Politics Scotland programme.
“What we saw in the last week is the prime minister actually deliver a deal that delivers on a lot of the objectives that we were trying to achieve as a country,” he told the BBC’s Sunday Politics Scotland programme.
“There’s less discussion about no deal, it’s a discussion about we’ve got a deal, the EU have agreed it, it’s now for us to agree it as well.
“There’s less discussion about no deal, it’s a discussion about we’ve got a deal, the EU have agreed it, it’s now for us to agree it as well.
“The prime minister has written his letters in accordance with the law and now we’re focusing on getting a deal.
“The prime minister has written his letters in accordance with the law and now we’re focusing on getting a deal.
“We’ve got one on the table and it’s time for MPs right across the House of Commons to come together and actually vote for that deal so we can move forward.”
“We’ve got one on the table and it’s time for MPs right across the House of Commons to come together and actually vote for that deal so we can move forward.”
Sir Oliver Letwin says he is “absolutely behind the government now” and will back Boris Johnson’s deal as amended.
Sir Oliver Letwin says he is “absolutely behind the government now” and will back Boris Johnson’s deal as amended.
He tabled an amendment on Saturday to prevent an unintended no-deal Brexit.
He tabled an amendment on Saturday to prevent an unintended no-deal Brexit.
“I'm behind the government”Sir Oliver Letwin tells #Marr he supports PM’s #Brexit deal and "there will be no more amendments" from himhttps://t.co/NqsJPeXvMD pic.twitter.com/8oUVgg6LMH
“I'm behind the government”Sir Oliver Letwin tells #Marr he supports PM’s #Brexit deal and "there will be no more amendments" from himhttps://t.co/NqsJPeXvMD pic.twitter.com/8oUVgg6LMH
The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, has clarified the position on goods moving from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland.
The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, has clarified the position on goods moving from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland.
He told the Andrew Marr Show: “If it’s going into the EU then it ought to be able to take place without any extra frictions or any extra tariffs. If it’s going into other parts of the world then you have to look at the arrangements either the EU has that we accede to, or the new arrangements that the UK puts in place.”
He told the Andrew Marr Show: “If it’s going into the EU then it ought to be able to take place without any extra frictions or any extra tariffs. If it’s going into other parts of the world then you have to look at the arrangements either the EU has that we accede to, or the new arrangements that the UK puts in place.”
Raab added the EU would not allow the UK to “cherry pick” the same arrangements that had been given to Northern Ireland. “This is only being offered in relation to Northern Ireland because of the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland.”
Raab added the EU would not allow the UK to “cherry pick” the same arrangements that had been given to Northern Ireland. “This is only being offered in relation to Northern Ireland because of the unique circumstances of Northern Ireland.”
Our Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll on the DUP’s position
Our Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll on the DUP’s position
Full statement in screen grab pic.twitter.com/sujW9PuHrY
Full statement in screen grab pic.twitter.com/sujW9PuHrY
Some interesting polling in the Sunday Times Scotland this morning found that Scottish voters would prefer the SNP to be pushing for a second EU referendum before another election.
Some interesting polling in the Sunday Times Scotland this morning found that Scottish voters would prefer the SNP to be pushing for a second EU referendum before another election.
The Panelbase poll taken between before SNP conference last weekend – during which there was a great deal more discussion of a second referendum on independence than on EU membership – found that only 26% supported the election-first stance, while 46% would prefer another referendum.
The Panelbase poll taken between before SNP conference last weekend – during which there was a great deal more discussion of a second referendum on independence than on EU membership – found that only 26% supported the election-first stance, while 46% would prefer another referendum.
And among SNP voters, six out of 10 would prefer the priority to be another vote on Brexit.
And among SNP voters, six out of 10 would prefer the priority to be another vote on Brexit.
The SNP’s Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, has confirmed the party will bring a vote of no confidence in the prime minister, potentially later in the week.
Blackford told the BBC’s Sunday Politics Scotland programme: “We are prepared, once we’ve got that extension in place, to take our responsibilities and move a motion of no confidence and I would be looking for parliamentary time to do that and I would expect everyone else to step up.”
He said Boris Johnson’s behaviour in sending multiple letters to the EU last night proved he was “not treating the office with any respect or dignity”.
Blackford would not be drawn on what court action might follow from the weekend – the SNP MP Joanna Cherry’s ongoing case regarding the PM’s compliance with the Benn act still has court time reserved for this Monday – but he said he would “strongly suspect we may see action taking place at the courts in the coming days”.
He restated that the SNP would support a confirmatory referendum, but added: “If we are going to move forward to people’s vote then we do need a government in place to support that, we need a general election too.”
Keir Starmer believes the prime minister has taken a “silly approach” to the Benn act and has accused him of being “childlike”.
Following yesterday’s Commons defeat, Boris Johnson called on EU leaders to reject any extension of Britain’s membership of the EU.
Starmer told the BBC’s Andrew Marr show: “The law is very clear. He should have signed one letter in accordance with the law. If we crash out because of what he has done with the letters [...] without a deal, he bears personal responsibility for that.”
He added that Labour would be open to talking to the DUP following their opposition to Johnson’s Brexit deal.
He said: “I would openly invite the DUP to talk to us. If you want to work with us to improve the situation we’re in, our door is open to that discussion.”
Labour will back an amendment next week calling for a referendum on Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal, the shadow Brexit secretary, Keir Starmer, has said.
Labour will back an amendment next week calling for a referendum on PM’s #Brexit deal says Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer#Marr https://t.co/NqsJPeXvMD pic.twitter.com/BKVf8q8yDd
The foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, has insisted a Conservative government would work to protect workers’ rights after Brexit.
He said British businesses and workers need “a set of regulations that is smarter and tailored towards them”.
“Workers are far safer under a Conservative government, given our economic record and the protections we’re putting in place, than they are under this shower of a Labour party,” Raab told the Andrew Marr Show.
Asked why the “level playing field” for workers’ regulation had been taken out of the legally binding withdrawal agreement and put into the non-legally binding political declaration, Raab responded: “We’re basically saying these issues of employment rights, environmental protections, are so important, and the circumstances in the UK are obviously different.
“We actually should make sure politicians are accountable to the voters watching the show. Why would you abdicate responsibility for those issues if they’re so important?”
Michael Gove has said the risk of the UK leaving the EU without a deal has grown as a result of yesterday’s vote.
Reasserting the government’s belief that Brexit will definitely happen on October 31, the cabinet minister told Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday: “The risk of leaving without a deal has actually increased because we cannot guarantee that the European council will grant an extension.”
He said he would chair a cabinet meeting later today in order to trigger Operation Yellowhammer, the government’s contingency plan to prepare for a possible no-deal outcome. “We’re preparing to ensure that if no extension is granted that we have done everything possible in order to leave without a deal,” said Gove.
Although the prime minister has already been forced to send a letter requesting a further Brexit delay, Gove insisted that “parliament can’t change the determination” of the government to leave the EU by Halloween.
“We know that the European Union want us to leave, we know that we have a deal that allows us to leave,” he said. “We are going to leave on October 31st. We have the means and ability to do so.”
He said he was optimistic that the government would get enough votes in order to get Boris Johnson’s deal through the Commons – in which case there would be no extension.
The former Tory minister Amber Rudd has said she feels Theresa May’s Brexit deal was better than the one currently being offered by Johnson.
Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge, Rudd, now an independent, said: “I don’t think it’s as good as Theresa May’s deal. I regret the fact that we don’t have effectively a backstop for the whole of the country. Instead it’s only Northern Ireland.
“In terms of the economy, it’s very good for Northern Ireland but it’s less good for the union. I thought that Theresa May’s deal was the right deal. I think this is not as good.”
However, Rudd stressed that she still supported Johnson’s deal. “We have to make sure that we don’t leave with no deal … I want to support it and I will, and I think, not all of us, but most of us former Conservatives, who supported the Letwin amendment will do so as well,” she said.
“I think it’s absolutely right to say we don’t want to leave with no deal but we do want to leave with a deal and this deal from the prime minister is good enough for me.”
The Brexit party leader, Nigel Farage, has also been talking to Sophy Ridge this morning. After being mocked on Thursday for his seeming own-goal in defending the law that would delay Brexit, Farage reaffirmed to the Sky presenter that he would rather have a Brexit extension followed by a general election than see Boris Johnson’s deal being passed in the Commons.
“I want to leave on the 31st October with a clean-break Brexit because that’s the only Brexit worth having,” he said.
“I want a general election, so an extension for a few weeks in which we can have a general election is a much better outcome than signing up to a treaty that becomes part of international law that binds us in foreign policy and in many, many other areas.”
He added: “We are going to have to be on a level playing field with the rest of Europe, which means we still haven’t taken back control of our laws. This is not Brexit.”
He described Johnson’s deal as “a new EU treaty”, adding that “all it does is take us on to the next stage of negotiations”.
Our video team were at the huge People’s Vote march in London yesterday, following some of the estimated one million anti-Brexit protesters as they demanded a fresh referendum. You can watch their work here:
John McDonnell has said Boris Johnson has behaved “a bit like a spoilt brat” after the prime minister sent an unsigned letter to the EU asking for a delay, and then a second arguing against it.
Speaking to Sky’s Sophy Ridge on her Sunday show, the shadow chancellor said: “He may well be in contempt of parliament or the courts themselves. Parliament made a decision, he should abide by it, and this idea that you send another letter contradicting the first, I think it flies in the face of what the parliament and the courts have decided.”
He added that another meaningful vote on Johnson’s Brexit deal would be “pointless” until MPs had been able to scrutinise the legislation needed to implement it.
“Until you see the legislation, you don’t know the detail, and as someone said yesterday, the devil is in the detail,” McDonnell said.
While he said an amendment for a second referendum on Brexit would “almost inevitably” come up in parliament over the next few days, McDonnell would not confirm whether Labour would bring one forward, instead emphasising that the party would argue for a general election.
“In a general election we would negotiate a sensible option for Brexit and we’d take that back to the people,” he said.
Morning, it’s Amy Walker here. I’ll be kicking off the live blog today.
The Sunday papers worked late into last night reacting to Boris Johnson’s defeat in the Commons yesterday. The Observer carried a picture of the People’s Vote march alongside news of the prime minister’s “humiliating defeat”. The Mirror took a similar approach, declaring that “Blustering Boris” had been “beaten again”.
Meanwhile, others, such as the Sunday Times, painted a picture of a dedicated leader battling the “Brexit wreckers”. The Mail on Sunday described MPs who had helped to delay Johnson’s deal as the “House of Fools” and the Sunday Express asked “Why Won’t They Let Us Leave?”.
As yet another turbulent day gets under way, I’ll be keeping you updated with what ministers and MPs are saying on the Sunday politics shows. First up is Sophy Ridge on Sky News, who is scheduled to interview John McDonnell, Nigel Farage, Amber Rudd and Michael Gove among others.
