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| Barnier says there will be checks on GB/NI trade after Brexit, despite Johnson denying this - live news | Barnier says there will be checks on GB/NI trade after Brexit, despite Johnson denying this - live news |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Follow all today’s political developments as they happen | Follow all today’s political developments as they happen |
| The Labour leadership candidate Jess Phillips has also written an article for the Guardian setting out a six-point plan for restoring trust in politics. Her proposals included: a fairer voting system; using citizen assemblies to shape climate crisis policy; voting at 16, with people being automatically enrolled on the electoral register when they get a national insurance number; and a body to regulate online political advertising. It is all quite constructive and high-minded. | |
| In the article she also describes Boris Johnson as a “blond baboon”, which is less constructive and high-minded. | |
| Here is an extract. | |
| Here is Newsnight’s diplomatic editor, Mark Urban, on our story about the latest Westminster response to US concerns about Huawei. | |
| Jess Phillips has released details of some of the people who will be running her campaign for the Labour leadership. Wes Streeting, the Labour MP for Ilford North, and Melanie Onn, the former Labour MP for Great Grimsby, are the campaign chairs. Here are the other appointments from the Phillips press release. | |
| The Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard has now issued his own statement about Boris Johnson’s decision to rule out letting Scotland hold another independence referendum. It goes further than the statement from Scottish Labour earlier. (See 1.42pm.) Leonard says: | The Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard has now issued his own statement about Boris Johnson’s decision to rule out letting Scotland hold another independence referendum. It goes further than the statement from Scottish Labour earlier. (See 1.42pm.) Leonard says: |
| While Leonard has long been a thoughtful advocate of federalism, I’m pretty sure that this is the first time he has talked about home rule specifically since he became leader. | While Leonard has long been a thoughtful advocate of federalism, I’m pretty sure that this is the first time he has talked about home rule specifically since he became leader. |
| Former UK Labour leader Gordon Brown has regularly advocated sweeping powers for the Scottish parliament under a federal UK state, describing it as “unifying” third option between the status quo and independence. | Former UK Labour leader Gordon Brown has regularly advocated sweeping powers for the Scottish parliament under a federal UK state, describing it as “unifying” third option between the status quo and independence. |
| In the Financial Times’ regular lunchtime Brexit briefing email, George Parker says there was a “curious change of tone” in what Boris Johnson said about the prospects of getting a UK-EU trade deal before the end of 2020 in his BBC interview this morning. (See 10.03am.) Parker explains: | In the Financial Times’ regular lunchtime Brexit briefing email, George Parker says there was a “curious change of tone” in what Boris Johnson said about the prospects of getting a UK-EU trade deal before the end of 2020 in his BBC interview this morning. (See 10.03am.) Parker explains: |
| The County Councils Network, which represents counties in England, has welcomed what Boris Johnson said in his BBC interview this morning about tackling county lines drug dealing. (See 10.03am.) Sam Corcoran, the leader of Cheshire East council and the CCN’s environment and communities spokesperson, said: | The County Councils Network, which represents counties in England, has welcomed what Boris Johnson said in his BBC interview this morning about tackling county lines drug dealing. (See 10.03am.) Sam Corcoran, the leader of Cheshire East council and the CCN’s environment and communities spokesperson, said: |
| Newt Gingrich, the leading US Republican and a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, seems a bit alarmed by the line Boris Johnson took on Huawei in his BBC interview this morning. (See 10.03am.) | Newt Gingrich, the leading US Republican and a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, seems a bit alarmed by the line Boris Johnson took on Huawei in his BBC interview this morning. (See 10.03am.) |
| Britain believes the information dramatically presented by a delegation from Donald Trump’s administration about the risks of using Huawei technology in 5G networks contains nothing its intelligence agencies had not foreseen, my colleague Dan Sabbagh reports. | Britain believes the information dramatically presented by a delegation from Donald Trump’s administration about the risks of using Huawei technology in 5G networks contains nothing its intelligence agencies had not foreseen, my colleague Dan Sabbagh reports. |
| Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, was speaking in the European parliament earlier. According to Daniel Ferrie, a European commission spokesman, Barnier insisted that the Northern Ireland protocol (the post-Brexit arrangement negotiated by Boris Johnson keeping Northern Ireland in the single market, as an alternative to the backstop) would involve checks on goods going from Britain to Northern Ireland. | Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, was speaking in the European parliament earlier. According to Daniel Ferrie, a European commission spokesman, Barnier insisted that the Northern Ireland protocol (the post-Brexit arrangement negotiated by Boris Johnson keeping Northern Ireland in the single market, as an alternative to the backstop) would involve checks on goods going from Britain to Northern Ireland. |
| Yesterday Johnson claimed that there would be no such checks. | Yesterday Johnson claimed that there would be no such checks. |
| A Labour peer has been suspended by the party after the first investigation under the Lords’ new misonduct system found he harassed two women, one of whom accused him of “stalker-ish” behaviour. | A Labour peer has been suspended by the party after the first investigation under the Lords’ new misonduct system found he harassed two women, one of whom accused him of “stalker-ish” behaviour. |
| The report by Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, the Lords commissioner for standards, found that David Lea, a former trade unionist made a peer in 2019, had been the subject of 18 complaints between 2011 and 2019, including shouting at or otherwise bullying staff, making a racially offensive remark, and inappropriate behaviour towards a woman. | The report by Lucy Scott-Moncrieff, the Lords commissioner for standards, found that David Lea, a former trade unionist made a peer in 2019, had been the subject of 18 complaints between 2011 and 2019, including shouting at or otherwise bullying staff, making a racially offensive remark, and inappropriate behaviour towards a woman. |
| One of these complaints, by a woman named only as AB, was made in 2018, but resubmitted last year after the introduction of the revised Lords code of conduct focused on better combating bullying and harassment. | One of these complaints, by a woman named only as AB, was made in 2018, but resubmitted last year after the introduction of the revised Lords code of conduct focused on better combating bullying and harassment. |
| AB said she was left distressed after Lord Lea, whom she had joined on an official parliamentary visit some years ago but had no dealings with since, sent her a package including a framed photo of them on the visit. It also included a letter inviting her to his house, and saying he had a copy of the photo on his piano at home. AB said this felt “slightly stalkerish”. | AB said she was left distressed after Lord Lea, whom she had joined on an official parliamentary visit some years ago but had no dealings with since, sent her a package including a framed photo of them on the visit. It also included a letter inviting her to his house, and saying he had a copy of the photo on his piano at home. AB said this felt “slightly stalkerish”. |
| Lord Lea, 82, told the inquiry that while he apologised he did not understand why AB had been upset, “unless she had some feelings of affection for me”. | Lord Lea, 82, told the inquiry that while he apologised he did not understand why AB had been upset, “unless she had some feelings of affection for me”. |
| The other complaint, which was made separately, came from a woman identified as TU, who said that when she was alone in the room where she worked he would repeatedly come in to talk, asking her to come for a cup of tea with him, and once promised to write her a sexually suggestive poem. | The other complaint, which was made separately, came from a woman identified as TU, who said that when she was alone in the room where she worked he would repeatedly come in to talk, asking her to come for a cup of tea with him, and once promised to write her a sexually suggestive poem. |
| TU told the inquiry: “I just want to be able to come to work, do my job and be a work person rather than a woman at work.” | TU told the inquiry: “I just want to be able to come to work, do my job and be a work person rather than a woman at work.” |
| Scott-Moncrieff said both cases constituted harassment, with Lea agreeing to undergo training. | Scott-Moncrieff said both cases constituted harassment, with Lea agreeing to undergo training. |
| A Labour Lords spokesman said: | A Labour Lords spokesman said: |
| Anyone wanting to understand fully Brexit could do a lot worse than trying to make sense of the obsession that a few Brexiters have with getting Big Ben to chime to mark the moment when the UK leaves the EU. Normally Big Ben chimes every hour, but it has been silenced for some time because of a four-year restoration programme. This is a tale that tells you something about the Brexiters’ preoccupation with history, tradition and symbolism, as well as about the way some newspaper coverage operates in curious grey zone between the serious and the absurd. All this helps to explain why 60 Tory Brexiters wrote to the Sunday Telegraph at the weekend demanding that Big Ben should bong for Brexit. And it explains why Boris Johnson himself felt obliged to make a concession to this nonsense in his BBC interview this morning by floating the idea of having some sort of public appeal to pay for Brexit bongs. (See 10.03am.) | Anyone wanting to understand fully Brexit could do a lot worse than trying to make sense of the obsession that a few Brexiters have with getting Big Ben to chime to mark the moment when the UK leaves the EU. Normally Big Ben chimes every hour, but it has been silenced for some time because of a four-year restoration programme. This is a tale that tells you something about the Brexiters’ preoccupation with history, tradition and symbolism, as well as about the way some newspaper coverage operates in curious grey zone between the serious and the absurd. All this helps to explain why 60 Tory Brexiters wrote to the Sunday Telegraph at the weekend demanding that Big Ben should bong for Brexit. And it explains why Boris Johnson himself felt obliged to make a concession to this nonsense in his BBC interview this morning by floating the idea of having some sort of public appeal to pay for Brexit bongs. (See 10.03am.) |
| Johnson did, though, seem to acknowledge that it would be be unreasonable to expect the government to pay the £500,000 cost of getting Big Ben to chime on 31 January. And today the House of Commons commission has put out a press notice explaining why it would cost so much. Here’s an extract. | Johnson did, though, seem to acknowledge that it would be be unreasonable to expect the government to pay the £500,000 cost of getting Big Ben to chime on 31 January. And today the House of Commons commission has put out a press notice explaining why it would cost so much. Here’s an extract. |
| In a statement explaining why the commission did not support spending this money, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, said: | In a statement explaining why the commission did not support spending this money, Sir Lindsay Hoyle, the Speaker, said: |
| This is from Carwyn Jones, the former first minister of Wales. | This is from Carwyn Jones, the former first minister of Wales. |
| Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, has welcomed his tweet. | Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, has welcomed his tweet. |
| Scottish Labour has provided a suitably non-committal response to Boris Johnson’s refusal to grant Holyrood the powers to hold a second independence referendum. The party’s spokesperson for the constitution, Alex Rowley, said: | Scottish Labour has provided a suitably non-committal response to Boris Johnson’s refusal to grant Holyrood the powers to hold a second independence referendum. The party’s spokesperson for the constitution, Alex Rowley, said: |
| Regular readers will know that these “conversations” lately have included the Scottish Labour executive rejecting last Saturday leader Richard Leonard’s proposals for a special conference on federalism. Leonard was proposing that the party consider supporting a multi-option referendum on independence, but the party instead decided to hold a private “away day” to decide its future policy on the union. | Regular readers will know that these “conversations” lately have included the Scottish Labour executive rejecting last Saturday leader Richard Leonard’s proposals for a special conference on federalism. Leonard was proposing that the party consider supporting a multi-option referendum on independence, but the party instead decided to hold a private “away day” to decide its future policy on the union. |
| Since Scottish Labour’s disastrous election result, a number of senior Labour figures, including defeated Scottish MPs, have said the party needs to accept the case for a referendum, and also consider splitting away from the UK party. | Since Scottish Labour’s disastrous election result, a number of senior Labour figures, including defeated Scottish MPs, have said the party needs to accept the case for a referendum, and also consider splitting away from the UK party. |
| In his BBC interview Boris Johnson also spoke about the considerations he will take into account when deciding whether or not to allow the Chinese firm Huawei a role in building the UK’s 5G network. (See 10.03am.) Australia banned Huawei from its 5G networks in 2018 and, in an interview on the World at One, the former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said the UK would be potentially vulnerable if it used the Chinese firm for this work. He said: | In his BBC interview Boris Johnson also spoke about the considerations he will take into account when deciding whether or not to allow the Chinese firm Huawei a role in building the UK’s 5G network. (See 10.03am.) Australia banned Huawei from its 5G networks in 2018 and, in an interview on the World at One, the former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull said the UK would be potentially vulnerable if it used the Chinese firm for this work. He said: |
| Turnbull said Chinese telecoms companies like Huawei were obliged to assist their intelligence services. And he claimed that the “five eyes” countries - the five English speaking countries that share intelligence (the US, the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand) had been too complacent about the threat posed by the company. He said: | Turnbull said Chinese telecoms companies like Huawei were obliged to assist their intelligence services. And he claimed that the “five eyes” countries - the five English speaking countries that share intelligence (the US, the UK, Australia, Canada and New Zealand) had been too complacent about the threat posed by the company. He said: |
| In his BBC interview this morning Boris Johnson said President Trump should work on a replacement for the the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the deal with Iran that ensured it abandoned work on acquiring a nuclear bomb. (See 10.03am.) His comment coincided with the UK, France and Germany – the E3, the three individual EU states that were party to the JCPOA – issuing a statement accusing Iran of not meeting its obligations under the deal, and triggering the dispute mechanism. | In his BBC interview this morning Boris Johnson said President Trump should work on a replacement for the the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the deal with Iran that ensured it abandoned work on acquiring a nuclear bomb. (See 10.03am.) His comment coincided with the UK, France and Germany – the E3, the three individual EU states that were party to the JCPOA – issuing a statement accusing Iran of not meeting its obligations under the deal, and triggering the dispute mechanism. |
| Here is the text of the statement from the E3. And here is my colleague Patrick Wintour’s story on this. | Here is the text of the statement from the E3. And here is my colleague Patrick Wintour’s story on this. |
| In the Commons Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, has just delivered a statement explaining the reasons behind the E3 statement. According to the statement, the E3 are still committed to making the JCPOA work. | In the Commons Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, has just delivered a statement explaining the reasons behind the E3 statement. According to the statement, the E3 are still committed to making the JCPOA work. |
| Emily Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, asked Raab why Boris Johnson was calling for a replacement to the JCPOA in his BBC interview if it was official government policy to maintain it. She told MPs: | Emily Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, asked Raab why Boris Johnson was calling for a replacement to the JCPOA in his BBC interview if it was official government policy to maintain it. She told MPs: |
| Responding to Thornberry, Raab said that Johnson fully supported the JCPOA, and that it was Iran that was threatening the agreement. He also said it was not just President Trump who had argued for a broader deal with Iran; President Macron was making that case too, Raab said. | Responding to Thornberry, Raab said that Johnson fully supported the JCPOA, and that it was Iran that was threatening the agreement. He also said it was not just President Trump who had argued for a broader deal with Iran; President Macron was making that case too, Raab said. |
| He said the UK government thought the JCPOA was “the best available deal for restraining Iran’s nuclear ambitions”. But he also said the UK was “fully open to a broader initiative which would address not just the nuclear concerns but the broader concerns around the destabilising activity that we have seen recently”. | He said the UK government thought the JCPOA was “the best available deal for restraining Iran’s nuclear ambitions”. But he also said the UK was “fully open to a broader initiative which would address not just the nuclear concerns but the broader concerns around the destabilising activity that we have seen recently”. |
| In the Commons the transport minister Paul Maynard is responding to an urgent question about Flybe. But he has not revealed much about the government’s intentions. He said the government was working hard on what it might do to support the company, but he refused to go into detail. And he said he would not comment on reports that air passenger duty could be cut to help the airline. APD was a matter for the Treasury, he said. | In the Commons the transport minister Paul Maynard is responding to an urgent question about Flybe. But he has not revealed much about the government’s intentions. He said the government was working hard on what it might do to support the company, but he refused to go into detail. And he said he would not comment on reports that air passenger duty could be cut to help the airline. APD was a matter for the Treasury, he said. |
| Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, has issued this response to Boris Johnson’s decision to rule out allowing Scotland to hold another independence referendum. (See 11.22am.) | Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s first minister, has issued this response to Boris Johnson’s decision to rule out allowing Scotland to hold another independence referendum. (See 11.22am.) |
| She accuses Johnson of showing “utter contempt for the votes, views and interest of the people of Scotland”. | She accuses Johnson of showing “utter contempt for the votes, views and interest of the people of Scotland”. |
| And she claims that the PM’s stance will end up being self-defeating. She explains: | And she claims that the PM’s stance will end up being self-defeating. She explains: |