Brexit

A second coronavirus testing site has “disappeared overnight” to make way for a post-Brexit lorry park. The Tipner drive-through centre in Portsmouth, which is owned by Deloitte, was due to become a lorry site on October 5, but was moved to Southampton Airport ahead of schedule and without warning. Portsmouth City Council’s cabinet member for […]

A coronavirus testing centre in Kent is to close to make way for a post-Brexit lorry park. KentOnline reports that a leaked letter from Kent County Council confirmed the Ebbsfleet testing centre would close for use as a site to carry out customs checks of cross-Channel lorries after the Brexit transition period ends on December […]

France has hit back at the UK’s government attempts to try to secure a Brexit agreement by warning that the EU “won’t fall for a kind of intimidation at the European level”. The French have been angered by Boris Johnson’s attempts to override the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement signed this year, which is a breach of […]

The number of wealthy Britons seeking EU citizenship has shot up substantially since the beginning of this year, immigration agencies say. Investment immigration firm Astons has seen a 50% and 30% year-on-year increase in interest from clients seeking Cypriot or Greek citizenship respectively this quarter, Reuters reports. Henley & Partners also reported a rise in requests for advice […]

In his book on Winston Churchill, Boris Johnson wrote that “one man can make all the difference”. This biographer still had faith in the “great man” theory of history. In his admiration for a charismatic and controversial figure, Johnson seemed to be hinting, or perhaps thinking, that another latter-day controversialist might also make a pretty […]

Attorney general Suella Braverman has branded Labour “unpatriotic” for opposing the Internal Market Bill which will break international law. Braverman said Labour’s stance on the bill, which the government admitted broke the law in “a very limited and specific way” was “anything but patriotic”. Labour’s stance on the bill matches that of all living former […]

Children in care and modern slavery victims who are EU citizens could “fall through the cracks” and lose their right to live in the UK after Brexit, immigration experts have warned. A University of Oxford report found that members of the Roma community and other vulnerable people could be at risk of becoming irregular migrants […]

Attorney general Suella Braverman has defended the controversial internal market bill which will give the government the power to breach the withdrawal agreement after being accused of putting “Brexit fanaticism” ahead of the rule of law. The government’s top legal adviser has faced calls to resign as she told MPs it is “entirely proper, entirely constitutional […]

An industry body has said that requiring lorry drivers to obtain special permits to enter Kent from neighbouring counties is nothing short of “pointless”. Road Haulage Association (RHA) policy director Duncan Buchanan said the measure aimed at avoiding post-Brexit gridlock is simply a “tick box exercise”. Cabinet minister Michael Gove told the Commons on Wednesday […]

Liberal Democrat members are to attempt to overturn the party’s position to rule out campaigning to Rejoin the European Union. Members were left disappointed by leader Ed Davey’s pledge to “listen” to a wide-range of views after he was elected to the position, but dismissed the suggestion the party would back trying to reverse Brexit […]

Where does Brexit take us next? This government is on course to deliver the key goals that underpinned the commitment to take back control. But the force of the Brexit revolution is by no means spent. While the UK has reclaimed sovereignty, what that means for the future of this country remains far from clear. […]

This week we crossed yet another Brexit threshold: there are now fewer than 100 days left of the UK’s implementation period. Brexit is about to get real, and as it stands we will be in a no-deal situation in the middle of a coronavirus winter. There is still – just – time for the UK […]

Former Brexit Party MEP Ann Widdecombe has struggled to name a single country which does not have a trade deal with a country within 2,000 miles – reflecting the UK’s current situation. Appearing on the Jeremy Vine on 5 show, Widdecombe was challenged by pro-EU campaigner Femi Oluwole over the success of Brexit so far. Ann Widdecombe […]

JP Morgan Chase & Co are planning to move up to €200 billion (£184 billion) in assets from the UK to Germany due to Brexit. A report by Bloomberg suggested the US banking goliath will shift the funds to a Frankfurt-based subsidiary by the end of this year. The move will make JP Morgan Germany’s sixth largest lender, […]

Spitting Image have released new puppets representing cabinet members in Boris Johnson’s government. Michael Gove was said to be extremely “flattered” to be a puppet, despite the use of two genitals to form his face. Dominic Raab on Spitting Image Dominic Raab was represented as a karate black belt – a nod to his participation […]

This week we crossed yet another Brexit threshold: there are now fewer than 100 days left of the UK’s implementation period. Brexit is about to get real, and as it stands we will be in a no-deal situation in the middle of a coronavirus winter. There is still – just – time for the UK […]

Failure to reach an agreement with the EU in post-Brexit trade talks could hit Britain’s economy three times harder in the long term than coronavirus, a think tank has warned. Queues at the border, shortages of fresh food and medicine as well as more “hassle” travelling to the continent are also possible, according to the […]

Germany’s minister for Europe has pleaded with the UK to “stop playing games” and produce a fairer basis for negotiations. Michael Roth said time was running out for both sides to reach a deal before the end of the Brexit transition period in December. Speaking with DW News, Roth called on Downing Street to ditch controversial provisions […]

The government has been defeated by peers demanding a ban on the use of pesticides in its flagship Agriculture Bill for farming standards after Brexit. The House of Lords voted by 276 to 228, majority 48, for a cross-party amendment to require the Secretary of State to outlaw the use of chemicals close to the public, aimed […]

Farage cut short a telephone call with a BBC journalist investigating one of the organisation’s top donors. In a recording of the conversation, Farage said he was aware Christopher Harborne, who donated £10 million to the Brexit Party in the lead up to the 2019 general election, had two separate identities but refused to be interviewed […]

Keir Starmer has attacked Boris Johnson’s track-record of ‘incompetence’ and ‘bendy banana’ myth-making during his first party conference speech as Labour leader. Keir Starmer attacks Boris Johnson over history of lies to s Starmer gave a scathing assessment of the prime minister’s handling of the pandemic and of his Brexit “bluster” as he attempted to […]

Andrea Jenkyns MP misspelt the word “British” in an attack against O’Brien online, prompting a wave of ridicule online.  Jenkyns, who is deputy chair of the pro-Brexit European Research Group (ERG), hit out at the radio presenter for a tweet in which he suggested the Tory MP’s real Twitter account was “a million times better […]

Boris Johnson has agreed to a compromise with Tory rebels over Boris Johnson’s controversial Brexit bill. The proposals would give MPs a vote before Downing Street tries to use powers to break international law, a joint statement from Downing Street and Conservative MPs Sir Bob Neill and Damian Green said.  The joint statement reads: “Following […]

A government-backed satellite project to rival the EU’s has been scrapped and labelled nothing more than a “vanity project” by a former Tory defence minister. Theresa May’s plan for Britain to have its own GPS satellite navigation system has been ditched, leaving many in Whitehall pressuring the government to rejoin the EU’s Galileo programme. May […]

Northern Ireland minister Brandon Lewis has dismissed claims that Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill will not break international law, adding the government’s legal advice states it clearly will. Speaking to a Commons committee on Northern Ireland, Lewis contradicted home secretary Priti Patel and Tory peer Richard Keen – the Tory advocate general for Scotland – over […]

Another top Tory legal official has resigned over Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill. Lord Richard Keen, who is the Tory advocate general for Scotland, said he had handed in his resignation Wednesday morning. Speaking to the Scottish paper the Press and Journal, he said: “I tendered my resignation to the prime minister first thing this morning, […]

A Labour MP has pleaded with Boris Johnson to be a ‘real’ prime minister and unite the nation ahead challenges it faces concerning Brexit and the coronavirus. Chris Bryant became emotional when he begun speaking about the hardship his Welsh constituency of Rhondda faced during an appearance on Sky News. Talking to host Kay Burley, […]

Boris Johnson could be preparing to concede to amendments to his Brexit bill being proposed by Tory rebels, reports have suggested. The FT is reporting the prime minister could concede to a demand by Tory MP Bob Neill that would force the government into seeking parliamentary consent before breaking the Withdrawal Agreement. It is reported […]

Prime minister Boris Johnson has admitted that leaving Brexit trade talks without a deal is “not what this country wants”. Johnson was appearing before the liaison committee when he answered questions on criticism he has faced from his five living predecessors over the UK internal market bill.The prime minister said he had “enormous respect” for […]

A senior German politician has claimed it ‘makes no sense’ to continue to negotiate with Boris Johnson over Brexit – warning his rule-breaking will impact the UK’s international standing. Senior German politician says it ‘makes no sense’ to continu Manfred Weber was speaking in the European parliament after recess, as he warned that Johnson’s Brexit […]

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has warned that the UK cannot unilaterally disregard the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, as she quoted former Tory prime minister Margaret Thatcher. In her annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament, Von der Leyen said both sides had agreed it was the only way to guarantee […]

Police have been checking all vehicles and passengers at the Port of Dover, leading to miles-long queues and traffic chaos, giving a flavour of how Kent could look after Brexit. The queues were sparked after controversial Brexit motorway measure Operation Stack was activated so lorries can line up to enter the port. The “emergency measure” […]