9 January 2019 | UK NEWS
Leading the agenda:
– The Grieve Amendment has passed Parliament, meaning if May’s Brexit deal fails to pass Parliament the PM will have to produce a second Brexit plan within three days. Eurosceptic MPs were angered when Speaker of the House John Bercow allowed MPs to debate the Grieve Amendment, which led to its passing.
– Yesterday the Government lost a vote on the Finance Bill by 303 to 296 votes, the first time this has happened since 1978. This means the Government’s ability to raise money to fund a potential no-deal Brexit will be limited unless Parliament specifically allows it.
– The think tank The UK in a Changing Europe has released a new survey relating to MPs attitudes towards Brexit. It finds 70% of MPs believe May has done a poor job of negotiating Brexit. You can find more information on the survey here.
– The Police are under pressure after Conservative MP Anna Soubry was harassed outside Parliament by Brexit activists. Over 100 MPs have requested police improve their response to abusive protestors.
Movements:
– May will host a drinks reception for Conservative MPs this evening in what is likely an attempt to win support for next week’s vote on her Brexit deal.
General:
– Conservative MP Craig MacKinlay has been found innocent after being accused of falsifying his election expenses. He was accused of failing to declare £60,000 spent on additional staff and adverts during his campaign for South Thanet in the 2015 General Election, when he beat former UKIP Leader Nigel Farage.
– ONS to publish a report on UK productivity from July to September 2018. You can find more information on the report here.
– May has proposed that the Northern Ireland Government should have veto power if the border backstop materialises post-Brexit. Both the DUP and Sinn Fein are against the proposals, describing them as meaningless.
