9 December 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– Boris Johnson has attacked May’s Brexit deal on The Andrew Marr Show, stating she could do “much better”. Many have stated this is part of his preparation for a leadership challenge. 

– Thousands of people marched on the streets of London today in both support of and opposition to Brexit. It has been reported a few thousands marched in support of Brexit, whilst 15,000 marched in opposition. 

– Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay has confirmed the Commons vote on Tuesday will not be postponed, despite recent rumours to the contrary. 

– The Committee on Exiting the European Union has stated May’s Brexit deal does not give enough clarity or certainty about the UK’s future relationship with the bloc. 

General:

– The UK Government has warned the health sector of medicine shortages in the event of a no-deal Brexit. 

– Chinese company Huawei has promised to invest £2bn in the company’s equipment and software. This is following pressure from British security agencies which claim serious faults exist in the company’s technology infrastructure. 

– The NHS will be banned from purchasing fax machines by next month. The machines are set to be phased out entirely by 2020.

– Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd has suggested the UK can follow alternative Brexit paths if May’s deal is rejected on Tuesday.

5 December 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– Legal advice given to the Cabinet on the Brexit deal has been published today following yesterday’s vote, where Government was found in contempt of Parliament for the first time in history. 

– The Government has also lost the vote on the Withdrawal Agreement, which means it cannot force MPs into a binary deal / no-deal vote. 

– Theresa May is lobbying her MPs to support her Brexit agreement by suggesting that if they don’t, Brexit will not take place. 

– BBC has dropped plans for a debate between May and Corbyn on the Brexit deal, after failing to find agreement regarding the debate’s format. 

– Surprisingly Jeremy Corbyn did not ask May a single Brexit related question at PMQs today.  

Movements:

– Business Secretary Greg Clark to announce funding for cancer research. 

– The Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy committee to publish report on small businesses and productivity. 

General: 

– Advocate General of the European Court of Justice has stated the UK can unilaterally cancel Brexit. 

– National Audit Office report has claimed mistakes made by the Home Office led to wrongful deportations of immigrants from the Windrush Generation. 

– House of Lords report has claimed taxpayers are being treated unjustly by HMRC after greater powers were granted to the department to tackle tax avoidance. 

– Governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney has claimed food prices could rise by between 5% and 10% under a disorderly Brexit.

3 December 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– Attorney General Geoffrey Cox to give a statement on legal advice given to the Cabinet.

– Labour have warned of a constitutional crisis if May does not publish the full legal advice on her Brexit deal. 

– UK Government to reveal £1bn investment into life sciences next week.

– Archbishop of Canterbury has called for more civil political debate.

– Government set to release immigration white paper this week. The Government want to reduce low skilled migration. Sajid Javid opposes the plan.

Movements:

– Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell to speak on social mobility, opportunity and equality at the IPPR think tank.

General:

– IPPR North think tank to publish ‘2018 State of the North’ report.

– UKIP Leader Gerard Batten survives a vote of no confidence.

– May and Corbyn to debate the Brexit deal head to head on the BBC. 

– Kate Osamor resigns as Shadow Minister after assaulting a journalist. 

– Shadow Brexit Secretary Kier Starmer has said Labour will seek a no confidence vote followed by a second referendum if May’s deal fails to pass Parliament.

30 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– Argentinian Leader Mauricio Macri opens G20 Summit in Buenos Aires today with Theresa May in attendance. 

– Trade Secretary Liam Fox to endorse May’s Brexit deal and lobby Tory Eurosceptic to support it. 

– Facebook has started to enforce tighter rules for political advertising on its platform.

– Government will allow 6 amendments to be tabled on May’s Brexit plan. 

– May has refused to rule out a second Parliamentary vote on her Brexit deal if the first one fails. 

Movements:

– Business Secretary Greg Clark increases funding for disease treatment and prevention. 

General:

– Increasing unrest in PLP over the prospect of a second referendum with Corbyn at odds with many of his MPs. 

–  Cross-bench group of Remain supporting MPs led by Hilary Benn are calling on Parliament to reject both May’s deal and no deal.

– Think Tank Civitas claims the UK must fund new tech to meet its low-carbon needs. 

– Report by Local Government Association finds number of children at risk of FGM has doubled over the last year. 

– More Scottish people have been applying for Irish citizenship. 

– Chairman of HS2 Terry Morgan to be sacked.

28 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

–  Pundits are starting to state with authority that May will lose the vote on her Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.

– The vote on her Brexit deal is scheduled for 11th December, with debates commencing from 4th December. 

– Government has published economic analysis of varying Brexit possibilities, it claims May’s deal offers similar benefits to a Norway-style agreement. 

– Britain is close to agreeing a comprehensive aviation agreement with the US.

– Trump has claimed May’s deal is a “great deal for the EU”: May has rejected these claims.

– Hammond has stated any form of Brexit will make the UK poorer. 

Movements:

– The International Trade Committee to publish a report on the UK’s future trading relationships with developing countries. 

– Business Secretary Greg Clark to announce increased funding for artificial intelligence in the insurance and law sectors.

– May to meet Nicola Sturgeon today.

General: 

– Tory peer Baroness Trumpington has died at the age of 96. 

– UKIP politician Patrick O’Flynn has defected to the SDP. 

– The EU is aiming to become the first major climate neutral economy by 2050.

26 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– The EU27 approved May’s Brexit deal on Sunday.

– May now faces a battle to get the deal through Parliament. 

–  Parliament will vote on the deal on 12 December. 

– May has raised the possibility of debating the deal with Corbyn live on television. 

– The EU still hopes for access to UK fishing waters. 

– Boris Johnson has urged May to “junk the backstop”. 

Movements:

– May to meet with her Cabinet today to discuss the deal. 

– May to make statement to the Commons this afternoon. 

– The Labour Parliamentary Party to meet this evening at 18:00. 

General: 

– Eurosceptic Tory MP John Hayes has been knighted. Insiders beleive this is the beginning of a charm offensive by May to squash potential rebellion over her Brexit deal. 

– Macron has warned if the UK does not compromise on access to British fishing waters, future trade talks will be slow. 

– Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones claims Wales will be poorer under May’s Brexit deal.

23 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will veto Brexit if the agreement is not rewritten before the summit this Sunday, citing issues with the wording on the future status of Gibraltar. 

– Merkel will refuse to negotiate with May unless a deal is finalised in plenty of time before Sunday’s meeting.

– May insists her Brexit deal will protect Britain’s fishing industry. 

– Conservative MPs have urged May to drop her plan to avoid a hard border in Ireland. 

General:

– Fiona Bruce is in talks with the BBC to take over as host of Question Time.

– UKIP Leader Gerard Batten has defended his decision to hire Tommy Robinson as an Advisor. 

– The BoE Monetary Policy Committee has warned Britain’s workforce might stop growing by 2020.

– Shadow Brexit Secretary Kier Starmer has claimed voting against May’s Brexit deal will be in the UK’s interest.

21 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– The ERG appear to have overstated their influence and do not have the numbers to challenge May’s leadership. 

– Polls suggest a surge in popularity for May. 

– Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has claimed a leadership challenge would plunge the country into chaos.

– Mark Carney backs May’s Brexit plan. 

– Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer has stated Labour will work with other parties to stop a no-deal Brexit. 

– Brexiteers have asked May to add language to her agreement that would allow Britain to withdraw from the Backstop. 

– The DUP have withdrawn their support for May’s Finance Bill, forcing her to make changes to the Bill as proposed by Labour. 

Movements:

– May set to meet Junker regarding the UK’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU ahead of a larger meeting on Sunday.  

– May set for PMQs at 12. Brexit to dominate the agenda. 

General:

– Government borrowed far more than expected in October. 

– Senior figures in the city have called for a second referendum. 

– Reports suggest France and Spain feel May’s deal gives too many concessions to the UK. 

– Penny Mourdant attacks Ministers for supporting women’s high end corporate pay equality whilst ignoring many lower paid areas.

– Minister for Mental Health Jackie Doyle-Price to announce increased funding for child mental health. 

– Labour want to reduce the academic threshold for entry into the civil service.

19 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

– 25 Tory MPs have submitted letters of no confidence in Theresa May to the 1922 Committee, 48 are needed to trigger a vote of no confidence. 

– A number of Conservative MPs are preparing leadership challenges, including; Boris, Rudd, Javid, Davies and Raab. 

– A “breakfast club” of Cabinet Brexiteers have met to create a rival plan to May’s Brexit deal. 

– The ERG are set to publish a document attacking May’s Brexit deal. 

Movements:

– May to deliver speech to CBI claiming her Brexit deal will control immigration without hurting job market. 

– Corbyn to deliver Labour’s “Good Brexit Plan” today, claiming Brexit must lead to radical investment and change whilst ruling out a second referendum. 

General:

– Business Secretary Greg Clark announces deal by Eutelsat Communications  and Airbus Defence and Space for 2 new communication satellites. 

– London water cannons sold at £300k loss.

14 November 2018 | UK NEWS

Leading the agenda:

UK and EU agree draft text for Brexit agreement.  The 500 page deal is not yet published but components have begun to leak.

Penny Mordaunt and Esther McVey both refuse to endorse the deal. 

Special Cabinet meeting set to be held at 2pm to discuss the deal whilst one to one meetings with ministers were held last night. 

Both Conservative and DUP MPs have threatened to oppose. 

EU negotiator Sabine Weyand is briefing EU officials of a temporary customs unions that will form the basis of Britain’s long-term membership.

The EU has stated UK citizens will not need visas to visit the EU for short stays.  

General:

Conservative ministerial aides have threatened to quit over delays to restrictions on fixed-odds betting machines. 

Tony Blair has attacked Corbyn for failing to handle Brexit appropriately

UK inflation remains at 2.4%. 

Wages rise at the fastest rate in almost a decade. 

Fall in number of EU workers working in the UK is steepest since records began.

The Premier League has named Susanna Dinnage as its next Chief Executive. 

The Institute for Public Policy Research has called for gender pays laws to cover ethnic and disability pay gaps. 

Politicians in the North of England have united to demand more autonomy to boost local economies.