Political news

• May wins key customs union vote by six after surprise Brexit loss on medicines agency – as it happened

  17-07-2018 23:55
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happen, including MPs debating and voting on the trade bill 10.55pm BST As I mentioned, we’re going to close this live blog down now. If you want to read more, here’s our lead story: Related: May sees off rebellion on customs union as amendment is defeated Pretty crazy day folks 10.21pm BST And a late entry (since we’ll be closing down this blog soon):10pmLatest YouGov poll: Labour extend leadhttps://t.co/EFuVt6
  
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• Labour MP labels Corbyn an 'antisemite' over party's refusal to drop code

  17-07-2018 23:05
  Margaret Hodge accuses Corbyn of racism after NEC upholds adoption of antisemitism codeJeremy Corbyn has been accused of being an antisemite by a senior Labour MP during an angry public confrontation in parliament on Tuesday, after the party’s ruling national executive committee (NEC) refused to ditch a controversial new code of conduct on antisemitism.The decision infuriated Jewish leaders and many of the party’s MPs, who had voted overwhelmingly on Monday night to urge the NEC to c
  
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• How can the Brexit stalemate be broken?

  17-07-2018 22:47
  From ‘keep buggering on’ to a second referendum, it may be the ticking clock of the article 50 deadline that decidesIt was obvious from the morning of 9 June 2017, when Theresa May woke up to find the electorate had stripped her of her majority, that crafting a Brexit that could win support in parliament as well as in Brussels would be a formidable challenge. Related: The Guardian view on Theresa May and Brexit: she is failing to govern | EditorialContinue reading...
  
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• Peter Schrank on Theresa May and the pressure over Brexit – cartoon

  17-07-2018 21:45
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• Bullied MPs just lie back and think of saving Theresa May | John Crace

  17-07-2018 21:06
  Deep down, prime minister must wish someone would press her control-alt-delete keys to crash her entirely With the government having reluctantly come to the conclusion that it was probably a better look to hang around and go through the motions of doing a bit of work rather than bunk off on hols a few days early while the country fell apart, the Commons eventually got round to debating the third reading of the trade bill. Though not for very long, obviously. After all, it wasn’t as if it c
  
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• Labour MPs save Theresa May on a day of Brexit chaos

  17-07-2018 21:05 via ft.com
  Prime minister survives another bruising vote
  
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• Boris Johnson flouts MPs' rules after return to newspaper column

  17-07-2018 21:05
  The ex-foreign secretary reprised his role at the Daily Telegraph within a week of leaving governmentBoris Johnson has broken rules that prevent former cabinet ministers taking up new jobs for three months after leaving office.The former foreign secretary failed to get permission from the government’s appointments watchdog for his role as a columnist for the Daily Telegraph. Continue reading...
  
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• Theresa May narrowly survives rebellion by pro-EU Tories

  17-07-2018 20:30 via ft.com
  Amendment to force government’s hand on customs union defeated by 6 votes
  
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• The Guardian view on Theresa May and Brexit: she is failing to govern | Editorial

  17-07-2018 20:26
  The prime minister no longer controls the House of Commons on the biggest issue facing Britain. Something has to giveTheresa May’s weakening grip on parliament over Brexit has been humiliatingly exposed over the past 10 days. Her Chequers deal and the Brexit white paper, which were intended to unite the Conservative party behind a compromise negotiating position, have succeeded only in dividing it more than before. On Monday on the customs bill, in which she capitulated to the leavers, and
  
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• May narrowly defeats rebels over Brexit trade bill

  17-07-2018 20:05 via ft.com
  Amendment on customs union loses by 307 votes to 301
  
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• Labour calls for inquiry into ministers actions during EU referendum

  17-07-2018 19:39
  Party says Johnson and Gove may have breached ministerial code as Vote Leave is finedLabour has called for an investigation into possible misconduct by Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and others during the Brexit vote after the Electoral Commission fined the Vote Leave campaign they fronted £61,000 and reported it to the police. The watchdog said it found “significant evidence” of coordination between Vote Leave and a smaller campaign group, BeLeave, during the 2016 referendum. It
  
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• Vote Leave broke electoral law and British democracy is shaken

  17-07-2018 19:31
  The record is not encouraging over whether senior Tory Brexiters will be held to accountVote Leave has been fined £61,000 after being found guilty of breaking electoral law during the Brexit campaign. Two people have been referred to the police. But with this initial investigation concluded, Britain faces a difficult period of soul searching over what to do about this evidence of extensive wrongdoing.A democracy is only as strong as the elections that set its course. If they can be bought
  
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• Recess time

  17-07-2018 18:52 via bbc.co.uk
  Do the UK's MPs work on more days than their equivalents in other countries?
  
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• Should there be a second Brexit referendum? | Letters

  17-07-2018 18:43
  Readers air their views after Justine Greening said she believes other senior Conservative MPs also support the idea of a second referendum to end a likely parliamentary deadlock on BrexitJustine Greening’s proposal for a re-run Brexit referendum (Report, 16 July) is commendable but her suggested three-way preferential voting scheme promises to be more obscure and confusing than the Brexit options themselves.When considering adoption of proportional representation in the early 1990s, New Z
  
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• Andrew Griffiths was made minister despite 'touching' allegations

  17-07-2018 18:42
  Exclusive: MP who quit over explicit texts was subject of bullying probe when appointedAndrew Griffiths, the government minister forced to resign over sexually explicit text messages sent to two constituents, was appointed to his post despite being under investigation for allegations of inappropriate touching and bullying, the Guardian has learned.Griffiths was accused by a Conservative borough councillor of being “very forward” after he allegedly touched her knee and clutched her wa
  
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• The ministers behind Vote Leave should be sacked | Molly Scott Cato

  17-07-2018 18:41
  The evidence from the Electoral Commission is clear – to follow through with Brexit now would be undemocraticThose who persuaded the British people to vote for Brexit have now given up on a glorious future for global Britain. These arguments lie in tatters, buried beneath the government’s own studies into the impacts of Brexit showing it will be disastrous for the economy under any scenario. Instead, they are resorting to the “will of the people” mantra. Take Priti Patel&
  
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• No-deal Brexit would have big economic consequences – Carney

  17-07-2018 18:19
  Bank of England governor warns of interest rate cuts if UK crashes out of EUMark Carney has warned that Britain would face “big economic consequences” and could need emergency interest rate cuts if the country crashes out the European Union without a deal. Issuing the latest warning for Theresa May amid mounting division over her Brexit plans as Britain’s withdrawal ticks ever closer, the governor of the Bank of England said failure to reach any deal with Brussels would leave t
  
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• Nigel Farage spread ‘fake news’. I know, because I took the real picture | Lasia Kretzel

  17-07-2018 17:41
  The former Ukip leader used a doctored image to meet his anti-migrant agenda. He needs to think about the damage he’s doingIn the digital media age, declaring fake news has become the equivalent of crying wolf. Frequently, it is a slur hurled at journalists by those who do not like a story. Sometimes it is a real threat to informed discourse. It is disturbingly easy to propagate, and wields insidious power. This week, I learned just how damaging it can be.I had just returned from an aftern
  
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• Tory Europhiles set to rebel against Theresa May in key Brexit vote

  17-07-2018 17:19 via ft.com
  At least a dozen Conservative MPs ready to side with Labour over customs union
  
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• Dirty tricks: Trade deal legislation strips parliament of control

  17-07-2018 17:08
  
  Text of bills before parliament shows multiple attempts to limit MPs' powers to scrutinise future trade deals
  
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• MPs don’t need an early holiday. They should be fixing the country’s crisis | Andrew Adonis

  17-07-2018 17:06
  Theresa May’s plan for an early break for parliament is ludicrous. Here are 10 bills it could be working on, instead of having 10 weeks offThis is the moment when Theresa May really lost it: her crass decision to try to send MPs away early for their summer holidays, when they were soon to leave Westminster for 10 weeks anyway. Even normally loyal Tories are appalled. It sums her up. The control freak who can’t handle debate and dissent. The tin ear for the public mood. Above all, the
  
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• Darren Grimes: the pro-Brexit student activist fined £20k

  17-07-2018 15:34
  BeLeave campaigner also facing possible police investigation over links to Vote LeaveIn the summer of 2015, Darren Grimes was a Liberal Democrat activist from County Durham when he gave an interview to the BBC paying tribute to the party’s former leader Charles Kennedy.“He believed that in an increasingly globalised world, having Britain in Europe was the only way forward,” said the young campaigner.Continue reading...
  
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• The Conservative civil war over Brexit

  17-07-2018 14:35 via ft.com
  The chance of a negotiated UK-EU settlement is declining
  
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• NHS spending to strain public finances for next 50 years, OBR warns

  17-07-2018 14:25
  Extra health funding for an ageing population will add to deficit, watchdog forecastsExtra health spending and a population that is ageing faster than previously expected will add to the burden of spending over the next 50 years, according to the Treasury’s independent forecaster.The £20bn boost to the health budget by 2021-22 promised by Theresa May, coupled with falling immigration – which will cut the number of young and working-age people – will increase the public de
  
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• Theresa May faces opposition on early summer break for MPs

  17-07-2018 14:07 via ft.com
  Prime minister’s plan to break for recess runs into problems
  
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• If this is Brexit stalemate, only an election will truly resolve it | Gaby Hinsliff

  17-07-2018 13:49
  Politicians need to agree to one of three options, or Labour’s gamble is close to paying offDecent people, hopeful of a better country, conned by a bunch of chancers, tricksters, charlatans and cowards.” It is hard to disagree with that despairing verdict from the former Tory minister and ardent remainer Ben Gummer, whatever the outcome of the forthcoming police investigation into Vote Leave’s spending and reporting practices before and after the EU referendum. This is not to d
  
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• Have the Eurosceptics killed Theresa May’s Brexit plan?

  17-07-2018 13:18 via ft.com
  Some of the amendments may not be a problem but PM faces a struggle to win over her party
  
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• May faces defeat as Labour backs customs union amendment

  17-07-2018 13:04
  Amendment would force UK to join customs union if no agreement on trade is reachedTheresa May faces a damaging Commons defeat, as Labour confirmed it would back an amendment tabled by rebel Tory MPs seeking to ensure Britain remains in a customs union after Brexit. Related: OBR casts doubt on May's claim 'Brexit dividend' will fund NHS £20bn spending boost - Politics liveContinue reading...
  
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• Tim Farron apologises after he and Vince Cable miss Brexit vote

  17-07-2018 12:26
  Former leader and current leader of ‘stop-Brexit party’ fail to attend vote on amendmentsThe former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron has apologised after he and his successor, Vince Cable, missed the votes on two government-backed amendments tabled by hardline Brexiters that passed with a majority of just three.Cable and Farron, who have positioned the Lib Dems as the stop-Brexit party, were away from the Commons on Monday night during the vote on amendments tabled by Jacob Rees-Mo
  
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• Tory MP who blocked upskirting bill objects to women's conference

  17-07-2018 12:13
  Ministers intervene as Christopher Chope is derided for opposing use of Commons as venueMinisters have stepped in to ensure a global women’s conference can be held in the Commons after the Conservative MP Christopher Chope used parliamentary procedure to obstruct the plan, weeks after he achieved notoriety for blocking a bill to tackle upskirting.There were shouts of “shame” after the veteran MP for Christchurch objected to the motion, read out in the Commons late on Monday, wh
  
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• Bank of England needs freedom to set tough rules, says Mark Carney

  17-07-2018 11:25 via ft.com
  Governor raises prospect of divergence on financial services regulation after Brexit
  
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• Sluggish pay growth deepens Bank of England interest rates dilemma

  17-07-2018 11:07 via ft.com
  Total pay in Britain rose 2.5% in the three months to May
  
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• Vote Leave fined and reported to police by Electoral Commission

  17-07-2018 10:44
  Watchdog finds ‘significant evidence’ of coordination with another Brexit campaign groupVote Leave has been fined £61,000 and reported to the police by the Electoral Commission after the watchdog found “significant evidence” of coordination with another campaign group, BeLeave.The watchdog said it had imposed punitive fines on Vote Leave because it said the group had refused to cooperate fully with its investigation and declined to be interviewed. Its former chief e
  
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• Vote Leave fined and referred to police

  17-07-2018 08:22 via ft.com
  Watchdog says official campaign and BeLeave group failed to co-operate with spending probe
  
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• Dover-Calais 'facing economic catastrophe' due to Brexit

  17-07-2018 08:00
  President of French region calls on Macron to break EU ban on bilateral talks with UKDover and Calais are facing “economic catastrophe” because of Brexit, and both the UK and the EU are allowing the two ports to drift towards disaster, a leading French politician has said.Xavier Bertrand, a former French minister and president of Hauts-de-France, has called on Emmanuel Macron to break the EU ban on bilateral talks to salvage the situation and have direct negotiations with Theresa May
  
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• Brexit: Government scrapes through Customs Bill votes

  17-07-2018 05:22 via bbc.co.uk
  A minister quits as MPs back amendments tabled by Brexiteers by just three votes.
  
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• Brexit deadlock boils down to conundrum of customs union

  17-07-2018 05:00 via ft.com
  Theresa May’s preferred hybrid solution will never fly with the EU
  
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• Chief rabbi: Labour should toughen up anti-Semitism code

  17-07-2018 04:16 via bbc.co.uk
  Ephraim Mirvis says Labour risks sending "an unprecedented message of contempt to the Jewish community".
  
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• May survives Tory Brexit rebellion with narrow Commons victory - as it happened

  17-07-2018 00:59
  Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as they happen, including Tory rebellions as MPs debate the customs billMay narrowly heads off defeat after caving in to Brexit hardliners 11.59pm BST The government has survived a rebellion by Tory MPs over the Brexit Customs Bill – just.We’re going to close down this live blog now, but you can read our full story on that here: Related: May narrowly heads off defeat after caving in to Brexit hardliners11.48pm BST The Lib Dem
  
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• MPs to vote on early summer recess

  17-07-2018 00:50 via bbc.co.uk
  The government has tabled a motion to cut short the current parliamentary session.
  
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• May seeks early Commons recess to curb Conservative civil war

  17-07-2018 00:20 via ft.com
  PM narrowly avoids Brexit defeat after accepting changes to customs bill
  
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