Political news

• May threatens to crash Brexit deal in summit clash

  14-12-2018 20:13 via ft.com
  PM warns of likely parliamentary defeat but EU stands by no further renegotiation
  
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• May threatens to crash Brexit deal after summit showdown

  14-12-2018 20:13 via ft.com
  PM warns of snap vote to kill plan but EU refuses to budge
  
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• Martin Rowson on Theresa May's hard sell – cartoon

  14-12-2018 20:07
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• Theresa May's Brexit strategy left brutally exposed by Brussels failure

  14-12-2018 19:57
  Labour declares deal ‘dead in the water’, as hopes of further talks on backstop disappearTheresa May has come home from Brussels empty-handed and without hope of further negotiations over the Irish backstop, with the failure to achieve any kind of breakthrough leaving her brutally exposed.Plans to work over Christmas on a legal guarantee over the temporary nature of the backstop had run into a brick wall, EU officials said, despite May’s claim that she would be holding further
  
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• Labour's referendum strains

  14-12-2018 19:43 via bbc.co.uk
  Labour's leadership is being urged to endorse another public vote on Brexit. But will they do it?
  
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• The Conservatives and their thirty years’ war over Europe

  14-12-2018 19:23 via ft.com
  The Tories’ delirium over the EU has destroyed three prime ministers and imperils the party
  
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• Brexit: why business in England's most deprived town is divided over leaving EU

  14-12-2018 19:15 via ft.com
  Andy Bounds talks to companies in Oldham in northwest England and finds out why some back Leave
  
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• Winning a second Brexit referendum is possible – with Europe’s help | Jonathan Freedland

  14-12-2018 19:06
  Instead of rerunning 2016 we should choose between May’s deal and staying in a reformed EUIf it’s not Jacob Rees-Mogg, it’s Jean-Claude Juncker, the double-barrelled duo giving Theresa May both barrels within 24 hours of each other. No sooner had the monocled mutineer called for May to resign after she had seen off his motion of no confidence than the head of the EU commission was accusing the prime minister of being “nebulous”, as Europe’s heads of government
  
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• The Guardian view on Theresa May’s predicament: humiliated at home and abroad | Editorial

  14-12-2018 18:30
  Hard Brexiters have used confusion to prosecute their damaging fantasies. The PM ought to put an end to their delusions and lies for the country’s sakeThe events in Brussels should not be overstated, nor underplayed. The prime minister has been humiliated by European leaders. Theresa May’s bid for new Brexit concessions was icily rejected by European Union leaders. They did so in the rudest possible way, with snubs and curt dismissals in front of the press. It was not good for this c
  
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• May threatens to crash Brexit deal in summit row

  14-12-2018 18:27 via ft.com
  EU leaders open to further talks after PM warns of likely parliamentary defeat
  
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• Brexit: More assurances for MPs possible says May

  14-12-2018 18:24 via bbc.co.uk
  Theresa May is seeking "further clarification" to satisfy MPs after "robust" exchange with EU chief.
  
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• Theresa May's week in charts

  14-12-2018 18:09 via bbc.co.uk
  Five charts about the prime minister's busy week
  
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• New Brexit referendum logical, says Tony Blair

  14-12-2018 18:09 via bbc.co.uk
  MPs may end up backing a new referendum "if none of the other options work", the former PM says.
  
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• May ploughs on but referendum may soon be her least bad option

  14-12-2018 18:01
  By pledging a new vote, PM could win over remainers and sharpen the choice for leaversTheresa May’s “you called me nebulous” outburst at Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels on Friday came at the end of a week that was extraordinarily challenging even for a politician with her legendary resilience.In the space of five days she was cajoled by her cabinet into pulling the meaningful vote, forced to cut short a whistle-stop tour of EU capitals to plead with her own colleagues to let he
  
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• EU bank watchdog warns e-money firms not all ready for cliff-edge Brexit

  14-12-2018 18:01 via ft.com
  European Banking Authority still concerned about preparations despite warnings
  
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• May suffers loss of confidence at home and in Brussels

  14-12-2018 17:50 via ft.com
  Bloc looking to UK parliament, not PM, to realise some clarity
  
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• Juncker explains 'nebulous' remark

  14-12-2018 17:31 via bbc.co.uk
  Jean-Claude Juncker has spoken about his exchange with Theresa May following his comments about her proposals.
  
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• Our Future, Our Choice's on another EU referendum

  14-12-2018 17:17 via bbc.co.uk
  Voters have a clearer idea over relations with other European nations, says Lara Spirit of the Our Future, Our Choice group.
  
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• Theresa May and Brexit

  14-12-2018 17:09 via ft.com
  The ECJ rules the UK can revoke Article 50, May delays a vote but hangs on to her job
  
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• Theresa May says progress on Brexit still possible

  14-12-2018 16:34 via ft.com
  EU leaders call on British MPs to break deadlock over agreement
  
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• May pulls off ‘le backwards’ in Brussels and heads for Pizza Hut stardom | Marina Hyde

  14-12-2018 16:30
  Even for aficionados of the comedy of embarrassment, this week has been a hard watchFor all the drama of her stand-up row with Jean-Claude Juncker, the top line on Theresa May’s save-the-day mission to Brussels is that it resulted in the EU actually removing the only helpful paragraph of the draft conclusions. Never mind “the backstop”; this is what is known as “the backwards” – or le backwards, on the continent. Perhaps they should have kept Brownfinger off t
  
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• How No 10 tried, and failed, to contrive EU rescue of May's deal

  14-12-2018 16:29
  It was a case of two carefully planned steps forward, three steps back for the Brexit deal
  When Olly Robbins, the prime minister’s Brexit point-man, was spotted arriving at Brussels-Midi train station shortly after Theresa May had postponed the “meaningful vote”, British officials were quick to insist it was a routine meeting.In reality, the Downing Street aide was in town for the start of secret, intensive talks with two of the EU’s most senior officials, Piotr Serafin f
  
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• May insists progress still possible after summit setback

  14-12-2018 16:26 via ft.com
  EU leaders call on British MPs to break deadlock over Brexit deal
  
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• Confidence vote done, Brexit is still ruining my life | John Crace

  14-12-2018 15:40
  Also this week: Harry Redknapp’s bushtucker charm and Londoners’ NYT crime reports There are many days I question my own sanity. This weekend being the most recent example. Driving home late on Saturday night from watching Spurs play in Leicester, my car got a puncture on the M1 and the run-flat tyre predictably failed to run flat. Leaving me stuck on the hard shoulder with no spare as the manufacturer no longer bothers to supply one. Continue reading...
  
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• Anneli Roberts, aka Pigletish, on mental health help

  14-12-2018 15:04 via bbc.co.uk
  Anneli Roberts started to write about her mental health journey two years ago when she was diagnosed with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
  
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• May must call the Brexit hardliners’ bluff

  14-12-2018 15:03 via ft.com
  The PM should put country first and challenge Labour to back a second referendum
  
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• Brexit: No visa but Britons will pay €7 to travel to EU countries

  14-12-2018 15:03 via bbc.co.uk
  Britons will not need a visa but will have to apply for a travel document, which lasts for three years.
  
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• Salzburg revisited for Theresa May 

  14-12-2018 14:47 via ft.com
  The scale of PM’s defeat in Brussels has been impossible for her aides to disguise
  
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• The EU rebuffs Theresa May on Brexit — six takeaways

  14-12-2018 14:22 via ft.com
  Bloc is set against renegotiation and wants clarity from the House of Commons on next steps
  
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• Gordon Brown: I didn't think I'd see child poverty again in my lifetime

  14-12-2018 13:45
  Ex-chancellor’s tax credits started to erase problem – but universal credit reverses trendGordon Brown is on familiar territory. The former prime minister is parked on a sofa in a family centre in the heart of his old constituency and holding forth about poverty.The venue, a family centre called the Cottage, is in the Templehall part of Kirkcaldy and easy to miss. The poverty that it is helping to alleviate is not. When it launched its first Christmas appeal eight years ago – t
  
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• Brexit: EU says no to May on renegotiating deal

  14-12-2018 13:44 via bbc.co.uk
  The PM says her Brexit deal is "at risk", as her performance at an EU summit is called "bad" by diplomats.
  
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• May and Juncker share quiet Brexit word at EU summit

  14-12-2018 12:48 via bbc.co.uk
  Theresa May shares a quiet word with Jean-Claude Juncker at the start of Friday's Brussels summit.
  
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• Nine jobs George: Osborne adds new role at venture capital firm

  14-12-2018 12:38
  Ex-UK chancellor and austerity architect adds job as adviser to brother’s tech fund to portfolioGeorge Osborne has added a ninth job to his already bulging portfolio, joining his brother’s Silicon Valley venture capital fund.The former chancellor and current editor of London’s Evening Standard newspaper has been appointed as an adviser to 9Yards Capital. Continue reading...
  
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• Westminster has known the options since 2016. Which Brexit does it want? | Rafael Behr

  14-12-2018 12:29
  The chaotic theatre of British politics doesn’t change facts. There are three possible approaches – and time is running outOnce again a Brussels summit and British politics cross paths like celestial bodies on intersecting orbits. For just a few moments a cold hard ball of EU reality eclipses the gaseous inferno that is Westminster. Theresa May has not secured any meaningful change to her withdrawal agreement. No sunset clauses will be introduced to the “backstop” that is
  
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• EU urges UK parliament to break Brexit deadlock

  14-12-2018 11:59 via ft.com
  Leaders’ calls come after stand-off with Theresa May raises fears of Britain crashing out with no deal
  
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• Week in Review: May's Brexit is over, parliament must take control

  14-12-2018 11:56
  
  That's it. There's no more. The song's over. It's done.
  
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• How could another Brexit referendum work?

  14-12-2018 11:54 via bbc.co.uk
  Tony Blair has renewed his call for another referendum, but is there enough time?
  
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• Blair: EU leaders think Brexit is 'big mistake'

  14-12-2018 11:47 via bbc.co.uk
  Tony Blair says the EU would help the UK remain if it was "prepared to think again".
  
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• Brexit: not just a political shambles, but a disaster for all public policy | Richard Vize

  14-12-2018 10:05
  Vital services in health, social care and local government are being neglected. It’s an unforgivable failure It’s a funny way to take back control: vital areas of public policy that directly affect our lives are being sacrificed to the obsession with Brexit, and there seems little chance of respite.While Brexit sucks up all the political oxygen, major areas of public policy, including local government, health and social care, are drifting. Continue reading...
  
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• Thanks, David Dimbleby. Now maybe Question Time can get with the times | Anne Perkins

  14-12-2018 10:01
  The veteran broadcaster’s departure after 25 years should prompt the lumbering BBC show to shake up its formatImagine the joy of turning to David “Brexit will be a walk in the park” Davis, live on TV, and saying: “Some people might think you ARE the joke about Brexit.” Last night David Dimbleby showed why he has been able to choose his own abdication date. How appropriate he was given a the standing ovation from a panel that as well as Davis, featured Jo Brand, Nick
  
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• The EU-Japan trade deals shows just what we're about to lose after Brexit

  14-12-2018 09:28
  
  'Cars for cheese' deals shows EU success in trade deals - just as UK is about to drop out of them.
  
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• May’s Brexit Groundhog Day

  14-12-2018 08:27 via ft.com
  Leaders baffled at ambitious but ambiguous demands over a backstop plan for Northern Ireland
  
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• Stock markets recoil from weak China data

  14-12-2018 06:39 via ft.com
  Growth fears track trade war impact; pound hit as May’s Brexit rescue bid continues
  
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• This is where we are on Brexit

  14-12-2018 06:00 via ft.com
  What are the options for the UK from a law and policy perspective?
  
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• Homeowners rush to remortgage amid Brexit uncertainty

  14-12-2018 06:00 via ft.com
  Number refinancing is the highest for nearly 10 years
  
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• George Osborne joins brother’s Silicon Valley fund

  14-12-2018 05:00 via ft.com
  Former UK chancellor takes what is believed to be 9th role since leaving office
  
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• BNY Mellon shelves new London office search ahead of Brexit

  14-12-2018 05:00 via ft.com
  US bank will instead seek to extend its lease on its current Victoria Street base
  
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• May’s bid to rescue Brexit deal rejected by EU leaders

  14-12-2018 01:43 via ft.com
  Brussels scraps plan for reassurances on backstop as PM alienates European Council
  
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• Capita misses army recruitment targets by 30% for 6 years

  14-12-2018 01:06 via ft.com
  Outsourcer’s failure to hire leaves British troops 7% below required strength
  
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• Labour floats break-up of big four accounting firms

  14-12-2018 01:01 via ft.com
  Cap on number of audit clients sought in report commissioned by shadow chancellor
  
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