'After Brexit: The Battle For Europe' - review of BBC2 programme

(10/02/17) This is a review of a programme by the BBC Europe Editor Katya Adler who travelled around the continent interviewing its political leaders. At the end of an hour of trotting from Italy to Hungary and across to France, she reached this conclusion:

‘It could be our national debate about Brexit turns out to be an irrelevance,’ she crowed. ‘Sooner or later the EU as we know it may no longer be there for us to leave.’ But despite this, it is an interesting programme with some informed observations. Daily Telegraph. Watch the programme on BBC iPlayer

Support for Theresa May’s Brexit strategy increasing: poll

06/02/17) The number of British citizens who agree with Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit strategy has risen sharply in the past month, according to an opinion poll published Monday.

In the poll, in which just over 2,000 people were questioned online, 53 percent said they agreed with the government’s plans for Brexit, Reuters reported. The figure was 38 percent last month. Read the full story on Politico.

House of Lords given abolition warning over Brexit bill

(09/02/17) The House of Lords has been warned its existence will be put at risk if it attempts to block the Brexit bill, after MPs voted to pass it unamended. The bill - to give the government the authority to trigger Article 50 - was approved by 494 votes to 122 in the Commons, and now moves to the Lords. A government source said the Lords will face an "overwhelming" public call to be abolished if it opposes the bill. Brexit Secretary David Davis called on peers to "do their patriotic duty". Read the article on the BBC.

Government crushes Brexit rebels as it defeats EVERY amendment to Article 50 bill

(08/02/17) Theresa May has crushed the Remain resistance to Brexit in the Commons, successfully defeating every amendment to her historic Article 50 bill. Brexit moved a step closer tonight as new laws enshrining the Prime Minister's powers to launch the two year Brexit process were passed to the Lords.

Mrs May saw off a potential rebellion on the rights of EU nationals after Brexit, defeating a dangerous amendment 332 to 290 with a promise any changes to their citizenship in future will be subject to a separate vote. After a marathon series of nine separate Commons votes, the legislation was granted a third reading by a landslide, agreed by MPs 494 to 122, majority 372. Read the full article in the Daily Mail.

Theresa May defeats rebel demands for Parliament to get final say on Brexit

(07/02/17) Theresa May headed off a rebellion over the Brexit Bill tonight as MPs rejected demands for Parliament to approve her final EU divorce deal. Despite seven Remain-supporting Tory MPs rebelling against the Government, the Prime Minister won a clear majority of 33 in favour of her plans to keep the final Commons showdown a 'take it or leave it' vote.

She saw off what could have been a much larger rebellion by clarifying that her final Brexit package would be put to the Commons before it is ratified by the European Parliament. The list of Remoaner Tories who voted against the Government includes South Cambridgeshire MP Heidi Allen! Read the full article in the Daily Mail.

PwC's 'serious economic shock' turns into Brexit boom

(7/02/17) Before the referendum, the EU-funded PricewaterhouseCoopers wrote the infamous CBI report claiming Brexit would cause a “serious economic shock”, costing £100 billion and 1 million jobs. Today they have performed a screeching u-turn, now claiming Brexit will lead Britain into an economic boom.

The report reveals that Britain will grow faster than any other major advanced economy over the next three decades as the EU’s share of global output diminishes. UK economic growth is predicted to outpace the US, Canada, France and Germany between 2016 and 2050, with average annual growth of 1.9pc. Read the full article on Daily Telegraph.

If the single market is so great for Wales, why is it so poor?

(23/01/17) The leaders of Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru have laid out the case for keeping the principality in the single market – and warned that the economy will be virtually destroyed if they come out. But according to Eurostat statistics, it is shockingly poor. It is on 77 percent of the EU average GDP per capita, adjusted for purchasing power parity. West Wales and the Valleys is on just 69 percent. Read the full article in The Spectator.

Theresa May will not compromise with Tory rebels over Article 50 bill

(06/02/17) Theresa Maywill refuse to offer a compromise to Conservative MPs who plan to "wreck" the Article 50 bill this week by voting for a series of amendments, the Telegraph understands

Following the publication of a white paper and efforts by the Tory whips to find common ground with Conservative rebels the Prime Minister will hold her ground this week despite a rumoured rebellion within her party. Read the full article in the Telegraph.

High Court blocks fresh bid from campaigners for a 'soft Brexit' to keep the UK in the European single market

(03/02/17) High Court judges today took just an hour to throw out 'premature' legal action to force a 'soft Brexit' and thwart Theresa May. The new group of campaigners - including some granted anonymity on safety grounds - want Parliament to vote on keeping Britain in the European single market. They include Peter Wilding, chairman of the pro-Europe pressure group British Influence, who is credited with coining the word Brexit and Conservative lobbyist Adrian Yalland, who voted Leave and runs the Single Market Justice Group. Read the full article in the Daily Mail.

EU will demand exit bill, former UK ambassador Sir Ivan Rogers warns

(01/02/17) European leaders believe Brexit “exploded a bomb” underneath the EU’s budget and they will “care passionately” about securing an exit bill of up to €60 billion from the U.K., the former British ambassador to the EU warned Wednesday.

Sir Ivan Rogers, who resigned last month, criticizing “muddled thinking” in government, said the U.K.’s departure would create “immense” financial difficulties for the EU. He said reports that EU leaders were considering demanding up to €60 billion from Britain were “genuine” and would become a major sticking point in negotiations after the triggering of Article 50. Read the full article on Politico.

We'll meddle in Brexit deal, says the European Court of Justice: President reveals he expects to intervene as he sets body on collision course with Downing Street

(02/02/17) The EU’s top court is on a collision course with Downing Street after its president said he expects to intervene in Brexit and could even make changes to a deal. Koen Lenaerts, president of the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ), said he was certain that the notoriously meddlesome body would become involved in the process.

Although the court cannot choose to step in, the Belgian believes there is a strong chance that one side of the negotiations - likely to be the EU - could lodge a legal challenge opposing a part of any Brexit deal that might be struck up. Read the full story in the Daily Mail.

The EU’s customs union is a protectionist racket

(13/01/17) This article is by Ryan Bourne who occupies the R. Evan Scharf Chair in the Public Understanding of Economics at the Cato Institute in Washington DC. In it he makes clear his view that the case for remaining in the customs union is overwhelmed by the advantages and opportunities from leaving.

The author explains how the customs union works, how protectionist it is, and what being a member means for us. Did you know that the Common External Tarriff (CET), coupled with non-tariff barriers imposed by the EU, has resulted in UK agricultural and manufactured goods prices being around 20 per cent above world prices?

He argues that leaving the customs union would act like a big dynamic tax cut through the economy – lowering goods prices directly, but also leading to more efficient industry as all face competition at world prices. Read the full article on CapX.

Terrified Germany DEMANDS EU wraps up trade deals QUICKLY following Theresa May's US visit

(28/01/17) Terrified over the burgeoning relationship between Theresa May and Donald Trump, Europe’s leading economic power urged Brussels to launch a deal-making spree. German officials warned EU finance ministers at a meeting in Brussels yesterday that urgent action is needed over perceived threats posed by Brexit and Trump’s presidency.

Finance minister Thomas Steffen sent a document to other EU states urging them to tie up 12 free trade deals with countries including China and Australia as quickly as possible. Read the article in the Daily Express.

The Remoaners-in-chief: MPs who DEFIED the will of their constituents by voting against triggering Article 50

(01/02/17) A handful of hardline Remoaner MPs ignored the will of their own constituents tonight by voting against triggering Article 50. Some seven Labour, one Liberal Democrat and an SNP MP defied the outcome of the EU referendum in their own areas by opposing legislation that will start the process of cutting ties with Brussels. In an extraordinary speech confirming he would oppose the Bill, backbencher Chris Bryant insisted he was a 'democrat' but would be siding with the 'minority'. Read the full article in the Daily Mail.

David Cameron 'tried to get Mail editor sacked' over Brexit stance

(01/02/17) The proprietor of the Daily Mail told its editor that David Cameron pressed for him to be sacked during the EU referendum, BBC Newsnight has learned. Lord Rothermere told Paul Dacre the prime minister urged him to rein in his pro-Brexit editor, then suggested he sack him, a source told the BBC. Read the full article on BBC News.

(31/01/17) Watch John Redwood in the chamber give one of his most impressive speeches ever. Not reading from script, he begins softly but raises the tempo until at the end (1min 18s) he is on fire as he says that if the UK had voted to remain in the EU, he would have had to resign because he'd "see no point in this puppet Parliament". He continues that as a result of the vote by the British people "this Parliament is going to be made great by the people, and made great despite itself". This was his 'Henry Vth' moment so enjoy. Not bad for a Vulcan. Watch the clip on Russia Today's YouTube channel.

City lobby group comes out fighting for global Brexit in dramatic u-turn

(31/01/17) The City's top lobby group, TheCityUK, has performed a dramatic u-turn on Brexit, scrapping its previous campaign to remain in the EU and instead hailing the vote to leave as “unprecedented opportunity” for the UK to develop a powerful new set of trade and investment policies.

The group, which represents banks, finance firms and the professional services industry, now believes that Britain’s departure from the EU represents “a once-in-a-generation opportunity” for a strategic re-think of commercial relationships with the rest of the globe. Read the full article in the Telegraph.

UK lawyer plots legal bid to make Brexit reversible

(31/01/17) As British lawmakers gather to debate whether to trigger the formal exit from the European Union, London lawyer Jolyon Maugham is building a case which he hopes will ensure that British voters can still reverse it. The 45-year-old tax specialist, an opponent of leaving the EU, said it was right for Prime Minister Theresa May to start the exit process, but voters should also have a right to change their minds if parliament rejects the terms she negotiates.

He filed a case in Ireland last week that he hopes will go to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in Luxembourg, to establish that Britain can reverse the exit process without requiring permission from the other 27 EU members. Read the full story in the Daily Mail.

Dominic Cummings: how the Brexit referendum was won

This very long article by the Campaign Director of the Vote Leave campaign explains the background to the campaign and suggests reasons as to why 'Leave' won the referendum. He admits that he needs to shorten this piece but it does give a very good insight into his thinking and strategy. There is no doubt that Cummings was pivotal to the success of the campaign but his criticism of Leave.eu and Nigel Farage and the Grassroots Out campaign, whilst valid at times, reveals the deep distrust between the 'Leave' camps. This article offers an insight into the mind of one architect of the campaign - but it's a disturbing place to visit. Read the full article in The Spectator.

Labour MPs put forward Commons motion to throw out article 50 bill

(28/01/17) A group of backbench Labour MPs have put forward a Commons motion to throw out the government’s bill to trigger article 50, arguing they cannot support Theresa May’s plan to take Britain out of the EU’s single market.

Tabled by the former shadow health secretary Heidi Alexander, and supported by 18 fellow Labour backbenchers, the proposal would, if passed, see the bill that would set in motion departure from the EU stopped entirely early next week. Read the full article in The Observer.

This 8-page leaflet has been produced by UKIP to help counter some of the 'Remoaner' lies that persist. 'Project Fear' is still being re-cycled by the unaccountable elite and we know they will stop at nothing to try to slow or even reverse Brexit, as the Supreme Court case demonstrates.

This leaflet contains four key truths about Brexit. Please read and bear these in mind when you come up against a 'Remoaner' in private or public. Please also share this pdf with friends and colleagues inside and outside UKIP. View and download The Truths About Brexit.

In the interests of showing the 'other side's' viewpoint, we thought to highlight this book: 'If you voted to Leave the European Union, the chances are you've been swindled...' In his urgent new book, T. J. Coles uncovers the forces seeking to uncouple Britain from the European Union. Allied to an expanding core of free market fanatics in the Conservative party is a powerful group of globalists and financial traders. Their political ideology is neoliberalism - a worldwide agenda that seeks to deregulate markets and maximize profits for global elites at the expense of working people. The effect is a growing gap internationally between rich and poor. Digging deep into the funding campaign, The Great Brexit Swindle documents the potent, self-serving interests etc etc zzzzz zzzzzzzzzzz zzzzzz zzzzzzzz Read the full summary if you dare on Amazon.

916,000 Polish nationals live in the UK, more than the total number of British nationals living in the EU

(27/01/17) About 900,000 British citizens are living in other European Union countries – fewer than the previous widely quoted estimate of 1.2 million, according to research by the Office of National Statistics.

The new lower estimate is likely to have implications for the forthcoming negotiations between Britain and the EU over the future residency rights of the 3.15 million EU nationals living in the UK and British citizens in the rest of the bloc. Read the full article in The Guardian.

European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill 2016-17

(27/01/17) The European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill is a public bill presented to Parliament by the Government. The Bill was introduced to the House of Commons and given its First Reading on Thursday 26 January 2017. This stage is formal and takes place without any debate.
What happens next?

MPs will next consider the Bill at Second Reading. The Bill is expected to have its Second Reading debate on Tuesday 31 January 2017 with conclusion of Second Reading on Wednesday 1 February 2017. The Bill is then due to be considered in Committee on Monday 6 and Tuesday 7 February 2017, concluding in Committee on Wednesday 8 February 2017 when the remaining stages are also due to take place. See the Parliament website.

(26/01/17) Daily Politics presenter Andrew Neil looks at past predictions with economists Danny Blanchflower and Liam Halligan and the financial analyst Louise Cooper.

Today's growth figures for the UK economy were more positive than forecasters had predicted, showing Britain had the fastest-growing economy in the G7 group, and indicators were more positive than the gloomy short-term forecasts made during the referendum campaign. Watch the video on the BBC.

Article 50: which MPs are planning to vote against it (aside from Cambridge MP Daniel Zeichner)?

(24/01/17) EuroGuido's spreadsheet includes a column showing how each MP’s constituency voted in the referendum, quite a few are bravely planning to defy their own voters – those Welsh Labour MPs can expect a major UKIP challenge in 2020. Ken Clarke is the only Tory who has signalled an intention to vote against Article 50. See the spreadsheet on Order-Order.com.

Article 50 ruling: Courts should never have got involved in Brexit, says dissenting judge

(24/01/17) Judges should never have been allowed to rule on how Brexit should be triggered because it is a matter for politicians and not the courts, one of the Supreme Court Justices said. Lord Carnwath, one of three Justices who sided with Theresa May, said the courts had taken “too narrow a view” of the issues at stake and should have left it to Parliament to settle its own affairs.

Together with fellow dissenters Lord Reed and Lord Hughes, he said the Prime Minister was within her rights to use the power of royal prerogative to trigger Article 50, but the three men were overruled by the eight other Justices, who all concluded that the law required a Parliamentary vote on the matter. Read the full story in the Daily Telegraph.

Even Remainers think May's deal respects the referendum result, and five other charts explaining what Brits want from Brexit

(23/01/17) Polling from YouGov reveals the split in public opinion over Brexit - while many are many prepared to ditch the single market, Remainers and Brexiters are failing to see eye to eye.

Meanwhile, many still fail to understand what the Labour Party stands for in the debate as Theresa May's plan slowly gathers acceptance from all sides - even from reluctant Remainers. Read the full article in the Daily Telegraph.

(18/01/17) Asked about May's statement that "no deal is better than a bad deal" 48% of the public agree, compared to 17% who would rather have a bad deal than no deal at all. 55% of people said that May should be prepared to walk away. It is a different question whether the public would actually be so sanguine about May coming back from negotiations empty handed. Our previous polls have suggested that less than a third of people think it would be good for Britain to leave the EU without any new trade deal. Read the full article with research results on YouGov.

Godfather of ‘Brexit’ takes aim at the British Establishment - New York Times' profile of Arron Banks

(21/01/17) Arron Banks is the person considered, with Nigel Farage, the former leader of the U.K. Independence Party, as most responsible for Britain’s voting to leave the European Union. In a nearly four-hour interview recently, he happily admitted that he was adamantly opposed to the European Union and that he hated the Conservative Party and especially its previous prime minister, David Cameron. For him, Mr. Cameron’s resignation was almost more satisfying than the victory of the so-called Brexiters in the June referendum. Read the full article in The New York Times.