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Tory leadership: No-deal Brexit could shut down car plants in UK, Japan tells Johnson and Hunt - live news Labour MPs urge Corbyn to suspend Chris Williamson - live news
(about 6 hours later)
In the Commons Julian Smith, the chief whip, has just moved the writ for the Brecon and Radnorshire byelection, triggered by the recall petition against the Conservative Chris Davies. Boris Johnson has been posing for photographs on the ferry to the Isle of Wight.
The byelection will be held on Thursday 1 August. Here is the statement on Chris Williamson organised by Tom Watson in full.
The government had been originally been expected to move the writ on Tuesday, but the announcement was delayed - prompting speculation that ministers were holding back because otherwise the byelection might have been held on Thursday 25 July, which is due to be the new prime minister’s first full day in office. There is a good chance the Tories will lose the seat, and so delaying the poll will probably spare the new PM some bad headlines just as he’s starting. Statement on Chris Williamson pic.twitter.com/WGYx9os2A0
How does Boris Johnson get away so easily with being untruthful? That is a question that deserves a book-length answer, but one point to make this morning is that he manages it partly because so much of his discourse operates in some ambiguous grey zone between the serious and the absurd. There was a good example last night when he said that the chances of a no-deal Brexit are “a million-to-one against”. That is so ridiculous that it cannot possibly be taken as a literal assessment. (The odds on an asteroid hitting the earth are much lower, many experts believe a no-deal Brexit is actually more likely than not, and if Johnson really thought the chances of no-deal were so small, he could not justify spending money on no-deal planning.) But most Tories watching last night’s hustings will have known perfectly well that Johnson was not being literal; they will have taken him as meaning that the chances of no-deal are lower than is generally assumed, which is probably something Johnson genuinely believes. Labour’s deputy leader Tom Watson and 90 of the party’s MPs and peers have issued a statement demanding Jeremy Corbyn withdraw the whip from Chris Williamson. The statement said they cannot overstate the “depth and breadth of hurt and anger” at the readmission of the Derby North MP to the party following his suspension over allegations of antisemitism. The statement says:
Just to remind him how disastrous a no-deal Brexit could be, the Japanese foreign minister, Taro Kono, was on the Today programme today talking about it, and he said it could threaten the future of Japanese car plants in the UK. It is fair to assume he was not exaggerating for comic effect. He said: We cannot overstate the depth and breadth of hurt and anger felt about the readmission of Chris Williamson into the Labour party and the questions that arise about the fairness of the process.
There are over 1,000 Japanese companies operating in the United Kingdom, so we are very concerned with this no-deal Brexit. That would have a very negative impact on their operations ... The officer recommendation - that Chris Williamson should be referred to the national constitutional committee for action - was ignored by the members of the NEC panel. That the composition of that panel was changed at short notice seems highly irregular.
There are a few Japanese auto manufacturers operating in the United Kingdom, and some parts are coming from continental Europe. Right now they have a very smooth operation; their stock for each part is only for a few hours. Justice needs to be seen to be done and this process has not done that.
But if there is a no-deal Brexit, and if they have to go through actual customs inspections physically, those operations may not be able to continue. And many companies are worried about the implications, because they do not know what is going to happen. They don’t know what happens legally or physically. So some companies have already started moving their operations to other places in Europe. Given that the Labour party is being investigated by the EHRC over allegations of institutional antisemitism this case is particularly important.
We do not want to disrupt the economic relationship with the UK. So we’ve been asking the UK government: let the Japanese companies know what they can expect and things should happen smoothly without any disruption. It is clear to us that the Labour party’s disciplinary process remains mired by the appearance of political interference. This must stop. We need a truly independent process.
Whenever we have had meetings [with the UK government] that was the issue - please no no-deal Brexit. We call on Jeremy Corbyn to show leadership by asking for this inappropriate, offensive and reputationally damaging decision to be overturned and reviewed.
Kono also said that he hopes whoever won the Tory leadership contest would take account of Japanese concerns about a no-deal Brexit. Ultimately, it is for Jeremy Corbyn to decide whether Chris Williamson retains the Labour whip. He must remove it immediately if we are to stand any hope of persuading anyone that the Labour party is taking antisemitism seriously.
Here is the agenda for the day. Downing Street has condemned moves by MPs to shut down government spending in the event of a no-deal Brexit as “grossly irresponsible”. The Labour MP Margaret Beckett and the Conservative MP Dominic Grieve have tabled amendments to the government estimates, which are due to be voted on on Tuesday evening, seeking to block a no-deal Brexit. The estimates are motions that approve government spending, and if passed the Beckett/Grieve amendments would prevent the government spending more money on work and pensions, housing, education and international development if the UK left the EU either without a deal, unless MPs had specifically voted to leave without a deal. This is the latest attempt by pro-European MPs to use unusual parliamentary procedures to block a no-deal Brexit. It is not yet known whether the amendments will be put to a vote, or whether Labour - which would have to back the Beckett/Grieve amendments for them to pass - would vote in favour. But Number 10 has described the plan as “grossly irresponsible”. A Number 10 spokeswoman said:
9.30am: Steve Barclay, the Brexit secretary, takes questions in the Commons. We don’t know if that amendment is going to be selected at this point. Any attempt to deny vital funding to Whitehall departments would be grossly irresponsible. This is government spending for this financial year and funds crucial areas like schools, housing and welfare.
After 10.30am: Mel Stride, the leader of the Commons, makes a statement about next week’s Commons business. The motions and amendments are on today’s order paper (pdf) starting on page 27. The Beckett/Grieve amendments are worded:
11am: The Tory MP Crispin Blunt speaks at the launch of the new Conservative Drugs Policy Reform Group At end, add “provided that the authorisation for the use of resources under this resolution does not apply to such use if the United Kingdom leaves the European Union unless (a) a withdrawal agreement has been ratified or (b) the House of Commons has, prior to the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, agreed a resolution to the effect that it approves the United Kingdom leaving the European Union without a withdrawal agreement.”
7pm: Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt take part in Tory leadership hustings in Bournemouth. Grieve insisted he was not being irresponsible. He said:
And Theresa May is in Japan for the G20 summit. What is grossly irresponsible is leadership candidates who intend to be prime minister in four weeks time saying they are prepared to contemplate taking the UK out of the EU without the approval of the House of Commons.
As usual, I will be covering breaking political news as it happens, as well as bringing you the best reaction, comment and analysis from the web, although I will be focusing mostly on the Tory leadership contest. I plan to publish a summary at lunchtime and then another late afternoon. And then after that I will be here to cover the Tory leadership hustings. That is incredibly irresponsible constitutionally. The House of Commons has very limited ability to stand up to behaviour of this kind.
You can read all the latest Guardian politics articles here. Here is the Politico Europe roundup of this morning’s political news. And here is the PoliticsHome list of today’s top 10 must-reads. What the Commons has is the power to withhold supply and putting in this amendment is intended to prevent the government doing something it shouldn’t even be contemplating.
If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I’m on @AndrewSparrow. A promised independent inquiry into Islamophobia in the Conservative party has been downgraded to a “general investigation” into all types of prejudice, Boris Johnson has said, going back on what was seemingly agreed in a recent BBC debate.
I try to monitor the comments below the line (BTL) but it is impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer questions, and if they are of general interest, I will post the question and reply above the line (ATL), although I can’t promise to do this for everyone. Japan’s foreign minister has pleaded with Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt not to lead the UK out of the EU without a deal when one of them becomes prime minister.
If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter. Theresa May has warned the two men vying to replace her against trying to bypass parliament, insisting they must find a solution to the Brexit deadlock that can win the support of a majority of MPs.
Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, has said she is “beginning to worry” about Labour’s Brexit stance not being sufficiently pro-remain. (See 10.10am.)
A Labour constituency party is to protest to the party hierarchy about the decision to lift a suspension on the MP Chris Williamson, who had suggested that the party was “too apologetic” about antisemitism.
Ian Paisley is facing renewed scrutiny over luxury holidays after it was reported that a Maldivian government minister funded a trip for the MP and his family.
David Lidington, Theresa May’s de facto deputy, who is backing Jeremy Hunt for next Tory leader, said the new prime minister should make the northern powerhouse his priority. Speaking to reporters during a visit to the Graphene Engineering Innovation Centre at The University of Manchester where he took part in a roundtable with the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, he said the north should be “a priority that is owned by every department”. He went on:
The key thing is that every government department should feel that this is a priority for them. What won’t work is if other ministers and other departments think that Northern Powerhouse is all down to one man or woman. This has got to be a priority that is owned by every department.
What is key is that whether it is Jeremy Hunt or Boris Johnson is that the prime minister personally takes the lead and makes it very clear for them that northern powerhouse remains a cross government priority.
Referring to the Power Up the North campaign, which has seen more than 30 newspapers and news websites in the north of England publishing front pages demanding “a revolution” in how the region is treated by government, he acknowledged that “there is still lots of work to be done” but largely focused on the successes of the powerhouse. He said:
There is a lot to be done still but we shouldn’t underrate the successes we have seen already and that has been in part down to consistent government support - £13bn investment in rail. And we have also transformed regional and local government in England. You now have most people living in the north living in an area which is managed by a metro mayor. That is something that has changed the opportunities for the region in a way that we haven’t seen for decades.
Asked if he would be willing to vote against the government in a no confidence motion to prevent a no-deal Brexit, he replied:
I’m not in the business of wanting to put Jeremy Corbyn into government because I think that would be disastrous for the country on both economic and security grounds but I am very opposed to no-deal. I think it would cause significant harm to the manufacturing industry throughout the United Kingdom and agriculture throughout the United Kingdom and put further strain on the union of the United Kingdom.
Jeremy Corbyn is visiting Hartlepool’s Heugh Battery Museum to meet military personnel during armed forces week, the Press Association reports. He is pledging a series of measures to boost military conditions, including giving “fair pay” to the military in the light of figures indicating that the salary of an army private has effectively dropped by nearly 1,200 between 2010 and 2018.
This is from the Press Association’s Ian Jones.
Theresa May today overtakes Neville Chamberlain - another PM who returned from negotiations in Europe confidently brandishing an agreement. pic.twitter.com/PAIBkkc4YZ
Although Boris Johnson is well ahead of Jeremy Hunt amongst Conservative party members, surveys suggest (see 12.24pm), amongst the public at large they are much more neck and neck. Ipsos MORI has published some detailed polling, and it says there is “little to choose” between them, although both men enjoy large leads over Jeremy Corbyn in terms of who is seen to be “the most capable PM”. In his story on the figures for the Evening Standard, Joe Murphy says Johnson is just ahead of Hunt on having what it takes to be a good PM, although he says the gap has narrowed in recent weeks.
Guy Verhofstadt, the leader of the ALDE liberal group in the European parliament who has been the parliament’s lead Brexit spokesman, has published an article for Project Syndicate saying Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt have “learned nothing whatsoever from the past two years of negotiations with the EU”. Here is an extract:
Though Johnson will most likely soon find himself in a position where he must make good on his promises, he continues to spread untruths. Chief among them is the myth that Britain can tear up the withdrawal agreement that May negotiated with the EU, withhold its financial commitments to the bloc, and simultaneously start negotiating free-trade deals. To Johnson’s followers, however, he is more prophet than politician: only he can deliver a mythical “true Brexit” that will deliver the prosperity promised during the referendum campaign.
As is often the case with populists, reality does not square with Johnson’s ensorcelling combination of false promises, pseudo-patriotism, and foreigner bashing. He and his fellow Brexiteers speak of a “Global Britain” that will trade freely with the rest of the world, even as they drag their country down a path strewn with uprooted trade ties and substantial new barriers to commerce.
(Ensorcelling is a very Johnsonite word. I had to look it up too. It means bewitching.)