|
1. Von der Leyen: ‘no free trade without free movement’
Giving a speech on the UK-EU relationship after Brexit at the LSE this morning, European Commission president Ursula Von der Leyen said that ‘without free movement of people, you can’t have free movement of goods, capital, services’ and ‘without a level playing field you cannot have the highest quality access to the world’s largest single market’. She added that she wants a deal with ‘zero tariffs, zero quotas,
and zero [commodity] dumping’ in order to keep shared ‘data protection… and security’.
2. Boris: Brexit trade talks will be based on ‘free trade agreement, not alignment’
Boris Johnson will meet Ursula Von der Leyen and Europe’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier in No. 10 later this afternoon for ‘introductory talks’. The meeting will not launch trade talks as the UK hasn’t formally left the EU, however a Downing Street spokesperson says Boris will tell Von der Leyen to make sure that talks are ‘on time’ and that ‘upcoming negotiations will be based on an ambitious free trade agreement, not on alignment’.
3. Boris: Soleimani had ‘blood of British troops on his hands’
At PMQs, Jeremy Corbyn went on Iran, asking Boris Johnson what evidence he has that the killing of Qassem Soleimani was ‘not an illegal act by the United States’. Boris said Soleimani had ‘the blood of British troops on his hands’, a hardening of the language from the government.
4. Burgon: ‘I’ll be a campaigning deputy leader’ like John Prescott
Labour deputy leadership candidate Richard Burgon told his fellow MPs this morning that he doesn’t see the number two role as ‘an alternative pole to the leader or as leader-in-waiting’. He added: ‘I was impressed by how John Prescott used it as a campaigning role’ and that he would try to emulate that by being ‘focused on getting us election-ready to win local, mayoral and devolved elections’.
5. Commons elects deputy speakers
MPs voted today to elect two deputy speakers, including the principal deputy, the chairman of ways and means. The candidates are David Amess, Peter Bone, Nigel Evans, Robert Goodwill and Eleanor Laing. As the sole Labour nominee, Rosie Winterton takes the third deputy speaker post by default, as one of the deputies must come from the same side of the House as the Speaker. The ballot closed at 1.30 p.m., with the result to be announced in the Commons shortly.
|
