May 1) Prime Minister says she wants to fight the next election
“Theresa May stunned MPs last night by vowing to stay on as Tory leader and fight the 2022 general election. The Prime Minister said she was ‘not a quitter’ and would remain in office to guide the country through Brexit and beyond. Her bold declaration could see her stay in office for another ten years if the Conservatives win the next election and she serves two full terms. Her pledge will shock Westminster after her decision to call a snap election resulted in the humiliating loss of her party’s Commons majority.” – Daily Mail
- Tory heavyweights express ‘reservations’ about plan – Daily Telegraph
- Senior Conservatives cast doubt on May’s long-term future – The Guardian
- May’s resolve ‘dismays MPs’ – FT
- ‘Stop pretending!’, party tells leader – The Sun
- Hague warns against leadership plots – Daily Telegraph
Editorial:
- May should stay long enough to deliver Brexit – The Times
- New-found determination to lead should coincide with clarity on Brexit – Daily Telegraph
- The Prime Minister will never lead the Tories to victory – The Sun
>Today:
- ToryDiary: Crosby Textor are still working for CCHQ. Should they be?
- Video: WATCH: “I’m in it for the long-term.” May says she intends to lead the Party into the next election.
May 2) Nick Timothy: She wants to lead the Tories towards Britain’s common ground
“After a majority voted for Brexit, that is what she will deliver. She wants to control immigration because she thinks that is best for our economy and our society. She believes in using the power of government to reform dysfunctional markets, prevent corporate abuse, and support growth where it is needed most. She envisages a smaller state, but one that is stronger and more strategic. Those of us who served in government certainly made mistakes and the Prime Minister will sometimes have to compromise, but she is, in Sir Keith Joseph’s terminology, seeking to occupy the common ground. Her statement in Japan yesterday that she intends to fight the next election shows her determination to ignore calls to move to the so-called centre, and instead focus on delivering what the country wants and needs.” – Daily Telegraph
May 3) £500m Aston Martin deal with Japan will safeguard jobs
“Aston Martin announced plans for £500 million of trade with Japan yesterday in a boost for the Prime Minister’s visit to the country. Theresa May said the luxury car maker’s plans would help safeguard jobs at the firm’s plants in the West Midlands and South Wales. ‘As we prepare to leave the European Union, it is vital that we build on our existing ties with friends and allies,’ she said. ‘Aston Martin is a prime example of the innovative and world-leading firms the UK is proud of and I’m delighted they are joining me on this important trade mission.” – Daily Mail
- Abe urges ‘transparent’ negotiations with the EU – Daily Telegraph
- London and Tokyo plan enhanced security cooperation – FT
- Royal Navy warship to join exercises with Japan – The Times
- May gives public support to the Foreign Secretary – The Sun
More employment:
- Number of workless households falls again – Daily Mail
Comment:
- Parliament has a vital role in holding our leaders to account – Nicky Morgan MP, Times Red Box
Hunt urged to take ‘urgent action’ over NHS cyber security
“Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, has been told to take “urgent” action to prevent another devastating cyber attack on the NHS after a leaked internal report revealed a string of digital security failings in the health service. The report, by NHS Digital’s head of security operations, Chris Flynn, said there was a “false sense of security” among staff over cyber threats and highlighted a range of security failings, including weak passwords and poorly protected patient data. Mr Flynn said many NHS trusts, GP practices and clinical commissioning groups had good security policies but that they were not being properly implemented.” – The Independent
- Health Service puts £100 million on table to recruit doctors for seven-day service – The Times
- Nine in ten English MPs think the care system is not fit for purpose – Daily Mail
Davis warns EU leaders that talks may collapse over ‘divorce bill’
“David Davis is ready to warn EU leaders Brexit talks face collapse unless Brussels tears up its current demands for a ‘divorce bill’. Discussing the contentious payment for the first time this week, UK negotiators rubbished the bloc’s financial demands and accused the EU of forcing Britain to pay for ‘everything including the kitchen sink’. So far Brussels chiefs have refused to discuss any future trade deal until Britain agrees how much it is willing to pay towards exit bill that could reach £90 billion. But last night Theresa May appealed to EU leaders, including Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron, to kick start the stalling talks or face a backlash from businesses across the continent which will suffer.” – Daily Mail
- EU negotiators ‘flabbergasted’ over line-by-line rebuttal of their case for payment – Daily Telegraph
- Brexit negotiators hit deadlock over size of payment – The Times
- UK’s post-Brexit plans praised by Calais chief – The Sun
- Burns claims Twitter trolling of EU negotiator was hacker’s fault – The Sun
- Charities join forces against Repeal Bill ‘power grab’ – The Guardian
- Election result means a worse deal, warns Hague – The Sun
Comment:
- How Britain can keep smooth trading with the EU post-Brexit – William Bain, Daily Telegraph
- Obstinate Juncker shows we were right to leave – Iain Martin, The Times
- Stringing out Brexit is just what Remainers want – Asa Bennett, Daily Telegraph
- There are a lot of gaps in British thinking on borders – Jill Rutter, Times Red Box
Opposition:
- Labour’s shift would trap Britain in a disastrous quagmire – Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Daily Telegraph
- Brexit is a Tory mess, and Labour can clean it up – Owen Jones, The Guardian
>Today: Profiles: The European Court of Justice – about which much is often said, and of which little is usually known
>Yesterday:
- ToryDiary: Brexit this autumn 1) Yes, there have been shifts and climbdowns. But the essentials of May’s position are unchanged…
- Comment: …Unlike Corbyn’s. Brexit this autumn 2) Henry Newman: When can we expect the next verse of Labour’s hokey-cokey?
Young Tory activists behind new group blasted for offensive texts
“A group of young Tory activists have been blasted for sending offensive texts mocking people as “chavs” and saying they should be gassed. The Tory activists mocked chavs after a member of the group talked about observing “the spice ‘homo chav.’” A member replied: “Gas them all”, while another user said: “Run some medical experiments on them.” A third added: “We could use them as substitutes for animals when testing.” The independent group, called Activate, aims to get youngsters interested in Conservative politics.” – The Sun
- A movement like Activate needs heroes, and the Tories have none – Kate Maltby, The Guardian
>Today: Stephen Canning in Comment: If the Conservatives won’t trust their young activists more, why should young people support them?
>Yesterday: Tom Harwood in Comment: Stop trying to force a Tory equivalent to Momentum to happen
Labour 1) Corbynistas poised for power grab after Scottish leader quits
“Kezia Dugdale’s resignation as leader of Scottish Labour could hand supporters of Jeremy Corbyn control of the UK party’s ruling body and allow the leftwingers to impose radical reforms. Ms Dugdale, a moderate, will probably be replaced on the ruling national executive committee (NEC) by the interim chief Alex Rowley, a supporter of Mr Corbyn who served as her deputy. The committee will meet to finalise arrangements for the party conference – the culmination of a long and rancorous ground war between its rival factions – next month. Ms Dugdale’s departure, announced on Tuesday night, is a blow to moderates and is likely to hand Mr Corbyn’s backers a hitherto elusive majority.” – The Times
- Left-wingers bid for control – The Scotsman
- Moderate MPs claim that the hard-left purge has now begun – The Sun
- Successor must be a woman, insists Harman – Daily Telegraph
- Dugdale says she was ‘outed as gay against her will’ by journalist – The Times
More Scotland:
- Salmond says Sturgeon shouldn’t have called for second EU referendum – Daily Express
- Retail sector’s fury over SNP’s ‘toxic’ tax hikes – The Scotsman
Comment:
- Scottish Labour is now run from London and Davidson is the winner – Alan Cochrane, Daily Telegraph
- The end of Scottish Labour’s civil war? Don’t bet on it – Ruth Wishart, The Guardian
- Will Scotland finally fall to the Corbynite insurgency? – Tom Harris, Daily Telegraph
>Yesterday: LeftWatch: Dugdale’s resignation is a boon to Corbyn, and perhaps Davidson too
Labour 2) More than 42,000 sign petition calling on MP to quit over grooming comments
“More than 42,000 people have called on a prominent Labour MP to resign after she called on victims of Asian sex abuse gangs to keep quiet for diversity. The Sun revealed last week that Naz Shah retweeted and “liked” a post on Twitter that said: “Those abused girls in Rotherham and elsewhere just need to shut their mouths. For the good of diversity.” Ms Shah, a key ally of Jeremy Corbyn, later “unliked” and deleted the tweet from an account that parodies left-wing writer Owen Jones and a spokesman for her claimed it was an “accident”.” – The Sun
News in Brief:
- Think tank accuses NHS of accountancy fixes to mask £4 billion overspend – Daily Mail
- Police Federation chief steps down before no-confidence vote – The Times
- North Korean soldiers ‘ordered to steal corn because war is imminent’ – Daily Telegraph
- High-risk ‘nonprime’ mortgages are making a comeback – FT
- EU to strip Poland of voting rights over domestic reforms – Daily Express
- Taxpayers subsidising planning applications to tune of £1 billion – The Independent
- Campaigners bid to overturn Javid’s decision to allow fracking in Lancashire – The Guardian
- Proctor issues legal threat to child abuse probe – Daily Mail