David Cameron has hit out at Boris Johnson and his Brexit strategy, saying the prime minister was wrong to suspend parliament and warning that a no-deal Brexit would be a “bad outcome”.
It rounded off a dismal day for the prime minister after a trip to Yorkshire descended into chaos when he was confronted by an angry voter over Brexit in Doncaster and heckled over the suspension of parliament during a speech in Rotherham.
The prime minister was setting out plans to hand more powers to the north of England, but was derailed by an audience member, who shouted: “Why are you not in parliament sorting out the mess you’ve created?”
Mr Johnson said he was “cautiously optimistic” of getting a Brexit deal as he prepared for talks on Monday with Jean-Claude Juncker, the European Commission president, and negotiator Michel Barnier.
He claimed there was the “rough shape” of a deal in place.
But he made clear that if he was unable to get a new deal, he would not be deterred by “shenanigans” at Westminster from taking Britain out of the EU by 31 October.
His last-but-one predecessor Mr Cameron claimed Mr Johnson had behaved “appallingly” during the Vote Leave campaign.
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'We will not support any arrangements that create a barrier to East West trade'Momentum, the grassroots activist network, has launched a new digital tool for students to decide whether to vote at home or at university.
The pro-Corbyn group had success in 2017 with its app, 'My Nearest Marginal', which directed activists to key seats.
Laura Parker, Momentum’s national coordinator, said: “Johnson’s attempt to rig the election and stop students from registering is deplorable, and it’s heartening to see so many young people getting registered in response.
"Young people surged to Labour in the last election because we offered a concrete vision of hope.
"They turned seats like Canterbury and Newcastle-under-Lyme red, and we’re going to register tens of thousands of young people in key marginals to make sure they're part of the movement against this government which treats them with such contempt.”
Irish premier Leo Varadkar has said "the gap is very wide" between the EU and the UK in reaching a deal on Brexit.
"We have always said we would be willing to look at alternative arrangements but what we're seeing falls far short," Mr Varadkar told RTE radio.
"We are exploring what is possible. The gap is very wide but we will fight for and work for a deal until the last moment, but not at any cost.
Mr Varadkar added that he felt British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is acting in good faith in the Brexit negotiations.
A European Commission spokeswoman said: "President Juncker will hold a working lunch with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson.
"This working lunch will take place in Luxembourg."
Johnson agreed to travel to Luxembourg to accommodate Jean-Claude Juncker's plans, the spokeswoman said.
"As President Juncker has said from the beginning, he was looking forward to working constructively with prime minister Johnson and it's just that they haven't managed to meet yet," she said.
"The reason the lunch is taking place in Luxembourg is because the president has to go straight to Strasbourg afterwards as its plenary week and Mr Johnson agreed to come to Luxembourg to facilitate this happen."
But the spokeswoman said she was "not going to speculate" on what Mr Juncker hoped to achieve from the talks.
Mr Juncker will then address the European Parliament on Wednesday on Brexit, she said.
MPs are gearing up in the race to replace John Bercow as speaker of the House of Commons, as former Labour minister Harriet Harman became the latest to announce her candidacy.
It comes after Mr Bercow made his surprise statement to step down by the 31 October Brexit deadline after more than a decade in the chair.
Ashley Cowburn has taken a look at the runners and riders to be the Commons speaker.
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