Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Frances Perraudin (now) and Matthew Weaver (earlier)

Brexit: MPs vote by 358 to 234 to pass the withdrawal agreement bill – live news

Boris Johnson speaks during the Brexit withdrawal bill debate.
Boris Johnson speaks during the Brexit withdrawal bill debate. Photograph: Jessica Taylor/AFP

Afternoon summary

Here’s a nice interactive showing how each MP voted in the withdrawal agreement bill vote this afternoon.

Mark Field 'breached ministerial code' by grabbing protester

In more news regarding alleged ministerial code breaches ...

Former Tory MP Mark Field is found to have breached the code by using force against a climate change protester at a black-tie City dinner. Field, who stood down from parliament after being suspended as a Foreign Office minister, grabbed a Greenpeace activist, Janet Barker, by the neck and forced her out of the event.

The Cabinet Office investigation found that he had to make a “split-second decision” and “had the option of simply blocking her way” during the incident in London’s Mansion House in June.

You can read more here –

A Cabinet Office investigation into Tory MP Alun Cairns, who quit the Cabinet during the election campaign, has not upheld allegations of a breach of the ministerial code, the PA news agency reports.

The former Welsh secretary announced he was standing down from the Cabinet last month over his links to a Conservative candidate accused of sabotaging a rape trial. The report, published today, found it “unlikely” that the MP was not told anything about his former staff member’s role, but concluded that the evidence did not support the allegations of a breach.

You can read the full story here –

And here’s shadow housing secretary John Healey on why he abstained –

Six Labour members voted for the bill – Sarah Champion, Rosie Cooper, Jon Cruddas, Emma Lewell-Buck, Grahame Morris, Toby Perkins. Here is Lewell-Buck’s speech, in which she says that it is with a heavy heart that she has decided she couldn’t vote with the Labour party.

Some Labour MPs have written on Twitter about why they decided to abstain in this afternoon’s vote. Sharon Hodgson, MP for Washington and Sunderland West, said she had always said she would not vote for a form of Brexit that would harm those she represented, but she recognised that her constituents wanted to see the UK leave the EU.

Foreign secretary Dominic Raab has responded to the announcement by the Crown Prosecution Service that they will be charging the wife of a US intelligence officer with causing the death by dangerous driving of the 19-year-old motorcyclist Harry Dunn.

I welcome the taking of a charging decision which is an important step towards justice for Harry and towards solace for his family, but it is not the end. I hope that Anne Sacoolas will now realise the right thing to do is to come back to the UK and cooperate with the criminal justice process.

Charles Michel, the president of the European council, welcomed the vote, tweeting that it was an “important step in the article 50 ratification process”. He added: “A level playing field remains a must for any future relationship,” referring to the EU’s demand for fair competition in exchange for a free-trade agreement with zero tariffs and zero quotas.

The European parliament expects to ratify the withdrawal treaty on 29 January, if the next stages at Westminster go to plan, paving the way for the UK to leave the EU on 31 January.

This is from BBC political correspondent Iain Watson. He says as many as 30 Labour MPs abstained or stayed away from the vote on the Brexit bill this afternoon.

You can read our story on the passage of the withdrawal agreement bill at second reading here. The Guardian’s political editor Heather Stewart writes:

Parliament has passed a historic milestone towards leaving the European Union, backing Boris Johnson’s Brexit bill by a thumping majority of 124, a week after the Conservatives won a landslide victory in the general election.

After comfortably passing its second reading by 358 votes to 234, the withdrawal agreement bill is on track to complete its passage through both houses of parliament in time to allow Britain to leave the European Union at the end of January.

The clear support for the bill marked a decisive break with the parliamentary gridlock that marked the past two years.

The programme motion has been passed by 353 votes to 243.

The deputy speaker wishes members a very peaceful Christmas and they file out.

There is now an adjournment debate on the “progress of Southend towards city status” and then parliament breaks up til 7 January.

The Telegraph’s Asa Bennett has tweeted some pictures of the prime minister signing copies of the withdrawal agreement bill for MPs:

Updated

This, from the Mirror’s deputy political editor Ben Glaze:

Updated

MPs are now voting on the programme motion, which sets out the timetable for getting the bill through parliament by 31 January.

It’s a good time to share another explainer on what happens after the Brexit bill passes. (Spoiler alert – Brexit will not be done.)

Some reaction from political journalists –

MPs pass withdrawal agreement bill at second reading

MPs have voted on the government’s withdrawal agreement bill at the second reading. With Boris Johnson’s 80-strong majority, the bill was passed by a comfortable margin, with 358 voting for and 234 against.

Here’s an explainer from Guardian Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll on what’s new in this version of the bill:

Today’s vote means MPs have approved the general principles of the bill and it will now move to what is known as “committee stage”, where a more detailed examination takes place. Here’s a guide as to what happens next from parliament’s website.

MPs vote on the withdrawal agreement bill
MPs vote on the withdrawal agreement bill Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

As we are waiting for the outcome of the vote on the WAB, reports that the prime minister is signing copies of the bill for MPs.

The Brexit secretary, Steve Barclay, said the general election had delivered a clear instruction to parliament to leave the EU and so MPs should respect that decision and back the bill.

This bill is not a victory for one side over the other. The time has come to discard the old labels to move from the past divisions and to come together as one United Kingdom.

Steve Barclay speaking to parliament
Steve Barclay speaking to parliament. Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, who is predicted to run for the Labour leadership, warned Conservative MPs to “be careful”. “Doing things because the government has a majority doesn’t mean those things are right,” he said.

He said the move to water down commitments to child refugees was an example of that. “That is a moral disgrace,” he said.

I turn to my own benches. We may have lost the general election, but we have not lost our values and our beliefs and we must fight for them – day in, day out – in this parliament and we will.

Starmer said the result of the general election means that Brexit will happen. “We will have left the EU within the next six months,” he said. “Whatever side we were on – or no side at all – the leave/remain argument goes with it.”

That doesn’t mean that the deal negotiated by the prime minister is a good deal. It isn’t. It was a bad deal in October when it was signed. It was a bad deal when it was first debated in this house in October. It was a bad deal last Thursday and it’s a bad deal today.

Starmer says that, in fact, it is a worse deal today because the government has removed the role of parliamentarians to vote on negotiating objectives and has sidelined workers’ rights. He also says that the clause that prevents the government from asking for an extension is “reckless and irresponsible”. You can read the background on his point here.

Keir Starmer speaking in a debate on the withdrawal agreement bill
Keir Starmer speaking in a debate on the withdrawal agreement bill. Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

Lee Rowley, the Conservative MP for North East Derbyshire, said it was just over a year since he announced “with great regret” he would not be supporting the government on the initial iteration of the withdrawal agreement bill. “I think all of us who served in the previous parliament, particularly on these benches, regret what happened over the past year or so,” he said.

“Wherever we stood, whatever our views, there was a fog that descended over this place, which meant that people here, otherwise rational, otherwise willing to look at the wider picture, were unable to do so, and it paralysed our politics. And today marks an important stage for many of us that we can start to move on.”

Meg Hillier, the Labour MP for Hackney South and Shoreditch, thanked Rowley for speaking “characteristically thoughtfully and without triumphalism”. But she said there were very valid reasons why the “rushed bill and rushed debate on it” would lead to very real problems in the future.

Meg Hiller speaking in parliament
Meg Hiller speaking in parliament. Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

Debbie Abrahams, Labour MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, said there is “so much” wrong with the withdrawal agreement bill, much more than before. She says that a free trade agreement of the sort sought by the government would have a terrible impact on the economy and on constituencies like hers.

I am going to withhold any firm views until I’ve seen the British election survey when it’s published – the most reliable evidence that you can get on the election – in the new year, but I can’t ignore what constituents were saying to me. They ignored or didn’t believe the evidence or even worse, they didn’t care and I think there’s a lot we need to take from that about how we conduct ourselves. Politics and politicians really need to take that on board. The emotional response to Brexit – and that is what it has been – has been a lesson for all of us.

Debbie Abrahams MP speaking in parliament
Debbie Abrahams MP speaking in parliament. Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

Mike Wood, the Conservative MP for Dudley South, said he spoke to many former Labour voters during the campaign who said they would be voting for him.

He said the phrase “get Brexit done” did not come from election posters, but from the doorstep. “In those areas that for many, many years have been returning Labour members to this house, the overwhelming sense was frustration,” he said. “People were tired of being ignored by their representatives and Brexit was an obvious example.”

They were tired of being patronised by so many people who would claim to represent them, and we’ve even heard some of those sentiments today from the members opposite. The suggestion that, whether it was in the general election or in the referendum campaign, that the voters who firstly voted for Brexit and now for a Conservative government … that they either didn’t understand the question or they were mislead by the slogans, or perhaps their prejudices meant they couldn’t make a fair decision ...

Updated

Thanks for all your questions

Here are a few more of your questions answered.

Q: Where can I go to be part of a ‘rejoin the EU’ fight back? I am feeling a terrible powerlessness and don’t want it to become hopelessness. Alistair Levie, bed and breakfast owner, Torquay

There is the Final Say group if you’re looking to try to push for a confirmatory public vote. Details on this are easy to find online. A rejoiners group set up shortly after the election is being run by the leadership and membership of the Open Britain/People’s Vote campaign group. It does not have a website so it appears hard to know how to get engaged but as ever, Twitter might be able to provide connections to people who feel the same way.

Q: If we had proportional representation, with the same voting system, what would be the number of seats allocated to each party? Kay, Felixstowe

Some research done by the Conversation website, and not by the Guardian, looked at both the German and Dutch models of PR. They concluded that under both systems the Conservatives would have won the most seats but not an outright majority, coming in at fewer than 300 MPs, and inevitably leading to a hung parliament. The Lib Dems do better and the Scottish National party fared worse in both forms of PR. The Brexit party and the Greens would have done mildly better under a Dutch system but not the German one.

Updated

Hello, it’s Frances Perraudin here, taking over the live blog from Matthew Weaver.

Ruth Cadbury, the Labour MP for Brentford and Isleworth, has been speaking in the house. She said parliament had a duty to scrutinise the withdrawal agreement bill. She said 53% of people voted for parties that wanted a second referendum in the general election and opinion polls showed most people were now in favour of remaining in the EU.

Never have we had a prime minister that spent so much effort avoiding scrutiny. We’ve noticed in recent weeks that when he can’t avoid the question he responds with a posh bloke version of Little Britain’s Vicky Pollard: ‘Nah but ya, but nah but yah.’

Ruth Cadbury speaking in parliament
Ruth Cadbury speaking in parliament. Photograph: Parliament TV

Updated

Just over 15 minutes left to ask any questions you may have on the general election results and what happens next. Send them in to us here.

Q: How significantly will voter ID and the new constituency boundaries influence future elections? Michael, Sheffield

The need for voter ID could be very significant in my opinion. It was pleasing to see in the Queen’s speech that the government suggested that those who did not have ID could apply for a free local electoral identity document. However impersonation at an election is extremely low, which makes this new rule seem heavy handed. The concern is that those on lower incomes who do not have the right documents will be put off voting.

Q: Hi Kate, There is going to be an inevitable push and pull between left and centre-left in the Labour party for the forthcoming leadership election. What do you think the new leader needs to do to reconnect with lost votes, bearing in mind the policies under Corbyn seemed pretty popular? Nat, 26, local government officer, London

It’s true that the policies were popular but that many did not find Corbyn credible as a leader in order to deliver them. A leftwing manifesto may work again but scaled down as voters felt overwhelmed by the significant offer of policies. I think a new leader needs to work extremely hard in building a profile in the north of England and the Midlands. I felt some of the rallies in the election campaign were in the wrong places and there was no visibility of Labour in town centres, high streets and on market days.

Even if it does not feel easy, leaders really need to do on the ground walkabouts and take the criticism head on. I think it may be sensible to try to bring a shadow cabinet together that has people with slightly different views from the leader on domestic policy. However, they should not have a shadow cabinet that is push and pull on Brexit. That will be too hard to navigate and it’s been proven that it makes the public think there is not a cohesive top level of leadership.

Updated

You have been sending in your questions about the general election results, which I will be answering until 1.30pm. You can share your questions with us via our form here.

Q: Can Johnson abolish the Fixed-term Parliaments Act and not replace it with anything else, meaning there will be no local means of an election being called? Jon, 40, administrator, Sheffield

Yes, he can abolish it and plans to do so in the first few months of 2020. It is something of a priority for the government. The previous arrangements of an election being held every five years will come back into force. Even if the FTPA existed, Johnson’s majority means it would be very unlikely that MPs would try to call for an early election anyway.

Q: What’s happened to the report on Russian interference in the Brexit referendum? Fred, London

We are still awaiting its publication, although Boris Johnson – after securing his majority – decided that the government was now in a position to release it. Expect pressure to mount for its publication in the early new year but it could still take months. The fact it was not printed pre-election was highly controversial and the former attorney general Dominic Grieve, who was the intelligence and security committee chair, said the reasons given were “bogus”. The report was compiled by the committee but a new chair and members will need to be elected, which could hold things up.

Updated

Some of your questions so far have been about the opposition and a second referendum on Scottish independence:

Q: This is the first big majority in parliament in over a decade. How will the opposition now operate in parliament since they are unlikley to be able to defeat the government on any legislation? Craig, 36, works in the public sector, Stirling

The majority Conservative government is new ground for many opposition MPs and for those who took their seats in 2017. They have never operated in a majority scenario before. You might expect tighter whipping as the last thing Labour needs is to look divided in the face of huge majority votes that pass with ease. When there’s only 202 Labour MPs, every vote counts.

You might also see informal discussions with the SNP, the Lib Dems, Plaid Cymru and Green on votes and working as a bloc. While they will not be able to overcome the Tory majority of 80, unity between those parties is in the very least a visual message to the public that the government is scrutinised and opposed. There will also be a scramble for opposition MPs to get the chair position on select committees, which is a powerful way of holding the government to account.

Q: The SNP received a larger share of the vote in Scotland (45%) to the Conservatives in the UK (44%). Do you think that Boris’ position to “not permit” a second referendum on Scottish independence is democratically sustainable? James Munro, 53, architect, Glasgow

Boris Johnson was extremely firm on this in the Queen’s speech when the SNP brought up independence. He is 100 per cent against it and the power to grant another independence vote is in his hands. I think he will stick to this and will not bend to pressure. That does not of course stop the debate raging within the Commons throughout his entire premiership. I do think the first 12 months will be the time for Sturgeon to capitalise on her share of the vote in Scotland and I think we can expect her coming down to Westminster to hold press conferences and meetings with her MPs with more frequency.

Updated

The SDLP’s Claire Hanna used her maiden Commons speech to warn that Brexit “reopens old wounds” in Northern Ireland. She said:

“For Northern Ireland in particular, Brexit has sharpened all of the lines that the Good Friday agreement was designed to soften around identity, around borders, around sovereignty.

“We should have been spending the last few years talking about reconciliation, talking about regeneration, talking about social justice and equality.

“That’s what all political action should really be about but instead we’ve spent morning, noon and night talking about Brexit – a problem that didn’t need to exist and which, particularly in Northern Ireland, reopens old wounds and limits our horizons.”

Hanna said Brexit “fed off” people who felt lost and disenfranchised in the political system, adding: “I fear it will leave them feeling much worse.” She also said:

“Beyond the economy, Brexit upends the delicate balance that in Northern Ireland has allowed us to imagine our shared and equal future together.

“We in Northern Ireland know the value of the EU and, as my political hero and predecessor in this house, John Hume, so often said, the EU is the greatest peace-building and conflict resolution project anywhere in the world and those of us particularly affected by conflict have a duty to reflect its principles.

“I’m afraid the concerns we have have been dismissed by those of you who won’t ever have to live with the consequences of these actions.”

Updated

I’m Kate Proctor, a political correspondent for the Guardian, and I will be answering any questions you have on the general election results today. I have been covering politics for six years, locally and nationally, and arrived in the lobby at Westminster the day after Jeremy Corbyn became leader of the Labour party. Before joining the Guardian I worked for the Evening Standard for three years as their political reporter, and was the Yorkshire Post’s political correspondent.

If you have a question you can send it to us by filling in the form here.

Mark Francois, the deputy chairman of the European Research Group, said the election has broken the logjam of the last parliament over Brexit.

He said he wished anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray, a “happy and silent retirement” after he came sixth in the seat of Cynon Valley for the Liberal Democrats in the election.

“All I want to for Christmas is not EU,” Francois said.

At the end of her speech backbench Tory MP Rachel Maclean said: “I want to wish everybody a very Merry Brexmas.”

Labour’s Catherine McKinnell (Newcastle upon Tyne North) said the Conservative election slogan “Get Brexit Done” was misleading.

She said: “Brexit isn’t going to be done. The challenges of the next stage are infinitely more complex than the first.”

Matthew Pennycook, Labour MP for Greenwich and Woolwich, added:

“There is no question it did its job, but after 31 January the slogan Get Brexit Done will be exposed as the fiction it is.

“Because when this bill becomes law, as it will, it will not mean that Brexit is done, and every single honourable and right honourable member on the benches opposite who parroted that line during the recent election campaign knows full well that is the case.

“Brexit is a process not an act and the passage of this legislation and the full implementation of the agreement by both parties is only the end of the beginning of that process and a prelude to a far more challenging phase of it.”

Updated

Number 10 has released the full text of Boris Johnson’s speech opening the debate. Here it is with a few gaps for interjections:

I beg to move that the bill be read a second time and that we come together as a new Parliament, to break the deadlock and finally to get Brexit done.

Now is the moment – as we leave the European Union – to reunite our country and allow the warmth and natural affection that we all share with our European neighbours – to find renewed expression in one great new national project of building a deep, special and democratically accountable partnership with those nations we are proud to call our closest friends.

Because this bill, and this juncture in our national story, Mr Speaker must not be seen as a victory for one party or one faction over another.

This is the time when we move on and discard the old labels of leave and remain in fact the very words seem tired to me as defunct as big enders and little enders or Montagues and Capulets at the end of the play now is the time to act together as one reinvigorated nation, one United Kingdom, filled with renewed confidence in our national destiny,and determined at last to take advantage of the opportunities that now lie before us.

And the whole purpose of our withdrawal agreement is to set this in motion and avoid any further delay. And in the hope that the honourable gentleman does not wish to have any further delay I will give way to him.

... I think most people looking at the negotiation would agree that it strengthens our negotiating position. If we have learned anything from the experience of the last three years it is that drift and dither means more acrimony, and anguish Mr Speaker and there would be nothing more dangerous for the new future that we want to build than allowing the permanent possibility of extending – I think I’m coming to the point that the right honourable members wish to discuss- the implementation period in a torture that came to resemble Lucy snatching away Charlie Brown’s football or Prometheus chained to the tartarean crag, his liver pecked out by an eagle and then growing back as all right honourable members in the House will recall – and then growing back only to be pecked out again in the cycle repeated forever

This bill learns the emphatic lesson of the last parliament unlike members opposite and rejects any further delay. It ensures that we depart from the EU on 31 January – and at that point Brexit will be done.

It will be over. The sorry story of the last three-and-a-half years will be at an end and we will be able to move forward Mr Speaker together

The bill ensures that the implementation period must end on 31December next year – with no possibility of an extension.

And it paves the way for a new agreement on our future relationship with our European neighbours, based on an ambitious free trade agreement, with no alignment on EU rules, but instead control of our own laws, and close and friendly relations.

Mr Speaker, this vision of the United Kingdom’s independence, a vision that inspires so many is now – if this new parliament allows – only hours from our grasp the oven is on so to speak. It is set at gas mark 4 we can have it done by lunch time or late lunch

And the new deal that I negotiated with our European friends will restore our great institutions to their rightful place as the supreme instruments of British self-governance.

Once again this house will be the only assembly able to legislate for this United Kingdom. British courts will be the sole arbiters of those laws.

And above them all, the sovereign British people masters of their own fate, controlling their own borders, laws, money and trade.

And throughout our new immigration system, we will not only welcome those with talent but go out of our way to attract people of ability regardless of nationality or background.

And we are only able to do this because the freedoms offered by our European Union partners – by leaving the EU – allow us once again to control overall numbers and bear down on unskilled immigration with our new points-based system.

And if the honourable lady if she is against our new control of immigration I would like to hear her explain why

.... We remain proud of our work in receiving unaccompanied children and will continue to support fully the purpose and spirit of Dubs amendment but this is not the place in this bill to do so. The government remains absolutely committed to doing so. And amongst many other advantages of this bill Mr Speaker is of course that we will be able to sign free trade deals with the booming markets of the world, a power that no British government has enjoyed for the last 46 years.

We will cast off the common agricultural policy that has too often frustrated and burdened our farmers we will release our fishermen from the tangled driftnets of arcane quota systems ...

I remind the House and I remind the members opposite that there is of course on party in this House that is committed to reversing will of the people and handing back control of Scotland’s outstanding marine wealth to Brussels – the SNP. That’s what they would do.

I look forward to hearing them explain why they continue to support this abject policy and abject surrender. This house will also under this bill regain the authority to set the highest possible standards and we will take advantage of these new freedoms to legislate in parallel on the environment, on workers’ and consumers’ rights.

And I reject the inexplicable fear – and I will give way for the last time – the right honourable lady may wish to talk about this ...

The very essence of the opportunity of Brexit is we will no longer outsource these decisions.

With renewed national self-confidence we will take them ourselves and answer to those who sent us here.

It was this parliament – this parliament – in this country that led the whole of Europe and the world in passing the Factory Acts – the clean air Acts of the nineteenth century – which improved industrial working conditions by law. And this house should never doubt its ability to pioneer the standards of the fourth industrial revolution just as we did the first.

And that epoch-making transformation – as with all the pivotal achievements of British history – reflected the combined national genius of every corner of this United Kingdom.

In this new era our success, once again, will be achieved as one nation.

This new deal in this bill ensures that the United Kingdom will leave the EU whole and entire with an unwavering dedication to Northern Ireland’s place in our union ... Let me just remind the House Mr Speaker that the special provisions applying to Northern Ireland – which ensure after all one very important thing – that there is no hard border across Ireland and Northern Ireland are subject to the consent of the Northern Ireland assembly.

And unless the assembly specifically withholds its consent unless indeed the assembly insists on continuing with this approach then those arrangements automatically lapse into full alignment with the rest of the UK.

I believe these arrangements serve the interests of Northern Ireland and the UK as a whole. And it is a great deal for our whole country. And we must now begin building our future relationship with the EU.

Our aim is to provide a close friendship, between sovereign equals, to promote our common interests inspired by pride in our European heritage and civilisation.

And Clause 3 of the political declaration invokes that spirit – establishing – and I quote “the parameters of an ambitious, broad, deep and flexible partnership” rooted in our shared “history and ideals” and “standing together against threats to rights and values from without or within”.

I am absolutely determined that this great project will not be the project of one government or one party but of the British nation as a whole.

So parliament as I have said will be kept fully informed about progress of these negotiations. And we should be fortified by a renewed sense of confidence that while our democratic institutions – and policy of Lib Dems is now to have another referendum – so when they have worked their policy out I’ll give way.

And we should be fortified by a renewed sense of confidence that while our democratic institutions – have been tested as never before if this house comes together now to support this bill as I hope it will history will record that the first act of this new parliament in its earliest days was to break the ice floes and find a new way – a new passage through - to unsuspected oceans of opportunity.

Now is the moment to come together and write a new and exciting chapter in our national story to forge a new partnership with our European friends to stand tall in the world and to begin the healing for which the whole people of this country yearn.

And it is in that spirit of unity that I commend this bill to the House.

Updated

Lord Dubs, the Labour peer who came to the UK as a refugee in 1939 on the Kindertransport and forced the government to promise to give sanctuary to some unaccompanied child refugees, has reacted with dismay to the removal of these provisions from the bill.

Updated

Today, Kate Proctor, a political correspondent for the Guardian, will answer your questions about the general election result and what happens next between 12.30 and 1.30pm.

You can ask your question via our form here.

Updated

Summary

Here’s a brief morning summary:

Updated

Johnson has claimed his government is “absolutely committed” to allowing unaccompanied child refugees to be reunited with their families after Brexit, PA reports.

The prime minister was accused of using key Brexit legislation to “bring up the drawbridge” and stop the right of unaccompanied minors coming to the United Kingdom.

SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford labelled changes to the Withdrawal Agreement Bill a “disgrace” and said it showed “who are the real separatists”.

For Labour, Jeremy Corbyn said it was “one of the most appalling sections” of the legislation and told MPs: “Coming to up to Christmas, shame on this Government for abandoning children in this way.”

Labour MP Lisa Nandy (Wigan) also questioned the PM’s reluctance to help child refugees.

She said that, while Johnson is right to say he has won a mandate to get Brexit done, he has “not earned the right to shoehorn into this legislation measures that are a direct attack on some of the most vulnerable children in the world”.

The government, as part of a redrafted Brexit Bill, appears to have rowed back on an original commitment to strike a deal with the EU so child refugees in Europe can continue to be reunited with their families in the UK, even after free movement ends.

Clause 37 of the Bill replaces the pledge with a watered-down vow for ministers to “make a statement” on the progress of the talks once the divorce with Brussels is complete.

Nandy told the Commons: “If he thinks that people in towns like mine who believe that we should deliver Brexit want to see us turn our back on decency and tolerance and kindness and warmth and empathy, he is wrong. “Will he take these measures on child refugees out of this Bill?”

Johnson replied: “She is wrong on this point. We remain absolutely committed to ensuring that we continue in this country to receive unaccompanied children, as we have done.

“I reject the idea that our proceedings must be somehow overseen and invigilated by the EU and measured against their benchmarks.”

SNP justice spokeswoman Joanna Cherry asked: “Can the primeminister tell me why he is making this mean-spirited and nasty move?”

Johnson replied: “The honourable lady has totally misunderstood or possibly misrepresented the purpose of what we are doing here.

“We remain proud of our work in receiving unaccompanied children. We’ll continue to support fully the purpose and spirit of the Dubs amendment but this is not the place, in this Bill, to do so. The government remains absolutely committed to doing so.”

Updated

Downing Street has refused to say whether the government has carried out any analysis into potential benefits of any trade deals with third countries after Brexit.

Asked if analysis had been performed on the economic benefits of any deal with the US or other nations, the prime minister’s official spokesman said:

“The whole point is that when we get Brexit done on January 31 that we will be free to then sit down with all other countries around the world, emerging economies, and we will be able to start the talks on what those trade negotiations might be and what sort of deals they might deliver.

“There are great opportunities out there for the United Kingdom.”


Pressed repeatedly on the matter, the official said: “We’ve been doing preparatory work in relation to trade deals and we will now be able to sit down and have those talks properly.”

Boris Johnson has insisted leave and remain labels are now defunct as he moved to push Brexit legislation through Parliament, according to PA’s write up of the prime minister’s speech.

After months of delay and deadlock, the PM said now is the time to act and forge a new relationship with the rest of Europe.

Johnson, moving the European Union (withdrawal agreement) bill at second reading, urged parliament to come together and allow the “warmth and natural affection that we all share” for the UK’s European neighbours to “find renewed expression in one great new national project”.

The PM told MPs the bill must not be seen as a victory for one party or faction before adding: “This is the time when we move on and discard the old labels of leave and remain.

“In fact, the very words seem tired to me – as defunct as Big-enders and Little-enders, or Montagues and Capulets at the end of the play.

“Now is the time to act together as one reinvigorated nation, one United Kingdom, filled with renewed confidence in our national destiny and determined at last to take advantage of the opportunities that now lie before us.”

Johnson said:

“We will be able to move forward together. The bill ensures that the implementation period must end on 31 January with no possibility of an extension.

“And it paves the path for a new agreement on our future relationship with our European neighbours based on an ambitious free-trade agreement, with no alignment ... on EU rules, but instead control of our own laws and close and friendly relations.

“This vision of the United Kingdom’s independence, a vision that inspires so many, is now if this parliament, this new parliament allows, only hours from our grasp.

“The oven is on, so to speak, it is set at gas mark 4, we can have it done by lunchtime, or late lunch.”

Updated

SNP spin doctors have been described as at best “patronising” after the leak of an email to broadcasters giving them tips on how to interview Tories about Scottish independence.

The Times Scotland reports this morning that the SNP’s email to journalists offered advice on how to ensure Tory interviewees are “tied in knots” over their opposition to a second referendum, and urged broadcasters to “rigorously” scrutinise their answers. This came as news to all those journalists who thought that they were already doing just that to all politicians, regardless of party.

Indeed, one recent example might by the interview of Scottish secretary Alister Jack, on Good Morning Scotland earlier today. Interestingly, Jack did not immediately dismiss Nicola Sturgeon’s formal request for transfer of powers to hold a second vote: he said that Johnson would “give it careful consideration and reply in the new year”.

Challenged about whether the Tories were ignoring the election mandate, Jack insisted that recent polling showed Scots did not want another referendum, and said accused the SNP of changing their argument at the end of the election campaign “away from indyref2 because they were losing, and they hardened their position on Brexit. They were fighting the election in the last ten days over Brexit”.

Asked whether continued Tory refusal would, as Sturgeon has suggested, increase support for independence, Jack warned that the first minister’s call to devolve the power to hold referendums permanently to Holyrood would result in “perpetual neverendums”.

Tory backbencher Suella Braverman claims trust in politicians was stretched to breaking point in the last parliament.

Jeffrey Donaldson, the leader of DUP in the Commons, says that European Union will continue to have a say in Northern Ireland affairs under the bill.

I want the prime minister to treat my part of the United Kingdom the same as the rest of the country when it comes to leaving the European Union, Donaldson says.

We don’t want barriers to trade with the rest of the country, he said. Citing a Treasury report also mentioned by Corbyn, Donaldson said it is clear that checks will take place despite Johnson’s pledge of no border checks. He added:

“We want to work with the government to mitigate the impact on Northern Ireland business of the requirement for those checks, and again that’s something we want to hear more from the government on and we will be looking towards committee stage to see what we can do to reflect the commitment in the agreement and the commitment from the prime minister that there will be unfettered access between Northern Ireland and Great Britain in relation to trade.”

Updated

The former de facto deputy prime minister, Damian Green, urges those who voted to remain to accept the result of the referendum and stop trying to subvert Brexit. “Please accept the decision and move on,” Green said.

Green adds: “We should stop defining ourselves as leavers or remainers. The last few years have been miserable for democracy. The longer we fight past battles the longer that misery will persist.”

Labour’s Hilary Benn says the PM has chosen to gamble with a cliff edge Brexit by trying to outlaw extending the implementation period in the bid.

He says the government will need to be confident no extension is needed by the end of June.

Benn also laments the lack of an economic impact assessment on the future trading relationship with the EU. He says history will judge this as deeply irresponsible.

Labour has released the full text of Corbyn’s speech on the withdrawal bill:

Over the last three-and-a-half years the government’s mishandling of Brexit has delivered nothing but political gridlock, chaos and economic uncertainty.

It has paralysed our political system, divided our communities and nations and become a national embarrassment on an unprecedented scale.

For people outside Westminster the constant argument and pointless posturing in parliament has only served to demonstrate the political system is not working for them.

So we recognise the clear message from the British public last week, however they voted in the referendum of 2016, and understand their determination to end the never-ending cycle of Brexit debate and get back to solving the day-to-day issues and challenges they face in their lives.

We must listen and understand that we cannot go on forever debating what happened in 2016.

We have to respect that decision and move on.

But Mr Speaker, understanding all this doesn’t mean we as a party and a movement should abandon basic principles or give up the demand for a fairer and more just society.

We warned before the general election that the prime minister’s Brexit deal was a terrible deal for our country and we still believe it is a terrible deal today. It will not protect or strengthen our rights or support our manufacturing industry and vital trading relationships, or protect our natural world in a time of a climate crisis.

Neither will it address the deep inequality in our system or secure the interests of every nation and region in the United Kingdom.

Instead under the Conservatives this deal will be used as a battering ram to drive us down the path of yet more deregulation and towards a toxic deal with Donald Trump that will sell out our NHS and push up the price of medicines to benefit the giant US drugs corporations.

That will take us away from the essential principles we believe in, of a country that looks after everybody and protects those communities left behind by the excesses of runaway capitalism.

This deal doesn’t bring certainty for communities or for business and workforces. In fact it does the opposite and hardwires in the risk of a no-deal Brexit in a year’s time.

I’m sure that will delight many of those on the benches opposite but not those who will suffer the consequences in communities and workplaces across Britain.

That is why Labour will not support this Bill as we remain certain there is a better and fairer way for this country to leave the EU.

One which would not risk ripping our communities apart, selling out our public services or sacrificing hundreds of thousands of jobs in the process.

This deal is a roadmap for the reckless direction in which the government and the Prime Minister are determined to take our country. They have done their utmost to hide its likely impact and continue to use gimmicks and slogans to turn attention away from their real intentions.

And nothing exposes this more than the steps they have already taken on workers’ rights.

For all the promises over the past few weeks that they are the party to protect rights at work, at the very first opportunity they have removed the basic provisions they had said would be part of this bill.

That does not bode well for the separate bill the prime minister is now saying he will bring forward on workers’ rights

If he wants to assure people that their rights are safe in his hands he should commit to legislate to ensure workers rights in Britain will never fall behind EU standards in the future and support amendments to enshrine this commitment within this bill.

Mr Speaker, I want to make it absolutely clear how appalled I am to see the government remove the protections in this Bill for unaccompanied children seeking asylum.

Throughout the last Parliament and for his whole life my good friend Lord Dubs has worked tirelessly to ensure children affected by the worst aspects of global injustice are given sanctuary in this country.

Now this government, in its first week in office has ripped up those hard won commitments.

This is a move the director of the charity Safe Passage has described as, and I quote: “truly shocking” Saying it could have and I quote again: “potentially tragic consequences”.

Shame on this government for abandoning children in this way.

Mr Speaker, on the environment and food safety standards this deal points to a complete realignment towards the far weaker protections and standards that operate in Donald Trump’s America.

If this government is set on pursuing a Trump trade deal with precious few bargaining chips to hand the brutal reality is that Britain will have to lower its standards.

The EU has made it clear that a future trade deal with them will depend on maintaining a level playing field in standards and protections.

So the choice we now face is between keeping the highest environmental and food standards in order to get that future deal with the EU or slashing food standards to match the US, where what are called “acceptable levels” of rat hairs in paprika and maggots in orange juice are allowed, just so we can strike a new race-to-the-bottom deal with Donald Trump.

Turning to the arrangements with Northern Ireland the Prime Minister has emphatically claimed, and I quote:“there will be no checks between Northern Ireland and GB”

And that: “we have a deal that keeps the whole of the UK together as we come of the EU”

These claims are simply not true.

We know from the analysis carried out by his own Treasury that under his deal there will, in fact, be an abundance of checks and customs declarations in the Irish Sea.

Not only will this have a huge impact on Northern Irish business and society, it will also have implications for the rest of Britain’s economy and manufacturing industry.

The Treasury’s own analysis spells it out: the more the government diverges from EU trading regulations in the future the more checks and disruption will be put in place between Britain and our biggest trading partner.

More checks and more disruption would be deeply damaging for trade and for our manufacturing sector and threatens to take a wrecking ball to our vital supply chains and the hundreds of thousands of jobs that rely on them.

From car manufacturers to the chemical industry disruption to our just-in-time supply chains will have a devastating impact.

This all makes it even more incredible that since agreeing its deal the government has yet to produce a single bit of evidence or analysis to show it will have a positive impact on the economy or our communities in any way. We scarcely need to ask ourselves, why?

I say to all members new and old that it is our job to question to scrutinise and to hold the government of the day to account.

If we believe the government is taking the wrong approach we should not be afraid to oppose.

And when it comes to our future relationship with the EU and the rest of the world we cannot let this government act in an undemocratic and secretive manner.

Trade deals with the EU, the US, or anybody else for that matter must be done transparently. This country is about to embark on a major change of direction as we leave a 40-year economic partnership for an unknown future, under the terms of this withdrawal deal.

The government needs to be honest with the people about the real choices and the real risks that lie ahead.

So stop the posturing and the gimmicks and ditch the unachievable red lines that will only lead to another no-deal cliff edge, with all the anxiety and uncertainty that brings.

The prime minister may believe that fuelling division and confrontation has helped him realise his personal political ambition.

But it’s no way to heal the deep divisions in our society or find the common ground we need to move beyond Brexit.

We need an approach that puts jobs and living standards first and builds the strongest cooperation with our European neighbours based on openness, solidarity and internationalism.

That is the approach that will bring an end to the Brexit crisis and bring our country together.

Updated

Sajid Javid is still on message:

Updated

Ian Blackford, leader of the SNP in the Commons, says the PM has no mandate to drag Scotland out of the EU against its will. He said Scotland will be made poorer by Brexit and it is already having an impact on the Scottish economy.

Former international trade secretary, Liam Fox, says the bill is about fulfilling a promise to the British people.

Corbyn challenges Johnson’s commitment to have no checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He says more checks will have a devastating impact on the economy.

Corbyn urges the PM to commit to ensure that workers’ rights don’t slip behind those in the EU.

He says the removal of the commitment to refugee children is an “absolute disgrace”. Quoting the charity Safe Passage he says the move is “shocking” and could result in tragic consequences.

“I want to make it clear that I see the government’s removal of the protection in this bill for unaccompanied children seeking asylum is nothing short of an absolute disgrace and a piece of dishonesty toward those people who, at the moment, are clearly very, very concerned.

“Throughout the last parliament, and for his whole life, and I was talking to him last night, my good friend Lord Dubs has worked tirelessly to ensure children affected by the worst aspects of global injustice can be given sanctuary in this country.

“Now this government in its first week in office has ripped up those very hard-won commitments.”

“I simply say this: coming to up to Christmas shame on this government for abandoning children in this way.”

Updated

Responding Jeremy Corbyn says Labour recognises the nation’s desire to move on from the referendum debate.

But he says the Brexit deal will be used as a battering ram to deregulate the UK and leave it open to the excesses of the free market.

He claims the deal is a roadmap for the reckless direction the prime minister is determined to take the UK.

“We remain certain there is a better and fairer way for this country to leave the EU,” Corbyn says.

Updated

Johnson says: “If this house comes together now to support this bill ... history will record that the first act of this new parliament in its earliest days was to break the ice flows and find a new way through.

“Now is the moment to come together and write a new chapter in this nation’s history,” he says in closing his remarks.

Updated

The possible Labour leadership contender Lisa Nandy intervenes to challenge Johnson to show “decency” on child refugees.

“If he thinks that people in towns like mine … want to see us turn our back on decency and tolerance and kindness and warmth and empathy he is wrong,” she said.

Johnson says the UK will accept unaccompanied children but not overseen by the EU.

He says the essence of the opportunity of Brexit is that parliament can take decisions for itself on this and environmental standards.

He goes on to talk about the government’s “unwavering commitment” to keep Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom.

Updated

Steven Swinford picks out these lines:

Johnson insists the government is commitment to taking unaccompanied refugee children from Europe despite the withdrawal of provisions on this from the bill.

Johnson insists that ruling out an extension to the implementation period will strengthen the UK’s bargaining position with the EU.

“The oven is on, it is set at gas mark 4, we can have it done by lunch or late lunch,” Johnson tells MPs.

Updated

Boris Johnson is opening the debate for the second reading of the withdrawal agreement bill in the Commons.

The prime minister calls on parliament to come together to get Brexit done and reunite the country by doing so.

This bill should not be seen as a victory for one party or a one faction, Johnson says. “Now is the time to act together,” he says.

Keir Starmer has set out another pitch for the Labour leadership. The shadow Brexit secretary has still not officially confirmed he is running, but an article for Labour List suggests this is very much his plan.

Starmer writes:

My case file, and that of most Labour MPs, is filled with the cases of people suffering stress, anxiety and hunger because of universal credit.

I want to transform our party into a movement that empowers them to speak for themselves. To do that, we must open up power like never before. An inequality of power underpins the inequalities of wealth and opportunity that scar our country. The trade unions were founded to give power and a voice to working class people. They founded the Labour Party, and by winning power we built the NHS, free state education and the welfare state.

The rich and privileged have always had the power they need to shape their lives and to shape world in their own interests. Labour’s historic task is to open up power to everyone else so we can build the fairer world we believe in. We call it socialism because we believe in the transformative power of society and communities. That historic mission remains our mission today.

But we can’t do it on our own. The point about a movement is it brings everyone together in a common cause. Labour must learn from the social movements that people create to fight injustice: renters’ unions, delivery drivers’ unions, movements to prevent social cleansing of estates. We need to embed this party deep into the everyday lives of people in areas that feel hopeless and abandoned.

Starmer calls for Labour to broaden its appeal and widen its ideological stance.

The Labour tradition has never drawn from a single ideology: at its best, it is an alliance of different traditions. The challenge of leadership is to draw out the best from them, and get them working towards the single goal of an electoral majority.

We have so much more in common than that which divides us, and each of us has something to teach and something to learn. With the whole party and whole movement pulling together rather than pulling apart, we can, and we will, win.

Updated

The Brexit secretary, Steven Barclay, has defended the government’s decision to strip out commitments on workers’ rights from the withdrawal agreement bill.

Speaking on TalkRadio he said:

“We are absolutely committed to them [workers’ rights] but it’s about having the right legislation vehicle.

This legislation is about implementing into domestic law the international agreement that we reached with the EU. We’ve got other legislation through the Queen’s speech in terms of workers’ rights, because quite often the UK has gone further than the European Union in terms of workers’ rights.

“If you look at things like paternity and maternity rights, the UK has higher standards than many countries in Europe, so we don’t need the EU to set those standards. We can do that through the UK parliament answerable to the British people.

Barclay also claimed the disbanding of his Department for Exiting the European Union was an “an exciting opportunity in government”.

He said after the department is scrapped former officials will be redeployed to other departments.

Barclay said: “It’s an opportunity actually to pay tribute to the many officials in the department who have built up a massive amount of expertise. And what we can then do is socialise that expertise across Whitehall into the many departments that will be dealing with trade, because all areas of the government will then be involved in the future trade deal.”

Updated

Andrew Bailey confirmed as new governor of the Bank of England

Sajid Javid has announced that the head of Financial Conduct Authority, Andrew Bailey, will be the new governor of the Bank of England. The chancellor said he was the “stand out candidate” to succeed Mark Carney. Bailey will take over in March.

Our Business blog has more.

Updated

European parliament vice president, Pedro Silva Pereira, said officials in Brussels expect to conclude the ratification process in the European parliament by 29 January.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he said: “We’ve always respected the choice of the British people, but it is true that it was a very long process.”

Asked what kind of trade deal can be negotiated and how “deep” it can be if it is to be completely concluded by the end of 2020, he said: “We have a very short timeframe available.

“Eleven months to negotiate such a complex trade agreement is unprecedented. It is a different situation. We come from a level of economic integration which has no comparison with other trade agreements that we’ve done before.”

He added: “The key issue will be what kind of regulatory dis-alignment we will have. The political declaration that we’ve agreed with the UK envisaged a very ambitious trading relationship with zero tariffs, zero quotas. But this can only be achieved if we ensure some regulatory alignment.”

Updated

Boris Johnson is due to open today’s second reading debate on the withdrawal agreement bill at 9.30am.

The Brexit secretary, Steve Barclay, is set to close the debate and MPs are expected to start voting at about 2.30pm.

Barclay’s department is due to be scrapped by the end of January, along with the word “Brexit” if No 10 gets its way.

According to the Huffington Post, the prime minister has ordered officials to drop the term “Brexit” once the Wab passes and the UK leaves the EU on 31 January as planned.

Updated

Some shadow cabinet members representing pro-leave seats are understood to have suggested the Labour party should not vote against the Wab in today’s second reading vote.

But the party remains split on Brexit. Labour MP Anneliese Dodds said she is “very concerned” about the bill.

Speaking to the Today programme, she said: “I really don’t feel that it’s really matching up to many of the commitments that were given by previous Conservative governments, and as a result we really have to reject that bill.

“I mean, clearly, with a government majority of the size that it is at the moment, it is likely that it will pass, but I think we’ve got to represent our constituents’ concerns and do at least what we can to make sure these issues are heard.”

Updated

After the election there had been speculation that the size of Johnson’s majority meant he might pursue a softer Brexit and and could afford to face down his hardline Eurosceptics.

But a hard version of Brexit is still very much on the agenda following changes set out in the Brexit bill. And the European Research Group (ERG) is delighted.

The Eurosceptic MP Bernard Jenkin said the ERG is “quite happy”.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It was the remainers that wrecked Boris Johnson’s ability to get the agreement through parliament. “Every member of the ERG supported Boris Johnson’s agreement, so we’re generally quite happy about how all this is proceeding. It’s a compromise deal.”

Jenkin added: “I’m just reminding myself what was in our manifesto – take back control of our laws, take back control of our money, control our trade policy, introduce an Australian-style points immigration system, raise standards in areas like workers rights, animal welfare, agriculture and the environment, and ensure we’re in full control of our fishing waters. I mean, we’re the manifesto support group now.”

Updated

Welcome to Politics Live a week on from the morning the nation woke up to news of Boris Johnson’s thumping election win.

His 80-seat majority means there is no doubt that MPs will pass the withdrawal agreement bill when it comes up for a second reading vote on Friday afternoon. This will be put Johnson’s government on course to meet the election pledge of getting out of the EU by 31 January.

The Brexit Bill set out in Thursday’s Queen’s speech has been greeted with dismay by opposition MPs. It strips out protections for workers’ rights, waters down a commitment to take unaccompanied refugee children from Europe, and removes parliament’s say on the future relationship. It also inserts a ban on the government extending the Brexit transition period beyond the end of 2020.

Meanwhile, the shadow Treasury minister Clive Lewis has declared his candidacy for Labour leader. And Nicola Sturgeon has called for the Scottish parliament to be given permanent powers to hold subsequent referendums on independence from the UK.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Jared Leto Is Everywhere No One Wants Him to Be. Including Depicted as Jesus By Trump Fans
Why is Jesus always painted the same way?
The Mary Sue
The Mary Sue
Zendaya's Alleged Fake 'Deleted Instagram' Screenshot Responding to Wedding Goes Viral
A purported 'deleted Instagram story' from Zendaya addressing the Tom Holland wedding rumours has gone viral despite no credible evidence confirming it ever existed.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Did 'Unrecognisable' Carrie Underwood Undergo Plastic Surgery? Fans Stunned By Songress' New Look In Latest Update
Carrie Underwood faces claims she looks 'unrecognisable' in a new selfie, as scrutiny over plastic surgery, diet and her blunt American Idol judging intensifies.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Woman spots MAGA supporters at Disneyland. Then she catches them cutting in line for Mexican food: ‘The irony’
A woman allegedly saw MAGA supporters cutting in line at Disneyland to get Mexican food. The hypocrisy has many TikTok commenters fuming. 
The Mary Sue
The Mary Sue
Megan Fox hits back at wild ‘clone’ conspiracy after Instagram return
The actress returned to Instagram on Wednesday after an almost two year break from the platform
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Benny Blanco's Hygiene History: Toe Kiss, Dirty Feet, No-Shower Confession, and Cheese Bath
Explore the viral toe kiss between Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco on the 'Friends Keep Secrets' podcast, along with fans' chatter about their quirky relationship and hygiene debates.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play