Good morning and welcome of our latest Brexit briefing, and today it’s all about the infighting within the Conservative and Labour parties as Britain grapples with the consequences of the EU referendum.
Today, the justice secretary Michael (Brutus) Gove, who knifed Boris Johnson, is scheduled to set out his vision for Britain. Theresa May, the home secretary - I just get on with the job - has the backing of about 70 MPs. George Osborne, the chancellor is to speak to a business audience in Manchester.
In the Labour camp, the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, is speaking to a business audience at the Royal Festival Hall as Jeremy Corbyn tries to hang on despite the hostility of his fellow MPs. Meanwhile here is a recap of yesterday’s Shakesperean drama.
The great betrayal
There was only one story in town on Thursday - and its ramifications will continue to be felt for some time to come. The Guardian’s lead is headlined “The Betrayal: Boris cannot provide the leadership for the task ahead.”
“I respect and admire all the candidates running for the leadership. In particular, I wanted to help build a team behind Boris Johnson so that a politician who argued for leaving the European Union could lead us to a better future,” Michael Gove said.
“But I have come, reluctantly, to the conclusion that Boris cannot provide the leadership or build the team for the task ahead.”
Gaby Hinsliff notes that Michael made an odd assassin – but then Boris was a strange Caesar.
The Sun is full of juicy detail and contains the claim that Andrea Leadsom, one of the Tory contenders, was on board to be Johnson’s chancellor - but Team Boris screwed up delivering her a note and failed to send a key tweet,
The Telegraph suggests Osborne had a hand in the ‘cuckoo plot’ and that Gove and he met weekly throughout the campaign
The Guardian reports the consternation caused by the Gove announcement among MPs and supporters of May who had gathered at the launch of her bid.
Runners and riders
Now that Gove has forced his old friend out of the Conservative leadership race, he and the four remaining candidates have embarked on a frantic bid to win the support of MPs.
Peter Walker takes a look at the CVs - and chances - of frontrunner Theresa May, Andrea Leadsom, Stephen Crabb and Liam Fox.
Former Liberal Democrat business secretary Vince Cable quips:
They make the Borgia popes look like beginners. https://t.co/upJ4JpWVcX
— Vince Cable (@vincecable) June 30, 2016
Labour leadership
Angela Eagle had been expected to announce a challenge to Jeremy Corbyn for the Labour leadership on Thursday, but in the end that did not materialise.
Are new Lab members signing up in droves to back Corbyn in any leadership contest - or to oust him? Both rebels and backers are recruiting.
— Heather Stewart (@GuardianHeather) June 30, 2016
Meanwhile, shadow chancellor John McDonnell will speak at Royal Festival Hall in London at 10am.
Battle of the Somme commemorations
Royals including the Prince of Wales, Duchess of Cornwall, Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will attend events in France on Friday to mark the centenary of the Battle of the Somme. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will open the new Thiepval Memorial to the Missing visitors centre.
David Cameron will also attend the Battle of the Somme centenary service on what is the first day of July, by the way.
What the papers say
Apart from the Sun’s Brexecuted splash (not bad, we admit), the sensation is the decision by the Daily Mail to come out swinging for Theresa May with a puff that occupies about half the front page. The Mail, of course, counts Sarah Vine - Mrs Gove - as a star columnist. The decision could make life slightly difficult for both her and the Mail’s editor, Paul Dacre.
MAIL BACKS MAY: Tory day of treachery #tomorrowspaperstoday #bbcpapers pic.twitter.com/4ltt9AkJen
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) June 30, 2016
Treachery is also the order of the day in the Tory house journal, the Daily Telegraph:
TELEGRAPH: 'An act of midnight treachery' #tomorrowspaperstoday #bbcpapers pic.twitter.com/60xoGXFsyM
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) June 30, 2016
You should also know
- Adnan Syed, whose murder case received international attention through the viral podcast Serial, has been granted a new trial, marking a major victory for the Maryland prisoner. Baltimore judge Martin Welch granted Syed’s request for a new trial after the record-setting podcast sent thousands of internet sleuths digging through the details of the murder of Hae Min Lee 17 years ago.
- The first known death caused by a self-driving car was disclosed by Tesla Motors on Thursday night. The 7 May accident occurred in Williston, Florida, after the driver put his Model S into Tesla’s autopilot mode, which is able to control the car during highway driving.
- The vast hole in the ozone layer above Antarctica appears to be healing, scientists say, putting the world on track to eventually remedy one of the biggest environmental concerns of the 1980s and 90s.
Thought for the day
We know you’ve had a lot of Boris Johnson today, but we’ve saved the best for last:
MAIL: Max Hastings: I advised Boris to 'lock up his willy' #tomorrowspaperstoday pic.twitter.com/P7c7utLDPX
— Neil Henderson (@hendopolis) June 30, 2016
If the battle for the Tory leadership was a play or a film...
Betrayal by Harold Pinter of with the screen version starring Ben Kingsley and Jeremy Irons, with that memorable scene when Kingsley confronts his great friend Irons over the latter’s affair with his wife. It’s not politics, but the great theme is betrayal.
