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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Politics
Andrew Sparrow

Scottish Tory leader says she is worried Brexit could damage economy permanently - as it happened

Scotland’s conservative party leader Ruth Davidson.
Scotland’s conservative party leader Ruth Davidson. Photograph: Russell Cheyne/Reuters

Afternoon summary

  • Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Conservative leader, has told the New Statesman in an interview that her biggest concern about Brexit is that it could damage the economy permanently. (See 5.34pm.)
  • Dominic Grieve, the Conservative former attorney general, has said that no proper “sovereign parliament” would pass the EU (withdrawal) bill in its current form. (See 3.52pm.)
  • Michael Russell, the Scottish government’s Brexit minister, has written an open letter to the UK government (pdf) saying it is “intolerable” that London is publishing Brexit policy paper, including some covering matters that are devolved, without consulting the Scottish government.

That’s all from me for today.

Thanks for the comments.

Updated

Davidson says she is worried that Brexit could damage the economy permanently

Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Conservative leader, has given an interesting interview to the New Statesman. The magazine has headlined the article: “Ruth Davidson: ‘Brexit could deliver a hit we can’t recover from’”. But the actual quote that justifies that headline is slightly less blunt.

What is her biggest concern about the impact of Brexit? She pauses. “Interesting question… My real fear is that if there’s a short-term economic hit, we don’t bounce back from it.”

Davidson is more committal when talking about the Brexit negotiations. Ministers should have warned voters that progress in the Brexit talks will be slow, she said.

Yet she is far from uncritical of the government’s performance. Of the fraught beginning to the Brexit negotiations, she says, “I think one of the things the UK government didn’t do that they should have done was pitch-roll this: remind the British public that when it comes to European negotiations – and we’ve had several decades of them – we are told no until five past midnight and then suddenly a deal gets done in the wee small hours of the morning. I don’t think the country was prepared for this period that we’re currently in. People in a room talking and then walking out and up to a bank of microphones and saying entirely different things while standing next to each other is part of what negotiation is. I think the UK government has not just an obligation but a duty to negotiate as hard as they can on behalf of the country.”

Ruth Davidson.
Ruth Davidson. Photograph: Hannah Mckay/Reuters

Sky’s Mark Kleinman says some big companies are refusing to sign a letter backing the government’s Brexit strategy. Here’s his story, and here is how it starts.

Downing Street is asking Britain’s biggest companies to give public support to the Government’s approach to its Brexit negotiations, a move which has provoked fury in a string of blue-chip boardrooms.

Top Tory says no proper 'sovereign parliament' could pass repeal bill in current form

Dominic Grieve, the Conservative former attorney general, has used an article in the Evening Standard to declare that no proper “sovereign parliament” would pass the EU (withdrawal) bill in its current form. He said:

The government has correctly recognised that this EU law cannot all be changed into domestic law at once. This is why the bill seeks to incorporate this law into our own statute book to ensure continuity, except where there is an immediate intention to bring in something different, such as in respect of immigration.

Unfortunately, the withdrawal bill is not, at present, up to addressing these issues. Even more worryingly, it seeks to confer powers on the government to carry out Brexit in breach of our constitutional principles, in a manner that no sovereign parliament should allow.

Like many critics of the bill, which gets its Commons second reading tomorrow and on Monday, Grieve said that the powers it gives to ministers to amend law by secondary legislation are far too wide. (My colleague Rafael Behr has written a good column on this topic.)

But Grieve also criticised other aspects of the bill. He said it was a mistake to keep EU law but not the charter of fundamental rights. “[The charter ] and the general principles of EU law it reflects are essential safeguards for individuals and businesses that might be adversely affected by the application of EU law and they cannot and should not be removed in this fashion,” he wrote.

He also said the bill did not guarantee MPs a final vote on leaving the EU, once the Brexit negotiations are over.

As presently drafted, no further reference to parliament will in theory be needed before the final ending of our EU membership. Parliament should ensure that the withdrawal bill cannot be brought into force until the final agreement being negotiated by the government has become crystallised. Otherwise we are simply leaving it to the executive to decide what is best. This is an abdication of our responsibility.

Dominic Grieve.
Dominic Grieve. Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Guardian

Updated

The former Labour MP Tristram Hunt, the director the V&A, has expressed his concern over Brexit indecision and the leaked Home Office document spelling out how the UK will approach the issue of immigration. He said:

We are proud to have a large number of gallery assistants from the continent who welcome our international visitors, speak lots of languages, give a different perspective to the museum. I regard them as highly skilled. If Home Office civil servants deem them as low skilled, how does that affect our planning for the future? Those issues are all up for debate.

Hunt, the former Labour MP for Stoke Central and shadow education secretary, was speaking at the launch of the V&A’s annual review.

Asked about Brexit, he said his concerns were around curatorial talent, skills, collaboration and research funding.

I don’t think London will ever end up as cultural backwater but I am worried that when we are thinking about hiring a brilliant new curator ... the indecision around skills levels [could be a problem]. From this morning’s first draft of what migration policy might look like, this could seriously effect the kind of talent we need to bring in to the museums sector.

Lunchtime summary

  • Sir Vince Cable, the Lib Dem leader, has claimed that Theresa May suppressed evidence showing immigration has little effect on wages when she was home secretary. (See 11.32am.) May was not asked about this directly at PMQs, or about the leaked Home Office report, but, in response to a question from the SNP’s Westminster leader, Ian Blackford, about immigration, she said it could harm the poor. She told him.

There is a reason for wanting to ensure that we can control migration, it is because of the impact, that that migration can have, that net migration can have on people, on access to services, on infrastructure, but crucially it often hits those at the lower end of the income scale hardest ... It’s important that we bring in controls, we want to continue to welcome the brightest and the best here to the UK and we will continue to do so.

  • May has has dismissed the prospect of the UK and Irish governments taking joint authority for Northern Ireland amid political deadlock in the region. When the DUP’s Nigel Dodds asked about this at PMQs, May replied:

I am happy to confirm that we would not be looking at a joint authority.

You will be aware that the Belfast agreement does include within it certain responsibilities in relation to the government of the Republic of Ireland in north-south co-ordination.

But I think that the focus for all of us should be on trying to ensure that we can resolve the current differences and we can see that devolved administration reasserted in Northern Ireland, I think that is what would be best for the people of Northern Ireland.

  • May has implicitly criticised Labour’s treatment of shadow equalities minister Sarah Champion after Champion wrote an article for the Sun claiming there was a problem with British Pakistani men raping and exploiting white girls. The article triggered a backlash that led to Champion resigning from the shadow cabinet. May did not name Champion, but she was referring to her when she said:

Child sexual exploitation is not exclusive to any single culture, community, race or religion - it does happen in all areas of the country, and it can take many different forms. But I’m clear and the Government is clear that political or cultural sensitivities must not get in the way of preventing and uncovering child abuse.

The freedom to speak out must apply to those in positions of responsibility, including ministers and shadow ministers on both sides of this House, because if we turn a blind eye to this abuse, as has happened too much in the past, then more crimes will be committed and more children will be suffering in silence.

Champion resigned, but Tories have claimed she was effectively sacked by Jeremy Corbyn. However Corbyn initially backed Champion. Her position only became untenable after a statement she issued suggesting that the Sun was responsible for the “inflammatory” tone of her article was challenged by the newspaper which disclosed emails showing her office had enthusiastically approved the final article.

  • May has said she will listen to concerns of MPs about the EU (withdrawal) bill and about the way it transfers powers to ministers.
  • Number 10 has refused to deny a Times report (paywall) saying May plans to drop plans to cut the number of MPs in the Commons from 650 to 600. Asked about the story, May’s spokesman said that work “in terms of equalising constituencies” was ongoing, but declined to say that May was still committed to cutting the size of the Commons.
  • Gifts made by parents to children during their lifetime could be hit by a programme of wealth taxes floated by Sir Vince Cable as part of a drive to reduce inequality. As the Press Association reports, in his first major speech since becoming Liberal Democrat leader in July, Cable called for a “serious review” of the way wealth is taxed in the UK, warning the current system is entrenching inequality across generations. Citing the Grenfell Tower fire as an event which crystallised the gap between rich and poor in the UK, Sir Vince said a “new and worrying” pattern of worsening inequality was damaging the economy, stoking up social tensions and destroying social mobility. I may post more from the speech later.
  • Shipyard workers in Glasgow have been “let down and betrayed” by the UK Government after it announced plans for work on new warships to be split up across different sites, Nicola Sturgeon said. As the Press Association reports, the defence ecretary, Sir Michael Fallon, said the first batch of five new Type 31e frigates could be built in blocks across several British shipyards and then assembled at a central hub. The ships, and the eight new Type 26 frigates that are being built in Glasgow, will replace part of the Navy fleet which is being phased out. Sturgeon accused the Conservative administration of pulling back from a pledge that the yards on the River Clyde would be a “frigate factory” for the Navy. She said:

I think people should be looking to the UK Government and reflecting on the fact there has been lots of promises made to the Clyde but more often than not those promises are broken ...

Certainly for the Clyde it is only a couple of years ago that workers were being promised a frigate factory on the Clyde - there’s no mention of that today.

So this is about cost cutting and it is another demonstration of the damage that is being done to conventional defence infrastructure by the UK government’s obsession with spending billions and billions of pounds on Trident.

I think workers on the Clyde today have every right to feel let down and betrayed.

Updated

Theresa May’s spokesman was repeatedly pressed on the migration proposals by journalists after prime minister’s questions on Wednesday. He attempted to stick to the line that “we never comment on leaked documents, or indeed draft leaked documents” and confirmed that the government wants to see immigration fall.

But asked whether May agreed with the principle set out in the draft policy document that British workers should be given priority in the labour market, he said:

I think the government has always been clear that we welcome the skills which immigrants have brought to our economy, to our public services, and we will absolutely continue to do so. Nobody is suggesting an end to immigration. But at the same time, we have said that we do want employers to do more to improve the skills of British workers, and equip them with those skills going forward.

He also confirmed the government would hope to negotiate a transitional period, during which any new migration system would be implemented. Asked whether that could include changes to free movement, he said: “Immigration is one of the areas where we would be looking at an implementation period, yes.”

Migration experts had warned that switching immediately to the system outlined in the leaked document would make it impossible to agree a transitional deal with the EU that retained the benefits of the single market.

From my office in the Commons I can hear the rally outside parliament where nurses are calling for the public sector pay cap to be scrapped. Here are some pictures of what’s going on.

Members of the RCN stage a rally against the pay cap in Parliament Square.
Members of the RCN stage a rally against the pay cap in Parliament Square. Photograph: Matthew Chattle/REX/Shutterstock
Demonstrators at the rally.
Demonstrators at the rally. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images
Demonstrators at the rally.
Demonstrators at the rally. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images
Sir Tony Robinson, the actor and Labour party activist, speaking at the rally.
Sir Tony Robinson, the actor and Labour party activist, speaking at the rally. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

PMQs - Verdict from the Twitter commentariat

This is what political journalists and commentators are saying about PMQs.

Generally they thought Jeremy Corbyn won.

From the New Statesman’s George Eaton

From the Daily Mirror’s Jason Beattie

From the Guardian’s Rafael Behr

From the Spectator’s Isabel Hardman

From the Sun’s Tom Newton Dunn

From the Guardian’s Heather Stewart

From the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg

From the Times’ Patrick Kidd

From ITV’s Carl Dinnen

From HuffPost’s Owen Bennett

From the Guardian’s Gaby Hinsliff

From the Mail on Sunday’s Dan Hodges

May says government will consider toughening law on dangerous cycling

During PMQs Theresa May said that the government would consider proposals to toughen the law on dangerous cycling following the conviction of Charlie Alliston, who killed a woman after colliding into her on his bike.

Alliston was convicted of causing bodily harm by “wanton and furious driving” under an obscure a piece of 19th-century legislation. After his conviction Matthew Briggs, whose wife Kim was killed, called for cycling to be incorporated into the Road Traffic Act to allow offences of death by dangerous cycling and death by careless cycling to be considered.

When Labour’s Heidi Alexander proposed toughening the law along the lines proposed by Briggs, May said the department for transport would look at this.

Alastair Campbell, Tony Blair’s former communications chief, and an outspoken critic of Brexit, isn’t happy about Jeremy Corbyn avoiding the topic.

I missed the questions from Ian Blackford, the SNP’s leader at Westminster, because I was typing up the snap verdict. So here they are.

He asked about immigration.

Does the PM agree with me that immigration is essential to the strength of the UK economy, as well as enhancing our diversity and cultural fabric?

May replied:

What people want to see is control of that immigration ... We’re already able to exercise controls in relation to those who come to this country from outside the EU and we continue to believe it’s important to have net migration at sustainable levels because of the impact particularly it has on people on the lower end of the income scale in depressing their wages.

Blackford then asked about immigration again, raising the case of the Home Office letters sent in error to about 100 EU nationals saying they would have to leave the UK. He said:

We need to cherish those who are here and not chase them away. The prime minister must stop dancing to the tune of her rightwing backbenchers and apologise for the disgraceful treatment her government has shown migrants in the UK.

May replied by saying that every single EU national who received the Home Office letter was telephoned with an apology.

Labour’s Phil Wilson says May said in her party conference speech last year that workers’ rights would be guaranteed while she remains prime minister. How long will that be?

May laughs. She repeats the commitment to protecting workers’ rights.

Matt Warman, a Conservative, asks if May agrees that Brexit could kick-start a new wave of technological innovation.

May says the UK already has a proud history of innovation. Brexit will give a further chance for it to be kick-started, she says.

May says child sexual exploitation is not exclusive to any community. But political or cultural sensitivities should not get in the way of tackling this. People should feel free to speak out, including ministers and shadow ministers. If we turn a blind eye, more children will suffer in silence.

May was referring to the Sarah Champion affair, although she did not say so directly.

Labour’s Wes Streeting asks if May thinks the decision to close the A&E unit at King George hospital should be reversed.

May says the decision was taken by clinicians.

Michelle Donelan, a Conservative, asks about challenging stereotypes about the people who go into engineering.

May says she thinks it is important that more young people go into engineering, and science generally. She says she would like to see more women go into engineering.

Mims Davies, a Conservative, asks if May backs an inquiry into the way women were prescribed Primodos in the 1970s, a drug associated with birth defects.

May says she is aware of the issue. A working group is looking at this.

May says the number of training places for doctors is being increased.

Will Quince, a Conservative, says the Tory manifesto set out to end rough sleeping by the end of this parliament. Will May pay tribute to Crisis, which is marking its 50th anniversary?

May says Quince co-chairs the all-party group on this. She says £500m has been allocated to 2020 to tackle homelessness. She joins Quince in paying tribute to Crisis. She will be hosting a reception for them at Downing Street later today.

Chris Philp, a Conservative, says the European commission is acting against the interests of Europeans, including German car producers, by refusing to start talks on a future trade deal now.

May says Philp is right.

(Patrick Kidd was right. See 11.59am.)

The DUP’s Nigel Dodds asks May for an assurance that there will be no question of joint authority with Ireland in the event of direct rule over Northern Ireland being reintroduced. (See 11.29am.)

May says she can give that assurance.

David Duguid, a Conservative from Scotland, asks what discussions the government has had with the fishing industry about Brexit.

May says the government values fishing communities and will support them during Brexit. She has had meetings with fishermen herself.

May says the government needs to do more on mental health. It is putting more money into this area, and introduced a number of programmes. The number of mental health patients held in police cells has fallen by 80%, she says.

PMQs - Snap verdict

PMQs - Snap verdict: By no means a classic, or even particularly memorable PMQs, but it was a welcome reminder that there is a lot more to politics than Brexit (which, for about the first time in the national conversation for months, did not get a mention for 15 minutes), and it was an exchange that reflected much better on Corbyn than May. He had enough material for about a month’s worth of PMQs, and the constant changes of subject meant that he did not press May hard on a single topic, but his questions were topical and good. May was generally quite evasive. She does have something to say on corporate governance, but it was not convincing, and she could not really answer Corbyn’s point about having to drop manifesto commitments. (The honest answer - “I didn’t get a majority” - would not really cut it at PMQs.) May’s reliance on the “Labour were to blame for the deficit” argument sounded threadbare (it wasn’t even true in 2010) and you could tell that she was flanneling when she launched into an entirely irrelevant (although not unfounded) aside about Corbyn and Trident.

Updated

Corbyn says May’s answer had nothing to do with Sports Direct. Will she condemn what is happening there? There is a rally of nurses outside parliament asking for the public sector pay cap to be abolished. Will May get rid of it?

May says she values the work of public sector workers. They do a difficult job, sometimes in harrowing circumstances. Two public sector pay reports have yet to be published. Then the government will publish its new remit. Corbyn consistently stands up and asks for more money to be spent on this, that and the other. He can do that in opposition if you do not have to pay for it. The problem with Labour is that they do that in government too. The government is not paying more because of the decisions taken by Labour.

Corbyn says May had no problem finding £1bn for the DUP. Is May happy about nurses using food banks? In-work poverty is at record levels. Will May clarify something she evaded during the election. Can May promise not to increase income tax, national insurance or VAT?

May says the government has taken 4m people out of tax altogether. It has given people a big pay rise with the “national living wage”. Labour’s approach is reckless. Hers is balanced. You only get a strong government with the Conservatives, she says.

Corbyn says May talked about “advisory” measures. The Tory manifesto talked about annual binding votes by shareholders on executive pay. That has been dropped. The Tories were also proposing to cap energy bills. Will May stick to her own plans on this?

May says she did not use the word advisory in her previous answer. Corbyn should listen to the answer. She says the business secretary has asked energy companies what they are doing to safeguard customers. She says she agrees with Corbyn, but she is doing something about this problem.

Corbyn says the government’s plans will only benefit 2.6m customers. Some 17m customers are effected. May is not the only person going back on her words. (Tories jeer.) Mike Ashley promised to get rid of zero-hours contracts at Sports Direct. He has not done so. Does May think he should?

May says the government has taken action on ZHCs. In the Labour manifesto Labour said it would back Trident. After the election Corbyn said in private he would not. As a backbencher Corbyn did not back party policy. Now he does not as leader.

Jeremy Corbyn asks if May backs the McDonald’s workers demands for an end to zero-hours contracts and decent pay.

May says the number of people on ZHCs are very small. Some people genuinely say they appreciate them. Labour did nothing about them for 13 years. The Tories have because they are on the side of the workers.

Corbyn says he asked about McDonalds. The chief executive there earns 1,300 times as much as average pay. Was tough talk on executive pay in the Tory manifesto just for the campaign, or will they be put into law.

May says Corbyn should look at what the Tories have done. They have just published plans on corporate governance.

May suggests government will be open to amending EU (withdrawal) bill

Anna Soubry asks about the EU (withdrawal) bill. Will May look at those amendments designed to ensure it does not become “an unprecedented and unnecessary government power-grab”.

May says she is glad Soubry raised this. Secondary legislation will be required to bring over EU law. This approach has been backed by the Lords constitution committee. But the government will listen to concerns. May says she is willing to meet Soubry to discuss this.

  • May suggests government will be open to amending EU (withdrawal) bill.

Theresa May starts by saying the thoughts of MPs are with the family and friends of those killed in the Barcelona terror attack.

Assistance has been offered to those countries preparing for Hurricane Irma, she says.

Welsh questions is still going on. It has over-run by five minutes.

From my colleague Heather Stewart.

This is from Sky’s Tamara Cohen.

This is from the Mirror’s Kevin Maguire.

This is from the Times’ Patrick Kidd.

May and Corbyn at PMQs

PMQs is about to start.

The first question comes from Anna Soubry, one of the leading Tory pro-European “rebels”. (The inverted commas are appropriate because quite how rebellious she will be over the EU [withdrawal] bill remains to be seen.)

On the Daily Politics Robin Walker, a Brexit minister, has refused to endorsed the leaked Home Office plans.

This is from Charlie Falconer, the former Labour justice secretary.

Leaked Home Office plans would be 'catastrophic for hospitality industry', says trade body

The Home Office immigration proposals, if implemented, will be “catastrophic” for the UK hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, according to the hospitality industry.

Business ranging from Pret a Manger to Alton Towers or West End theatres rely heavily on EU immigrants, the British Hospitality Association said.

Its research shows that 75% of waiters, 25% of chefs and 37% of housekeepers are EU nationals. Some London businesses rely almost 100% on EU staff, the BHA said.

In a statement Ufi Ibrahim, the BHA chief executive, said:

If these proposals are implemented it could be catastrophic for the UK hospitality industry.

The government need to be urgently reminded that so-called unskilled workers in hospitality - the ambassadors for our country - are necessary. It is not just the bankers and the lawyers that are needed to fill the employment gaps.

The UK has near full-employment so where are the recruits going to come from for the UK’s fourth largest industry that employs over 4.5 people nationwide?

Earlier this year Pret a Manger revealed it would struggle to survive without EU workers with just one in 50 applications from Britons.

Updated

Cable claims May suppressed evidence showing immigration has little effect on wages

Sir Vince Cable, the Lib Dem leader, claimed today that Theresa May suppressed up to nine reports when she was home secretary showing that immigration has very little impact on wages. He would know because he served in the coalition cabinet with her, as business secretary.

In a statement he said:

When I was business secretary there were up to nine studies that we looked at that took in all the academic evidence.

It showed that immigration had very little impact on wages or employment. But this was suppressed by the Home Office under Theresa May, because the results were inconvenient.

I remember it vividly. Overwhelmingly it has been the case that overseas workers have been complementary rather than competitive to British workers.

The exodus of trades people, NHS staff and tech industry workers shows the potential damage of an extreme Brexit.

Updated

The UK government was quick out of the traps last night to dismiss any notion that joint London-Dublin rule could be an alternative to devolution in Northern Ireland if the negotiations between the Stormont parties fail this autumn.

And the reason for that is obvious as underlined this morning by remarks from the Democratic Unionist MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson.

Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney triggered the “joint authority” row when he stated on Tuesday that there could be no “British only” direct rule from London in the absence of a power sharing government in Belfast.

Donaldson reminded Theresa May and her government this morning that his party’s 10 MPs prop up her administration.

Any move towards joint authority, Donaldson warned, “would have grave consequences for the stability of the government at Westminster and for the prospect of restoring devolution in Northern Ireland.”

In other words the DUP would threaten to pull the plug on the minority Tory government if the government countenanced joint London-Dublin rule over the region.

It is a clear indication as to the power the DUP can exercise at Westminster since the general election and how it can impact on politics on the island of Ireland as well.

The CBI has also issued a response to the leaked Home Office immigration plans. The CBI is more equivocal than the IoD (see 10.35am), but it seems to have reservations about the potential complexity of the government’s plans. This is from Neil Carberry, the CBI’s managing director for people and infrastructure.

An open approach to our closest trading partners is vital for business, as it attracts investment to the UK. And, with employment high, it also helps keep our economy moving by addressing key skill and labour shortages.

Businesses will look for the government’s final position paper to support an open but managed approach to immigration. That means taking the initiative to guarantee those already here that they can stay, a transition period with limited changes so firms can plan ahead, and a final system for the EU that is simpler and more open than the complex work permit system run for non-EEA countries.

The bookmakers Paddy Power have lengthened the odds on Jacob Rees-Mogg becoming the next prime minister after his GMB interview. They had him on 6/1 at one point, but now he is on 8/1. But he is still ahead of Boris Johnson (9/1) and Amber Rudd (14/1) according to the Paddy Power odds (which seem rather arbitrary.)

Paddy Power have David Davis, the Brexit secretary, as favourite for next prime minister (7/2), followed by Jeremy Corbyn (4/1) and Philip Hammond, the chancellor, (7/1).

UPDATE: I was right about those odds being arbitrary. Paddy Power have just sent out an email correcting the press notice they sent out earlier, saying the odds on Rees-Mogg becoming next PM are now 40/1, not 8/1.

Updated

Theresa May has lost the Stormzy endorsement. The Grime artist had a go at her at the GQ Men of the Year Awards last night, where he called her a “a paigon” - a “friend that lies, betrays and isn’t true to you”, according to the Urban dictionary. He said:

Yeah, it’s just a bliss to be here in a room full of so many legends, I got a selfie with Ronan Keating, are you mad, come on?

I’m so happy to be here, blessed in a room full of talent, we got so much black excellence in this room as well Tinie Tempah my brother, Anthony Joshua, Skepta... so incredible to be here with everyone.

Big up Jeremy Corbyn. I do want to use this to say Theresa May is a paigon and you know what we’re doing right now, yeah, trust me. Yeah, it’s awkward innit when I say that.

Stormzy was named solo artist of the year, and Jeremy Corbyn presented him with his award. Corbyn described him as “an artist who single-handedly ushered in a new era in British music”. Corbyn went on:

This last year we’ve seen dramatic political events all across the world. Against this backdrop we’ve seen the emergence of an incredible and very powerful artist.

He’s one of London’s most inspiring young men, encouraging his listeners to vote, pray and speak openly about mental health and their issues and problems.

Whether it’s speaking out against racism, supporting the victims of Grenfell, he’s remained absolutely committed to his roots and values throughout.

Stormzy at the GQ Men of the Year awards

As Huffington Post reports, Jacob Rees-Mogg quoted Yes Minister at an event last night when asked about standing for the Tory leadership.

Asked if he would “categorically rule out” ever putting himself forward for the job, Rees-Mogg quoted from Jim Hacker, the central character in Yes Minister who wanted to, and eventually became, prime minister.

“I remember Jim Hacker’s answer from Yes Minister,” Rees-Mogg said. ‘I have no ambitions in that direction but if my friends and colleagues advise me that in some humble capacity I could serve my country’, that of course that meant ‘yes’.”

But while he did not rule out running to be party leader, he said it was unlikely to happen.

Turning back to Jacob Rees-Mogg for a moment, this is from Sir Craig Oliver, who was David Cameron’s communications chief.

Commenting on this:

Oliver posted this:

Business will not welcome leaked Home Office immigration plans, says Institute of Directors

The Institute of Directors, which has been a persistent critic of the government’s immigration policy, has put out a statement saying business will not welcome the leaked Home Office plans. This is from Seamus Nevin, the IoD’s head of employment and skills.

This is a leak so anything in these documents would need to be confirmed by the government and much of its contents would be subject to negotiation with the EU. However, at face value, this is not an approach that business leaders - especially of small-and medium-sized firms - will want to see.

The UK needs an immigration system which provides control while also enabling employers to access the foreign workers they need at all levels - whether it be short term seasonal workers, intra company transfers or permanent positions. All parties should insist on clear and simple immigration rules which everyone can understand, as well as meeting the needs of the UK economy.

Steven Woolfe, who was a Ukip MEP, and one-time leadership candidate, until he left the party last year, has welcomed the Home Office leak. He said:

The government paper is a great step in the right direction for the UK to take back control of its borders. It may be criticised in some quarters, but the government is now showing that it is serious about implementing a strong migration policy.

Sam Coates and Richard Ford at the Times quote a source saying that the Home Office immigration plans leaked to the Guardian may not represent the government’s final position. Their report (paywall) includes this passage.

The draft says that the government has not yet finalised its plans for the immigration system, and is yet to hear the results of a study by the Migration Advisory Committee.

A source said: “This [document] was drawn up by Home Office officials still working to Theresa May rather than Amber Rudd. She has been working to modify this significantly and it is not where the government is any more.”

A Whitehall source added that the prime minister continued to hold out for a tougher migration system than the rest of the cabinet: “Boris Johnson [the foreign secretary], Michael Gove [the environment secretary] and many other Brexiteers are much more liberal on migration than the prime minister,” the insider said. Downing Street continues to stick to the commitment to reduce net migration below 100,000.

Commenting on the Home Office leak, Minette Batters, deputy president of the National Farmers’ Union, said an abrupt cut in migrant workers from the EU after Brexit would cause “massive disruption” to farmers. She said:

A competent and reliable workforce is vital for British farms to be a dependable source of raw ingredients for the UK food and drink manufacturing sector, worth £108bn.

Statistics show that horticulture alone requires 80,000 seasonal workers a year to plant, pick, grade and pack over nine million tonnes and 300 types of fruit, vegetable and flower crops in Britain every year.

But across the sectors, particularly in poultry, pig and dairy, access to both seasonal and permanent workers is absolutely critical.

An abrupt reduction in the number of EU workers able to work in the UK after we leave the EU would cause massive disruption to the entire food supply chain - a solution for the whole industry is needed to ensure the sector has access to the skills and labour it needs.

We are calling for an urgent and clear commitment from Government to ensure that farmers and growers have access to sufficient numbers of permanent and seasonal workers post-Brexit.

For the record, this is what Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, has said about the Home Office leak.

Labour wants fair rules and reasonable management of migration in accordance with the needs of our economy and our values as a party. This leaked document is not yet government policy. If it becomes so, we will judge it against the criteria we have laid out.

Immigration is a tricky subject for Labour because the party is split on the issue, and the manifesto policy (“fair rules and reasonable management of migration”) was a fragile compromise designed to accommodate those (like Abbott) with a strong belief in free movement and those (particularly representing working-class seats in the north) who have been arguing for some years that Labour needs to be tougher on immigration.

Interestingly, Abbott may have given a clue as to her true feelings about the Home Office leak when she retweeted this this morning.

The quote in the tweet comes from the Labour MP Alison McGovern.

Jacob Rees-Mogg's GMB interview - Summary

Here is a summary of the main points from Jacob Rees-Mogg’s interview on Good Morning Britain.

  • Rees-Mogg said he was opposed to abortion in any circumstances, even when a child was conceived after a rape.

I am completely opposed to abortion, life begins at the point of conception. With same-sex marriage, that is something that people are doing for themselves. With abortion, that is what people are doing to the unborn child.

When asked if he even opposed abortion after a woman has been raped, he replied: “Afraid so.”

But he said that the law on abortion would not change, and that he did not expect the law of the land to following the teaching of the Catholic church.

  • He said he would not stand for the Conservative leadership while a backbench MP because that would be “vanity”. When Piers Morgan put it to him that he was favourite to replace Theresa May and that he was a “pin-up” to certain Tories, he replied:

You are significantly overstating it. This is all good silly season stuff, it was fun in August when there wasn’t much news about. A gentleman in Rotherham got Moggmentum tattooed on his chest which was very kind of him.

He insisted that he supported Theresa May.

I fully support Mrs May, I want her to remain leader of the Tory party, there isn’t a leadership election and if there were I would not be a candidate. I am a backbench MP, in the history of the prime ministership [the job] has never gone to a backbench MP.

He refused to 100% rule out ever becoming prime minister. But he dismissed the prospect of it happening.

The circumstances in which someone in my position would become leader of the party would not exist.

It would be a vanity for me to be thinking about the leadership.

  • He said he was against same-sex marriage. Asked about this, he replied:

I’m a Catholic, I take the teaching of the Catholic church seriously. Marriage is a sacrament and the view of what marriage is is taken by the church, not parliament. I support the teaching of the Catholic church. The marriage issue is the important thing, this is not how people arrange their lives ...

The teaching of the Catholic church is completely clear. The marriage issue is the important thing. This is not how people arrange their lives. It’s that marriage is a sacrament, and a sacrament is under the authority of the church, not of the state. This is exactly the argument that Thomas Moore made in opposition to the marriage of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn.

  • He said the Conservative party was more tolerant of religious faith than the Liberal Democrats.

The Lib Dems pretend that they’re liberal, but they could not cope with having a Christian as their leader. I think the Conservatives are much more tolerant of religious faith, and so they should be. It’s all very well to say we live in a multicultural country until you’re a Christian. Until you hold the traditional views of the Catholic church. That seems to be fundamentally wrong.

Rees-Mogg says he is against gay marriage and abortion in any circumstances

Yesterday it emerged that Jacob Rees-Mogg, the rightwing backbencher, arch Brexiteer and “pantomime toff” (in the words of the Economist) is the favourite amongst Conservative party members for next party leader.

This morning he was on Good Morning Britain. And he revealed that he is against gay marriage and abortion in any circumstances. (He is Catholic.) This is from GMB’s Susanna Reid.

I will post more on this shortly.

This is what Sir Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, said about the Home Office leak on BBC Breakfast this morning.

I can’t set out the proposals yet, they have not yet been finalised, they are being worked on at the moment.

There is obviously a balance to be struck, we don’t want to shut the door, of course not.

We have always welcomed to this country those who can make a contribution to our economy, to our society, people with high skills.

On the other hand we want British companies to do more to train up British workers, to do more to improve skills of those who leave our colleges.

So there’s always a balance to be struck.

We’re not closing the door on all future immigration but it has to be managed properly and people do expect to see the numbers coming down.

In private government sources are being a bit more bullish about it, the BBC’s Norman Smith reports.

Food industry says leak shows 'deep lack of understanding' of role played by migrant workers

The Food and Drink Federation has expressed alarm about the government’s immigration proposals. This is from Ian Wright, the FDF’s director general.

Food and drink manufacturing, Britain’s largest manufacturing sector, will be alarmed by the proposals contained in the document published by The Guardian.

If this does represent the government’s thinking it shows a deep lack of understanding of the vital contribution that EU migrant workers make - at all skill levels - across the food chain.

Immigration is central to why Britain voted for Brexit. Support for Ukip, and for a referendum on EU membership, started to rise as EU enlargement led to a surge in immigration from Eastern Europe, and by the time the campaign came along politicians were finding it hard to defend free movement (although some might argue that they did not really try). Nothing harmed David Cameron more than the fact that he could not answer the question about how he intended to keep his promise to cut net migration if the UK remained in the EU, with its borders open to EU migrants.

So what happens to immigration post-Brexit is fascinating. And now, for the first time, we have a clear idea of what the government is planning, thanks to the the leak to the Guardian.

Here is the Guardian splash with details of the leak.

Here is a 10-point summary of what is in the leaked document.

Here is an analysis of the significance of the document from Alan Travis, the Guardian’s home affairs editor.

And here is the document in full.

We rounded up some reaction to the document overnight. I will be posting more as the day goes on.

Here is the agenda for the day.

9.30am: Sir Vince Cable, the Lib Dem leader, gives a speech on inequality.

12pm: Theresa May faces Jeremy Corbyn at PMQs.

And at some point today the department for exiting the European Union (DExEU) will publish a paper covering science and innovation post-Brexit.

As usual, I will be covering breaking political news as it happens, as well as bringing you the best reaction, comment and analysis from the web. I plan to post a summary after PMQs and another in the afternoon.

You can read all today’s Guardian politics stories here. Here is the ConservativeHome round-up of today’s political stories. And here is the PoliticsHome list of must-reads from today’s papers.

If you want to follow me or contact me on Twitter, I’m on@AndrewSparrow.

I try to monitor the comments BTL but normally I find it impossible to read them all. If you have a direct question, do include “Andrew” in it somewhere and I’m more likely to find it. I do try to answer direct questions, although sometimes I miss them or don’t have time.

If you want to attract my attention quickly, it is probably better to use Twitter.

Updated

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