Top story: PM faces fresh Brexit rebellion
This is Alison Rourke bringing you Monday’s top stories in what is shaping up to be a potentially defining week for Brexit.
Theresa May’s leadership and the Brexit negotiations are on a knife edge today after Sunday’s dash to Brussels by Brexit secretary Dominic Raab to seek more time to sort out the Irish border issue. It’s understood Raab told Michel Barnier, the EU’s top negotiator, that the volatility of politics in the UK meant an agreement on the Irish border could not be reached today, threatening to kill off hopes of an October deal. “It was a sobering meeting because everyone had been hoping something would come out of the tunnel,” one diplomat told the Guardian. Another added: “The problem is at the British end.”
All negotiations between the EU and the UK have been put on hold and May, who had been invited to address the EU27 heads of state and government before a dinner on Wednesday night, is yet to accept. Brexiter cabinet members from the so-called “pizza group” are due to meet today in what is expected to further ratchet up pressure on the PM, amid calls from pro-leave backbenchers to resign to force a change in policy or a change in leader.
Boris Johnson has called for the whole backstop idea to be jettisoned: “In presuming to change the constitutional arrangements of the United Kingdom, the EU is treating us with naked contempt,” he said in his weekly column in the Daily Telegraph. “Like some chess player triumphantly forking our king and our queen, the EU commission is offering the UK government what appears to be a binary choice. It is a choice between the break-up of this country, or the subjugation of this country, between separation or submission.”
Meanwhile Labour’s Keir Starmer says it’s “deeply disappointing” that no deal had been reached and called for the details of any proposed backstop agreement to be scrutinised by parliament.
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Saudi retaliation – More big businesses, including Ford and JP Morgan, have pulled out of the so-called “Davos in the desert” conference, ratcheting up potential commercial ramifications for Saudi Arabia over the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. On the offensive, Riyadh says it will take action if any sanctions are imposed over Khashoggi’s disappearance on 2 October from the kingdom’s embassy in Istanbul. According to an editorial by the general manager of the official Saudi news channel, Al Arabiya, the kingdom is now weighing up 30 counter measures if penalties are imposed, including a possible oil production cut that could drive prices from around $80 (£60) a barrel to more than $400, more than double the all-time high of$147.27 reached in 2008. This would have profound consequences globally. You can follow the economic fallout and all the other day’s financial news on our live business blog.
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‘Game-changer’ – All flour is to be fortified with folic acid after ministers swung behind a plan that medical experts say will reduce the number of babies born in the UK with serious birth defects, the Guardian has revealed. The policy, which will be introduced within weeks, comes after ministers were convinced by their own advisers that it would reduce the risk of babies developing spina bifida and other conditions that involve severe disability or death. “Mandatory fortification will be a game-changer for the UK,” said Kate Steele, the chief executive of the charity Shine, which helps families affected by neural tube (birth) defects.
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Pay cut – Three-quarters of workers do not receive the same pay from one month to the next, according to a report that says sudden plunges in income are putting low-paid people at risk. The Resolution Foundation found pay volatility was particularly acute among the lowest earners and their income was more likely to fall than better-paid people’s. Workers who experienced a wage cut typically lost £290, more than the average monthly grocery bill, the report found. “Much of Britain, from our bills to our welfare state, is built around a steady monthly pay cheque,” said Daniel Tomlinson, a Resolution Foundation research and policy analyst. “But our research shows this is not the reality of working life for many of us.”
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‘Vulgar clergyphobia’ – A Polish film depicting clerics as corrupt, drunken fornicators and paedophiles is breaking records in its home country, sparking controversy and encouraging hundreds of people to come forward with allegations of recent and historical abuse. Based on real events, Kler (The Clergy) includes testimonies of survivors, features an alcoholic priest who encourages his lover to have an abortion, a priest accused of abusing a young boyand a grotesque, foul-mouthed archbishop cutting deals with politicians and mobsters. Some members of the Polish clergy have dismissed the film as “vulgar clergyphobia” but almost almost three million Poles have seen it in the first two weeks of its release.
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‘Drunk’ pigeon a winner – New Zealand’s bird of the year competition has been won by a bird that has a reputation for falling from trees after eating rotting fruit. The reclusive kererū pigeon was described by conservation group Forest and Bird as “clumsy, drunk, gluttonous and glamorous”. It’s not endangered, but is vulnerable to attacks by predators such as feral cats and stoats, and also competes with possums for food. Kererū used to be hunted for their meat and feathers, but they are now protected and it is illegal to hunt them.
Lunchtime read: Forget minimalism – it’s time to max it up
White, sleek interiors may once have been the formula to a zen life but the tide is turning, writes Ellie Violet Bramley: in 2018, maximalism has found its moment. Everywhere from Gucci to John Lewis to River Island flamboyant homeware ranges are setting a new trend. Even Ikea, which once urged people to “chuck out your chintz”, last month launched an accessories collection by artist Per B Sundberg, who describes his work as “lush, rough and burlesque”; it includes skull-shaped vases and candlesticks in the shape of poodles.
Maximalism can be read as an escape from a world and culture that at times seems bleak, according to Tania James, who is known to her Instagram followers as Ms Pink: “People are like, right, what can we do to make ourselves feel good?” Her own house is has neon pink, yellow and orange on the walls, while dozens of 60s and 70s tea trays line the stairs, each a different pattern. “It’s like 10 cups of coffee with a migraine.” In what James describes as a backlash against austerity, she says “minimalism is a bummer. When you’re about to kick the bucket, you don’t want to look back and see an endless haze of beige.”
Sport
It is not easy to understand how a forward with Raheem Sterling’s penetrative qualities has found it so difficult to replicate his scoring form for his country but the striker remains unruffled and confident the goals will soon start to flow in an England shirt – starting against Spain tonight. Meanwhile, the England manager, Gareth Southgate, has suggested players have been put at risk after the Premier League season kicked off too soon after the conclusion of the summer’s World Cup.
Seattle dominated the NFL’s latest foray to London, with Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson throwing three touchdowns and their defence punching holes in the Oaklands Raiders’ offensive line at will on a murky night at Wembley.
Freddie Burns has been made to look a fool after his clanger cost Bath victory against Toulouse on Saturday, according to the club legend Jeremy Guscott, who also described the mistake as “unforgivable”.
All Blacks coach Steve Hansen has named a mammoth 51-man squad for their tour of Europe, which includes a Test against England.
And horse racing’s ruling body has clashed with Tim Farron, the former Liberal Democrats leader, on the eve of a parliamentary debate about racehorse welfare.
Business
It looks like being another torrid week on the global financial markets with Asian indices a sea of red in the trading session today. The Nikkei in Japan is leading the way with a fall so far of 1.6%, followed by Australia and Hong Kong with losses of around 1%. The fallout from the Khashoggi affair hasn’t helped, sending the price of oil up more than 1%. The FTSE is so far set to open slightly up. And the pound faces a tough day as the Brexit talks come to a head. It’s lost 0.3% overnight to $1.31 and €1.135. Follow all the action at our live blog here.
The papers
Most of the papers lead with the crisis hitting Brexit negotiations due to the customs union deal and the Irish border issue. The Guardian’s splash today is “Setback for May as Irish border issue derails Brexit deal talks”. The Times says “Brexit talks break up over Irish border” and the FT calls it a “Brexit impasse as May tells EU draft treaty is a ‘non-starter’”. The Telegraph says “May puts brakes on customs union deal”.
The impasse over negotiations could lead to a leadership change, warns the i: “Davis leads threat to PM as EU hopes are dashed”. The Daily Express says: “Half of cabinet in threat to quit over Brexit”.
Away from Brexit, the Daily Mail splash is “Dance lessons for the lonely on NHS”, the Daily Mirror has a story about “Putin’s drive to recruit Brit traitors” and the Sun leads – yet again – on the Seann/Katya scandal as the couple make it through to the next round of the show: “Shirty dancing
For more news: www.theguardian.com
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