Top story: PM warns against party divisions
Hello, I’m Alison Rourke with the top stories on what is expected to be a turbulent day in politics.
All eyes will be on Westminster this morning after a dramatic day of twists and turns that saw Boris Johnson follow David Davis out of the cabinet. Theresa May will meet her reshuffled cabinet first thing, after warning that divided parties lose elections. In a Tory merry-go-round designed to embolden May’s position, Jeremy Hunt – who supported Remain during the referendum campaign – took up the reins at the foreign office, with Matt Hancock moving from culture to health and Geoffrey Cox becoming attorney general. The big question today will be whether anyone else abandons the PM or whether she will be able to shore up her authority and her Chequers vision for Brexit. You can catch up with all the developments on our live blog.
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Conservative rising star – Donald Trump has nominated 53-year-old Brett Kavanaugh as his pick to replace retiring Anthony Kennedy on the supreme court. Kavanaugh’s nomination sets up a potentially bruising political battle that could steer the court onto a conservative course for decades. His CV includes work in the George W Bush White House and for Ken Starr – the lawyer who led the investigation into President Clinton in the 1990s that laid the case for Clinton’s impeachment. Kavanaugh’s appointment, if confirmed by the Senate, could have long-lasting implications for America on everything from abortion to gun control and immigration.
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Rescue mission – A third attempt to bring out the remaining soccer boys and their coach from the cave in Thailand has begun. Heavy downpours around the site have left the rescuers racing against time to reach the final five trapped inside. The first four to be rescued have now seen their parents and the second four will likely do the same today. But it’s reunification at a distance as the two sides could only see each other through glass in hospital. The children are expected to stay in hospital for a week. You can catch all the updates here on our live blog.
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Potential, not just results – Universities should pay more attention to socioeconomic and school background, rather than just A-level grades, when deciding to award a place to a student, according to the new higher education watchdog. The Office for Students wants universities to better identify those who have the potential to study at high level but may be at a disadvantage because of their background or school. “A-level grades can only be considered to be a robust measure of potential if they are considered alongside the context in which they are achieved,” the group’s chair, Chris Milward, will say on Tuesday.
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Farage’s big bucks – The former Ukip leader Nigel Farage earned £524,000 and £700,000 through TV and radio work respectively in the past four years, according to transparency campaigners who are calling on MEPs to be more open about second jobs. The figures make him the highest earner outside the European parliament of any of Britain’s 73 MEPs, according to Transparency International. Last year Farage claimed to be “skint”.
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Breaking stereotypes? – Nearly three-quarters of Britons disagree with the attitude that women should look after the home while men are out earning a living. A new survey, entitled British Social Attitudes 35, showed traditional views of gender roles have continued to decline – in 1988 nearly half of the population thought a woman’s place was in the home. But don’t get too excited just yet ... according to the survey, nearly a third of people said they thought mothers with preschool-aged children should stay at home.
World Cup
While the country goes into overdrive preparing for England’s first World Cup semi-final in 28 years, the mood at the team’s base camp in Repino is calm and focused. Gareth Southgate’s side are confident they will beat any lingering effects of fatigue from an increasingly hectic campaign and are hopeful an unchanged lineup can exploit tiredness in Croatia’s ranks. Dele Alli, who as a teenager had the confidence to show up Luka Modric, has said it would be nice to nutmeg the Croatian maestro once again, this time in an England shirt. Meanwhile, Ivan Rakitic, who thrives in his partnership with Modric and has put Croatia through on penalties in the last two rounds, says he’s happy to be put on the spot again should it come to that against England.
Thousands more England fans are expected to flock over to Russia before the game, while those at home have been warned about their behaviour following 70 arrests after the Sweden game.
Up first though are Belgium and France. Kevin De Bruyne is giving Belgium manager Roberto Martínez a dilemma, with the midfielder able to play in a deep role or further forward. The Manchester City player’s role will be crucial in unlocking a tight French defence. Indeed, there is an argument that Les Bleus’ defenders have been their real stars of this tournament. Buildup to the big game in Saint Petersburg has begun already.
Lunchtime read: How England fell in love with Gareth Southgate
Life is a messy business that offers few obvious chances at redemption, and in 1996 Gareth Southgate would have felt that more than most, writes John Crace. Failures and disappointments are generally rewritten or absorbed into lives that somehow muddle on as best they can. No one expected much of Southgate. Not even the Football Association, whose chairman Greg Dyke said in 2016 that English football was in such a desperate state that no one should dream of any real success until the 2022 World Cup, at the earliest. Southgate, notorious for missing a penalty and being sacked as manager of Middlesbrough, was just there as a stopgap. Expendable collateral damage in the seemingly futile search for English football’s lost soul.
But Southgate’s moment of grace and genuine concern for Mateus Uribe took him from that nation’s memory of the man who missed a penalty to the compassionate hero who stood tall and comforted a fellow footballer who had failed to convert an opportunity. While the nation went wild, screamed loudly and sang in the streets, what Southgate showed was a basic sense of decency. He set a standard of how to behave. Small wonder that the few remaining people who weren’t already a bit in love with the England manager collapsed happily into his embrace at that moment.
Sport
It is very much an old boys’ reunion at Wimbledon this year with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal trampling over dazzled opposition into the quarter-finals. In the women’s draw, seven of the remaining eight players will be dreaming of a first Wimbledon title but unfortunately for them, Serena Williams, who has been here before, is still in the mix.
Paul Farbrace, the assistant coach, says Test captain Joe Root will still play a big part in England’s T20 side, despite his omission from the final game against India.
Chris Froome began the process of steadily eroding the time lost in Saturday’s opening stage of the Tour after Team Sky finished second in the first major test, the 35.5km team time trial.
And Manchester City are optimistic Riyad Mahrez will be unveiled as their £60m record signing by Friday, after they made a breakthrough with Leicester City.
Business
The UK has slipped to 35th in a global table of broadband speeds, behind countries such as Bulgaria and Madagascar. Analysis of more than 160m broadband speed tests across 200 countries put Singapore top, followed by Sweden, Denmark and Norway. According to the analysis, carried out during the 12 months to 29 May, the UK achieved an average speed of 18.57Mbps, which means downloading a 5GB HD movie would typically take just over 36 minutes.
The pound is buying $1.325 and €1.128.
The papers
The front pages are sharply divided on Boris Johnson’s exit from cabinet. The Guardian says the PM has faced down Brexit rebels “for now”, while the FT says May is clinging to power in “Brexit spat”. The Mirror describes Johnson’s walkout as “shameless” and “scheming”, suggesting he stabbed the PM in the back as a precursor to a leadership bid of his own.
The Times reports Johnson’s “scathing” attack on May in which he accused her of raising the white flag to Brussels and transforming Britain into a “colony” of the EU. The Mail’s headline is: “Boris goes in for the kill”, with the paper warning the “day of chaos” has left the PM on the ropes. The Telegraph headlines Johnson’s “Brexit dream dying”, saying more are “on the brink” of resigning from cabinet.
The Sun asks if the Tories could leave their infighting until after the World Cup: “Don’t you know there’s a bloody game on?” is its headline, with a photo of Johnson in an England football shirt.
For more news: www.theguardian.com
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