Political Headlines – hellish Brexit plans, rogue landlords, bullying scandal and austerity promises

Today’s political headlines include May’s Brexit plans compared to the first circle of hell, rogue landlords exploiting loopholes, three MPs quit committee over bullying scandal and annual spending needs to increase £31bn to meet austerity promise. 

May’s Brexit plans compared to ‘first circle of hell’ at Cabinet meeting
The Times claims that leaked Cabinet papers show that Theresa May’s Brexit plan could lead to a ‘long-running’ multiyear implementation period with an ‘annual decision point’ to review its extension. Various ministers raised concerns at yesterday’s Cabinet meeting, including Attorney General Geoffrey Cox who compared the plans to Dante’s ‘first circle of hell’. The Financial Times adds that the ‘stormy’ meeting greeted plans to charter ships to import food and medicines in a no-deal Brexit scenario with ‘disbelief’ and that the Cabinet will now discuss Brexit preparations on a weekly basis. The Sun says that Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington called for more compromises, adding that he was the only attendee to have been an MP when Black Wednesday happened and that ‘level of chaos’ could not be repeated. May will address the 1922 Committee of backbench Tories this evening.

Rogue landlords exploit loopholes to continue renting out properties
An investigation by The Guardian and ITV has found that convicted landlords who have been found unsuitable to rent out property are exploiting legal loopholes in order to continue to do so. Additionally, the investigation reveals that more than six months after its launch by the Government, no entries have been made to the rogue landlord database and the Government has admitted that the public won’t be able to find out if any are.

Three MPs quit committee chaired by Bercow over bullying scandal
The Guardian reports that three Conservative MPs have resigned from a committee on representation and inclusion chaired by Commons Speaker John Bercow because of a failure to tackle bullying at Westminster. The House of Commons Commission meets today to respond to the independent report on the scandal, with sources claiming that House of Commons Leader Andrea Leadsom will call for a robust response.

Annual spending needs £31bn increase to meet end to austerity promise
The Financial Times carries details of a new Resolution Foundation report that warns that the Chancellor needs to increase annual spending by £31bn by 2022-3 in order to deliver the Prime Minister’s promised end to austerity. It says that doing this would only be consistent with the Government’s pledge to lower debt as a proportion of GDP if taxes were increased.

Prime Minister faces revolt over abortion and same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland
The Sun reports that Theresa May is facing a revolt over Northern Ireland. Yesterday five ministers voted for a bill tabled by Labour backbencher Diana Johnson to modernise abortion law, while a ‘slew’ of Conservative MPs have backed a separate cross-party amendment to legislation on Northern Ireland today which loosens laws on abortion and same-sex marriage.

Cable calls for halt to Universal Credit rollout
Writing in the Daily Mirror, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable calls for the rollout of Universal Credit to be halted because it is a ‘slow-motion disaster’ which will impoverish tens of thousands of families. He backs the theory behind the policy and claims that it could be ‘salvaged’ if ‘major reforms’ are implemented.

European Court of Justice to be ‘ultimate arbiter’ in post-Brexit disputes
In an exclusive, The Sun reports that British negotiators have conceded that the European Court of Justice will be the ‘ultimate arbiter’ of disputes about European law after Brexit. However, EU negotiators are still waiting for their British counterparts to provide a technical explanation of how this will be implemented via a joint committee system.

Security minister turns down meeting with peer amid fears about Russian lobbying
The Times reveals that Security Minister Ben Wallace turned down a meeting with the Conservative peer Lord Barker of Battle, who wanted to discuss sanctions on Russia, amid concerns about Russian lobbying. Lord Barker is the chairman of the Russian energy firm En+ which has been subject to sanctions since the Salisbury attack, along with its majority owner Oleg Deripaska, an ally of Vladimir Putin.

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