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Today’s political headlines include Trump’s criticism of May’s Brexit deal, MPs want May to set a resignation date and judges to consider if UK can withdraw the Brexit notification. 

Trump criticises May’s Brexit deal
The Daily Telegraph reports that US President Donald Trump has claimed that Theresa May’s Brexit deal means that the UK ‘may not be able to trade with the US’, and that it ‘sounds like a good deal for the EU’. The paper claims that his comments ‘will spark panic in Downing Street’, with Theresa May having hoped that she could promote her deal to world leaders, including Trump, at this weekend’s G20 summit.

MPs want May to set resignation date to secure their support for bill
The Times suggests that some Tory MPs are calling on Theresa May to set a date for her departure if she wants to secure their support for her Brexit deal, allowing them to push for a Canada-style agreement after Brexit. The paper adds that May has established a Whitehall unit, made up of Downing Street advisers, Brexit negotiators and Brexit department civil servants, to work with the chief whip to co-ordinate efforts to sell her deal to MPs.

Judges to consider if UK can withdraw Brexit notification
The BBC reports that the European Court of Justice is to start examining whether the UK can revoke its Article 50 notification that it is leaving the EU, in a challenge brought by a group of Scottish politicians. A ruling is not expected immediately, but those supporting the case believe that if they are successful, it would give MPs an extra option.

Hunt suggests that May should debate Blair
The Daily Telegraph says that Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, used yesterday’s Cabinet meeting to suggest that Theresa May should debate senior remainers, such as Tony Blair, rather than Jeremy Corbyn if she wanted to win MPs over to her deal, while Eurosceptic Tory MPs have called for a Leave campaigner, such as Boris Johnson, to take part.

Labour would block People’s Vote from appearing in TV debate
The Guardian claims that the Labour Party would block a representative of the People’s Vote campaign from taking part in the television debate between Theresa May and Jeremy Corbyn, believing that this format would allow the Labour leader to broaden the debate to include issues such as austerity. Formal talks with broadcasters have yet to start.

Research warns May’s deal would hit living standards
The Financial Times carries details of new research by a consortium of academics and thinktanks, which warns that the Prime Minister’s Brexit agreement would hit living standards by up to £2,000 per person a year, with GDP between 1.9% and 5.5% lower by 2030.

Gauke blocks Javid’s knife crime plans
According to the Daily Mail, Justice Secretary David Gauke has blocked Home Secretary Sajid Javid’s plans to introduce ASBO-style ‘knife crime prevention orders’, whose breach could be punishable by imprisonment. Gauke warned they would ‘accelerate the criminalisation’ of young people and questioned their affordability, given the pressures faced by the prison service.

Foodbanks face record demand this Christmas
The Mirror reports that foodbanks will be facing record demand this Christmas due to the five-week delay to the first payment of Universal Credit, with volunteers expecting to serve 1.5m meals. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has called on the Government to open ‘its eyes to the misery its causing’.

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Today’s political headlines include May’s warning to MPs about voting down her deal, May’s challenge to Corbyn to a TV debate, Juncker’s warning is the only deal possible and Cabinet ministers pushing for a Norway option. 

May warns MPs against voting down her deal
The Times claims that Theresa May will use a statement in the Commons today to warn MPs that if they vote down her Brexit deal, they risk going ‘back to square one’ and that they should listen to constituents who want to ‘move on’ from Brexit. The paper adds that up to 90 Conservative MPs are currently threatening to vote against the agreement with the EU.

May to challenge Corbyn to TV debate over deal
According to The Daily Telegraph, Theresa May is to challenge Jeremy Corbyn to a debate over her Brexit deal. The vote is expected to take place on December 12, and she will outline her plans for a fortnight’s ‘media blitz’ at a meeting of the Cabinet today. Her plans also include visiting ‘every part of the UK’ and a major speech the day before the vote. A Labour spokesperson welcomed the proposed debate.

Juncker warns agreement ‘is the only deal possible’
The Financial Times reports that European leaders approved the Brexit deal at a summit yesterday which ‘felt more like a wake than a breakthrough’, with European Council President Donald Tusk saying that EU leaders has achieved ‘one of the hardest tasks of our lives’ and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker adding that ‘this is the only deal possible’.

Cabinet ministers push for Norway option if May’s deal fails
The Sun claims that cabinet ministers Amber Rudd and Michael Gove have joined forces to push for the UK to join the European Free Trade Association, but will only push for this if the meaningful vote fails, followed by attempts to call for a general election and a people’s vote, in order to ensure maximum support from Labour MPs.

New analysis shows economic cost of May’s Brexit deal
The Times outlines new analysis by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, commissioned by the People’s Vote campaign, which reveals that Theresa May’s Brexit deal would leave the country’s GDP around 3.9% lower than remaining in the EU. Remaining in the backstop, GDP would be 2.8% lower, while in a no-deal scenario it would be 5.5% lower.

Academic pardoned by UAE following lobbying by Hunt
The Guardian reports that the Durham University academic Matthew Hedges, jailed by the UAE on spying charges has been pardoned following lobbying efforts by the Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt. The country continues to claim that Hedges was an MI6 agent, and that clemency had been given in response to a letter from his family.

Jenrick to embrace ‘new methods of construction’
The Sun says that Treasury minister Robert Jenrick will today call for ‘new methods of construction’ to be ‘embraced’ as he announces £600bn of infrastructure spending, allowing building projects to be sped up by pre-building components in factories, cutting the construction time of a school from a year to four months and reducing waste by up to 90%.

Shortage of carers will increase costs for pensioners
The Daily Telegraph carries details of a new report by the thinktank IPPR, which warns that there will be a shortage of 350,000 social care workers by 2028, unless their pay increases. The problem will especially affect pensioners, who could face rising care costs as a result.

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Today’s political headlines include May’s fight to save her Brexit plans, the committee telling advertisers to boycott tech giants, Mike Ashley’s demands to give evidence on saving the high street and the CBI’s doubts over Brexit deal.  

May fights to save her Brexit plans
The Guardian claims that Theresa May is fighting to save her Brexit deal on two fronts, following the publication of the text of the political declaration yesterday. Tory backbenchers repeatedly called on her to renegotiate the deal during a debate yesterday, while the EU has warned that no further concessions can be made. The Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez [pictured] has even claimed that he will ‘veto Brexit’ over Spain’s concerns about Gibraltar.

Advertisers should boycott tech giants, committee says
The Times reports that Parliament’s Intelligence and Security Committee has called for advertisers to boycott tech companies like Facebook and Google unless they demonstrate a serious commitment to tackle terrorist material online, warning that this had been a key contributor to incidents including the Manchester bombing. Dominic Grieve, the committee’s chair, said that firms should follow the example of advertisers such as Unilever.

Mike Ashley demands to give MPs evidence on saving the high street
According to The Guardian, Sports Direct founder Mike Ashley has demanded to give evidence to the Commons Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee on how to save the high street. The committee originally asked for a representative from House of Fraser to speak as part of a panel of four, but Ashley felt that this ‘wouldn’t achieve anything’.

Internal email reveals CBI’s doubts about Brexit deal
An email accidentally sent to ITV News has revealed a difference in opinion within the CBI over Theresa May’s Brexit deal. While the organisation’s Director-General Carolyn Fairbairn has publicly welcomed the deal, while admitting that it is ‘not perfect’, an internal email from the business groups’ head of EU negotiations described it as ‘not a good deal’.

New teams to tackle drugs in prisons
The Sun reports that Justice Secretary David Gauke has announced the creation of new ‘SWAT teams’ in 100 prisons to tackle gangs behind drug-fuelled violence in jails. The teams of specially-trained prison officers will detect drugs, mobile phones and other illicit items, and have already been deployed at eight high-security prisons.

New report criticises smart meter rollout
The Daily Mail carries details of a report by the National Audit Office that warns that plans to install smart meters in every home by 2020 will not succeed, will cost at least £500m more than estimated and the devices may not deliver the cuts to energy bills which were originally promised.

Home Office admits to failings over settlement visas
The Financial Times says that the Home Office has admitted that it wrongly applied rules, leading it to refuse settlement visas to professionals over tax discrepancies. Immigration minister Caroline Nokes said that the findings of the department’s inquiry would be ‘used to inform our future decision-making’.

Farage calls for UKIP leader to be sacked
The Daily Telegraph reports that Nigel Farage has called for Gerard Batten to be sacked as UKIP leader after he appointed the EDL founder Tommy Robinson as an adviser, warning that if UKIP continued heading on its current trajectory, it would be ‘finished’. Robinson is banned from joining UKIP under a rule barring those with EDL links from becoming members.

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Today’s political headlines include the stalled attempt to topple May, DUP abandoning the Government in Budget votes, Hunt condemns rebels and May’s secret plan to abandon the backstop. 

Attempt to topple May stalls
The Daily Telegraph says that Conservative Brexiteers have admitted their attempt to remove Theresa May as leader has ‘stalled’ and that ‘bitter in-fighting’ has broken out among them, with it now appearing unlikely that enough support will be received for a confidence vote in the Prime Minister before her Brexit deal is voted on next month. The paper adds that the ‘gang of five’ Brexiteer cabinet ministers has also broken up, after they were unable to reach a united position.

DUP abandons Government in Budget votes
The Times says that the Government was abandoned by the DUP in votes on the Finance Bill last night, which the paper claims has ‘all but killed off’ the deal between the two. The DUP abstained on three votes and voted with Labour on a further one. The DUP has claimed that the deal between the two parties is not dead, although party sources linked the decision to its displeasure with May’s Brexit deal, and the Government has not commented.

Rebels risk causing ‘the most appalling chaos’, Hunt says
The Guardian says that Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned that if rebels succeed in toppling Theresa May, they risk causing ‘the most appalling chaos’. He said that the Prime Minister had an ‘incredibly challenging’ job and was ‘by far the best-placed person’ to carry out. He said that he was in talks with European counterparts to ‘clarify both sides’ intentions’ in the political declaration on the future UK-EU relationship.

May’s ‘secret plan’ to abandon the backstop
The Sun claims that Theresa May has a ‘secret plan’ to abandon the Irish backstop through a clause in the Withdrawal Agreement which says that ‘alternative arrangements’ can be agreed to keep the border open, such as the use of new technology. A delegation of Brexiteers including Iain Duncan Smith, Owen Paterson, Lord Lilley and Lord Trimble discussed the plan with the Prime Minister yesterday.

Spain demands veto over Gibraltar
The Guardian reports that Spain will reject the Brexit deal unless it is given a special veto to prevent any future UK-EU trade agreement from covering Gibraltar. Spain’s Foreign Minister, Josep Borrell, said that future negotiations on Gibraltar must be ‘separate’ from those between the UK and the EU.

Rudd condemns UN poverty report
According to The Guardian, Amber Rudd, who was appearing in the Commons as Work and Pensions Secretary for the first time, has condemned a UN inquiry into poverty in the UK because of the ‘extraordinary political nature’ of its language, which she described as ‘wholly inappropriate’. The Times adds that Rudd used her debut to indicate that she would need more funding to fix problems with Universal Credit.

Hunt seeks to repay Iran £400m to free prisoner
The Times reports that Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is trying to get approval to repay £400m owed to Iran for four decades in a bid to release Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, currently imprisoned in Iran. A previous attempt to do so by his predecessor Boris Johnson was blocked by Downing Street to avoid breaching sanctions or being seen to pay for a hostage’s release.

Labour to scrap civil servant degree requirement
The Financial Times reports that Labour’s Shadow Education Secretary Angela Rayner is to announce that the party would remove the requirement for civil servants to have higher academic qualifications unless they are genuinely relevant to the role in order to tackle ‘snobbery’ and establish a ‘genuine parity of esteem’.

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