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Today’s Political Headlines includes the latest Brexit discussions, Gauke’s call for prison rehabilitation, crimes leading to charges and calls for two Tories to quit in pairing row. 

May to call on EU to ‘evolve’ its position
The BBC has details of a speech to be given by Theresa May in Belfast this morning, in which she will warn that she cannot accept the ‘economic and constitutional dislocation of a formal ‘third country’ customs border within our own country’ and call on the EU to ‘evolve its position in kind’. The Times adds that EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier used remarks before his first meeting with the new Brexit Secretary, Dominic Raab, yesterday to warn that that it would be a ‘challenge’ to find common ground between the two sides. The Mirror says that Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar warned yesterday that a ‘no deal’ Brexit would leave planes unable to fly between the two countries.

Gauke calls for prisons to focus on rehabilitation
Justice Secretary David Gauke has told The Daily Telegraph that prisons should ‘change lives’ and give prisoners ‘hope’ rather than focusing on retribution and that the prison service would ‘struggle’ to cope with significant increases in the number of prisoners. He claimed that short sentences should only be a ‘last resort’ as they don’t reduce reoffending.

Over 90% of crimes do not result in a charge
The Times says that new Home Office crime figures show that just 9.1% of crimes in England and Wales last year resulted in any charges, a fall from 15% three years ago. Separate figures showed an increase in violent crime and the lowest level of police officers in 22 years. Police Minister Nick Hurd claimed that the Government was ‘taking decisive action’.

Calls for Conservative chief whip and party chair to quit over pairing row
The Guardian reports that the Conservatives have admitted that the Chief Whip, Julian Smith, asked MPs to breach pairing agreements during a series of Brexit votes on Tuesday. Only party chair Brandon Lewis, paired with Lib Dem Jo Swinson who was on maternity leave, followed the instruction. Labour has called for both Lewis and Smith to resign.

MPs criticise Director of Public Prosecutions over disclosure failings
The Daily Telegraph carries details of a report by the Commons Justice Committee into the Crown Prosecution Service’s failures to disclose evidence in court cases. The committee’s chair, Bob Neill, said that if the Director of Public Prosecutions, Alison Saunders, had not already announced her departure, he would be asking her ‘to consider her position’. The report claims that she lacked ‘focus and leadership’ in tackling the issue.

Border taxes to be relaxed if ‘no deal’ Brexit happens
The Financial Times reports that Mel Stride, Financial Secretary to the Treasury, told a House of Lords sub-committee that the Government will tell officials to relax measures to collect taxes in order to help keep traffic flowing at borders in the event of a ‘no deal’ Brexit. However, Stride added that the Government would ‘not compromise on security’.

McVey admits universal credit problems
The Guardian says that Work and Pensions Secretary Esther McVey, admitted to problems with universal credit and suggested that further changes will be made, including debt repayment, supporting the self-employed and benefit payment cycles for working claimants.

Hancock tells doctors to ‘throw away their pagers’
The Daily Telegraph reports that Matt Hancock is to use his first speech as Health and Social Care Secretary to call for doctors and nurses to ‘throw away their pagers’ and use smartphone apps instead. Speaking at West Suffolk Hospital, he will outline three early priorities: ‘technology, the health and care workforce and prevention’.

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Today’s Political Headlines includes BoJo’s claim that it’s not too late to save Brexit, Raab’s first meeting with Barnier, May’s tour of Britain and Labour’s conflict over whether to take action against Margaret Hodge. 

Johnson claims it is ‘not too late to save Brexit’
The Daily Telegraph reports that Boris Johnson used his resignation speech to claim that it was ‘not too late to save Brexit’ and described Theresa May’s Chequers plan as a ‘miserable, permanent limbo’. He criticised the Government for ‘a fog of self-doubt’ and for allowing Northern Ireland to ‘dominate the debate’, and called for a return to the approach set out by Theresa May at Lancaster House. The Sun suggests that Johnson had prepared a ‘much more damning version of the speech’ but was persuaded not to deliver it by allies.

Raab prepares for first meeting with Barnier amid ‘no deal’ warnings
As the BBC reports, Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab is to hold his first meeting with the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier today. It has also seen a draft European Commission paper warning of the impact of a ‘no deal’ Brexit on European businesses and citizens. The BBC adds that the National Audit Office has warned that millions of International Driving Permits may need to be issued in less than a year if the two parties don’t agree on mutual recognition of driving licences. The Financial Times claims that Raab is to publish 70 documents explaining how a ‘no deal’ Brexit would affect a range of sectors.

May plans tour of grassroots Conservatives
According to The Times, Theresa May is planning to go on a tour of grassroots Conservatives this summer in a bid to convince them to back her Brexit policy. Earlier this week, party chairman held a meeting with heads of local associations, described as ‘tense’ and ‘emotionally charged’. The Guardian adds that May struggled to explain her plan for post-Brexit customs when giving evidence to the Commons Liaison Committee yesterday.

Labour to take action against Margaret Hodge
According to The Guardian, the Labour Party is in ‘open conflict’ over a decision to take disciplinary action against Margaret Hodge after she called Jeremy Corbyn an antisemite. Separately, John Woodcock resigned from the party, claiming that an ongoing disciplinary process against him had been rigged.

Soldiers compensated for higher taxes in Scotland
The BBC reports that the Government is to give compensation to about 8,000 soldiers who face having to pay more income tax because they live in Scotland. The total cost will come to around £4m this year and the payments will be reviewed annually. Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson criticised what he described as an ‘unfair raid’ on troops’ pay.

Schools to give lessons on mental health
The Times says that the Government plans to add lessons on mental health to new compulsory lessons on sex and relationships in all schools from autumn 2020. The proposals would also cover physical health, exercise and healthy eating. Education Secretary Damian Hinds said the policy would ensure ‘young people are ready for the adult world’.

Proposed rule change would grant anonymity to MPs accused of cheating expenses
The Daily Telegraph says the Government is attempting to quietly push through a change which would grant MPs accused of breaking expenses rules anonymity. As the paper notes, the news comes as DUP MP Ian Paisley Jr is given a 30-day suspension from the Commons for a breach of the rules.

Parliamentary committee warns of legal aid ‘deserts’
The Guardian carries details of a new report by the Joint Committee on Human Rights, which warns that legal aid ‘deserts’ have emerged as a result of changes to the law in 2012. The report calls for an urgent review of how people can enforce their rights, changes to Legal Aid Agency’s funding scheme and more legal support for families at inquests.

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Today’s Political Headlines includes Greening’s calls for a second referendum, Eurosceptic Tories planning a whipping, Labour’s antisemitism definition may breach the Equality Act and Boris Johnson’s attack. 

Greening calls for second referendum
The Times reveals that Justine Greening has become the first senior Conservative to call for a second referendum, criticising the Prime Minister’s Brexit plan as the ‘worst of both worlds’. Greening suggests a vote with three options: remaining in the EU, the negotiated deal, or a clean break, with voters given first and second preference votes. Speaking yesterday, the paper adds, Theresa May said that her proposals were ‘a good deal for the UK’ and claimed that Donald Trump had told her to sue the EU instead of negotiating.

Eurosceptic Tories set up whipping operation
According to The Daily Telegraph, Eurosceptic Conservative MPs have established a ‘party within a party’, with a whipping operation being run by former Brexit minister Steve Baker. More than 100 Tory MPs are now in a WhatsApp group being run by Baker, who has urged them to vote for four amendments to the Taxation (Cross Border) Trade Bill today. The paper also claims that party chair Brandon Lewis threatened to cut funding for Andrea Jenkyns’ constituency after she called for Theresa May to quit.

Labour’s antisemitism definition may breach the Equality Act
The Guardian reports that the Jewish Labour Movement is to give the Labour Party advice which claims that its definition of antisemitism could breach the Equality Act. The advice states that because the definition does not follow the Macpherson principle (a racist incident is one which the victim perceives to be racist), it would result in Jews being treated less favourably than other groups.

Boris Johnson attacks ‘lack of self-confidence’ in Brexit
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, Boris Johnson has used his first article since resigning as Foreign Secretary to attack the ‘lack of self-confidence, in the current debate on the EU, about whether we can do things for ourselves’ and to call for Britons to use Brexit as a chance to ‘rediscover the spirit of dynamism’ of the Victorian period.

Rudd quit because civil servants let her down
The Daily Telegraph reports that an internal inquiry has found that Amber Rudd stepped down as Home Secretary because senior civil servants failed to tell her about targets to remove illegal immigrants. The paper adds that the two civil servants in question were moved out of their posts following the inquiry’s conclusion and that a summary of the report has been shown to the Commons Home Affairs Committee.

Utility firms deterred from investing because of Corbyn’s nationalisation plans
The Financial Times says that Paul Drechsler, the vice-president of the CBI, has warned that utility firms are being deterred from investing because of Jeremy Corbyn’s plans for renationalisation. He has called on the party ‘to be very clear about the scope of the policy’ and carry out ‘a high-quality fact-based assessment of the pros and cons’.

May to announce £300m for aerospace industry
The BBC reports that Theresa May is to use a speech at the Farnborough Airshow today to announce extra investment for the British aerospace industry. More than £300m will be made available for various projects, including more environmentally-friendly aircraft, two new spaceports and a commitment to build a new fighter aircraft.

Mordaunt tells Catholic Church to change teaching on contraception
According to The Daily Telegraph, International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt used a meeting with aides of Pope Francis to call for the Catholic Church to relax its ban on the use of contraception. She told the paper that she called on the church to ‘help us save lives, especially of young mothers’.

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Today’s Political Headlines includes Trump’s attack on UK politics, Eurosceptics threatening to vote against the Trade Bill, Hammond defending treatment of financial services and O’Mara quitting Labour.  

Trump says May’s Brexit plans would ‘kill’ US trade deal
In an interview with The Sun, US President Donald Trump makes the explosive claim that Theresa May’s new Brexit approach would ‘kill’ a proposed new trade deal between the two countries and criticises her for ignoring his negotiating advice. Trump, who is visiting the UK, also criticises Sadiq Khan for having ‘done a very bad job on terrorism’, claims that immigration is causing the UK to lose its culture and praises Boris Johnson.

Eurosceptics threaten to vote against Trade Bill in protest over Brexit plan
According to The Times, Eurosceptic Conservative MPs reacted with anger to the publication of Theresa May’s Brexit white paper yesterday, claiming that the proposed role for the European Court of Justice and movement of people breached red lines. As a result, they have threatened to vote against the Government’s Trade Bill next week.

Hammond defends treatment of financial services in Brexit white paper
Chancellor Philip Hammond has written in the Financial Times, defending the treatment of financial services in the Government’s Brexit white paper. He says that the proposals are a ‘pragmatic solution’ which would allow the sector ‘to flourish’. However, Catherine McGuinness, the City of London Corporation’s policy chair, described the white paper as ‘a real blow’ for financial and professional services.

O’Mara quits Labour
The Guardian reports that Labour MP Jared O’Mara has quit the party, despite only having the whip reinstated earlier this year following his suspension as a result of the discovery of a series of offensive posts online. He claims to have been made to ‘feel like a criminal’ and that he had felt unwelcome in the party as a ‘working-class, underprivileged disabled man’.

Ofcom head calls for online firms to be regulated
Writing in The Times, the head of Ofcom Sharon White calls for independent regulation of large online firms such as Facebook and Google in a bid to tackle fake news and harmful content. The firms would face penalties if they failed to act. The Government is due to set out its position in an internet safety white paper later this year.

Taxpayers could lose over £5bn over MoD property deal
The Guardian carries details of a report by the Commons Public Accounts Committee, which warns that taxpayers could lose more than £5bn as a result of a 1996 decision to sell off housing owned by the Ministry of Defence. This is an increase from an earlier estimate of £4.2bn because the committee expects rental costs to grow after a renegotiation in 2021, despite the Ministry of Defence predicting that they will fall.

Labour demands ‘hostile environment’ review
The BBC reports that, following the suspension of data-sharing aimed at identifying illegal immigrants, Labour has called on the Government to go further and conduct a detailed review of the ‘hostile environment’ policy. Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott warned that this was needed to avoid a repeat of the problems affecting the Windrush generation.

Charity Commission finds ‘serious failings’ at Presidents Club
The Financial Times says that the Charity Commission’s investigation into the Presidents Club following the paper’s exposé of its annual dinner has found serious failings on the part of the charity’s three trustees. Jo Swinson, deputy leader of the Lib Dems, welcomed the findings.

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