As it happenedended

Brexit news: Jeremy Corbyn urges Theresa May to rule out 'devastating' no-deal as EU rejects her plan B

Catch up on the day's events from Westminster

Ashley Cowburn

Political Correspondent

,Lizzy Buchan

Wednesday 23 January 2019 18:07 GMT

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Brexit: What will happen in 2019?

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Theresa May has repeatedly refused to rule out a no-deal Brexit ahead of a critical vote next week, as MPs ramp up the pressure on the prime minister to change course.

Jeremy Corbyn has urged the prime minister to take a “devastating” no-deal exit off the table during a tense prime minister’s questions clash, where Ms May accused the Labour leader of being prepared to "meet Hamas, Hezbollah and the IRA" but declining to meet her to discuss Brexit.

It comes as a prominent Conservative MP condemned Liam Fox, after he suggested those backing a move to extend Article 50 were motivated by “having no Brexit at all”.

Hitting back at the international trade secretary, Anna Soubry said Dr Fox’s comments were “not true” while another Tory MP said he "has never been very good at detail".

See below how we covered this story live

Cabinet ministers push for Theresa May to back time-limited backstop planTheresa May is under pressure from her cabinet to back a plan to secure a time limit on the Irish backstop hated by so many Tory MPs.Three senior ministers are pushing for her to support the move to let parliament vote on introducing a sunset clause to the backstop.They argue it would give her leverage to extract concessions from the European Union, but there is reticence to explicitly back the plan in Downing Street because it could go down badly in Brussels, as it contradicts the deal Ms May spent 19 months negotiating.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 08:27

Britons travelling to EU face delays and questioning after no-deal BrexitBritons travelling to EU countries face major delays and questioning by border officials if there is a no-deal Brexit, a leaked official document reveals.The UK would also suffer a “degradation of border security”, after losing access to a crucial EU database with details about suspected criminals, the Border Forceagency warns.There would be “disruption to commercial flight schedules, leading to flights arriving out of sequence”, its memo also says – triggering big queues at airports, as well as to board the Eurostar.In the presentation, the key Home Office agency admits for the first time that it will be unable to distinguish between EU residents in the UK and new EU arrivals, said Sky News, which obtained it.It says there is the possibility of “disruption”, “loss of data” and an “additional clandestine threat” emerging from less co-operation with EU countries.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 08:28

EU confirms it would enforce a hard border in Ireland in event of no-deal BrexitThe European Union has confirmed it would enforce a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland in the event of a no-deal Brexit.The European Commission said it was “pretty obvious” that new infrastructure would be needed at the sensitive border if the UK crashed out of the EU without a deal.The comments blow a hole in claims by Brexiteers that there would definitely not be a hard border in Ireland regardless of whether there is a withdrawal agreement or not.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 08:43

A cross-party bid for parliament to “take control” to block a no-deal Brexit has received a big boost after Labour said it is “highly likely” to back it.

Opposition support would all-but guarantee that the plan – to force Theresa Mayto seek an extension to the Article 50 process until the end of 2019, unless her deal passes by the end of February – will win Commons approval.

John McDonnell described the backbench bill, put forward by Labour's Yvette Cooper and Conservative Nick Boles as “sensible”, ahead of a crucial vote next Tuesday.

Labour 'highly likely' to back plan to block no-deal Brexit

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 09:20

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, the international trade secretary, Liam Fox, has said overturning the referendum result would be politically "calamitous" and worse than a no-deal Brexit.

Dr Fox, who is currently at the world economic forum in Davos, said that some amendments tabled by backbenchers presented a "real danger" constitutionally.

He said that "there are many who talk about delaying Brexit when what they really mean is not having Brexit at all", saying that would be the "worst outcome".

Asked if he believed that a delayed Brexit - via an extended Article 50 period - was worse than a no-deal Brexit, he said: "You need to think about the political consequences as well as the short-term economic consequences.

"There is no doubt that leaving with a deal and minimising disruption both to the UK and our EU trading partners is in our best interest.

"But I think the most calamitous outcome would be for Parliament, having promised to respect the result of the referendum, to turn around and say it wouldn't."

But he has been criticised for his comments, with the prominent Tory MP Anna Soubry, suggesting his claims were wrong about those supporting the amendment to extend Article 50, and prevent a no-deal Brexit.

A second Conservative MP also had some comments for Dr Fox after his appearance on the BBC.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 09:32

This is from Sky News' Tom Boadle

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 09:45

Wetherspoon’s profits to fall despite higher sales as boss insists no-deal Brexit will help pub chainJD Wetherspoon is expecting profits to fall in the first half of this year, despite sales rising by 7.2 per cent so far this financial year.The company reported like-for-like sales growth of 7.2 per cent for the first 12 weeks of the second quarter, while like-for-like sales in the year to date have risen 6.3 per cent.However, costs in the first half have been “considerably higher” than the previous year, particularly for labour, which is up by around £30m.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 10:13

In news unrelated to Brexit, Geoffrey Cox, the attorney general, is being questioned at parliament's justice committee.

He says there have been significant cuts to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), and he believes the institution will not be able to sustain its current service, if further budget cuts are made. He says the government has no intention to do so.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 10:59

In an interview with the Luxembourg Times, the EU's chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier, has been asked about the prospect of "delaying Brexit" by seeking an extension to Article 50.

He says: "If Britain asks for an extension, it has to be approved by EU leaders. "They will only agree if three questions are answered: first and second, why and how long? And third, will not that be a problem for holding the EU elections in May? I have no clear legal answer to the third question yet. It is important that the EU's democratic processes are not disturbed by this, however.

"The first two questions are complex and interconnected: it needs a stable majority in London for all laws related to Brexit that need to be adopted. This will need time."

Dashing the hopes of Theresa May and prominent Brexiteers he says: "We cannot tie the backstop to a time limit".

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 11:09

Jeremy Corbyn wrong about European Union state aid restrictions, says IPPRJeremy Corbyn’s fears about the potential for European Union state aid rules to thwart Labour’s manifesto reforms are unfounded, according to an analysis by the IPPR think tank.The Labour leader said last month that the EU rules on industrial support to certain sectors “need to be looked at again” and some close to the leadership have argued that Labour should embrace Brexit on the grounds that a total repture with the EU is necessary to achieve the party’s economic goals.But the IPPR, which had close links to Labour in the past, argues in a new report that the UK has more scope to deliver state aid in the EU than is ”generally understood”, including subsidising the railways.“Successive UK governments have said their hands are tied in developing more proactive industrial policy by European Union rules. But it appears that this is not, in fact, true,” said Marley Morris, an IPPR researcher.The report points out that state aid is permissible under EU law when it assists regional rebalancing, small companies, research and development and the environment.

Ashley Cowburn23 January 2019 11:19

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