Brexit news: May was warned her three plans for Ireland were incompatible with each other, former ambassador tells MPs
All the updates, as they happened
Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK
Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight
Tory leadership candidates Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt have failed to brand Donald Trump's tweets - telling American congresswoman to "go home" - as racist.
In the final head-to-head debate between the two men vying to replace Theresa May in Downing Street, did, however, offer some of their strongest condemnation of the US president so far as transatlantic relations continue to sour.
Ex-foreign secretary Mr Johnson, the frontrunner in the contest, also faced anger after his essay on Islam was unearthed, arguing it had caused the Muslim world to be "literally centuries behind" the West.
It comes as a new cross-party study of Brexit options warns Mr Johnson will be embarking on “a kamikaze act” that will force him out of No 10 if he tries to deliver Brexit without a fresh referendum.
Please allow a moment for the live blog to load
Five members of Labour's NEC, including Tom Watson, are calling for a party rule change at conference to establish an independent complaints process to deal with allegations of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia or transphobia.
Here is the motion in full
Theresa May was warned that triggering Article 50 when she did was a bad idea, the UK's former ambassador to the EU has said.
Sir Ivan Rogers has told the foreign affairs committee that he was contacted by Olly Robbins over the PM's pending announcement to start the Brexit countdown.
Sir Ivan said: "Olly rang me up to say, 'She's going to announce the date set for triggering Article 50 tomorrow. I don't think that's a very good idea. What do you think?'
"I said no I don't think it's a very good idea because you lose a lot of leverage the moment you do that.
"But presumably if they are telling you that they are going to announce it, we're fighting a losing battle but I think it's worth fighting just to at least register that I don't think its very wise because that's exactly what the opposition wants you to do."
Sir Ivan Rogers also said one of the least popular moves he made was in 2016 when he told Theresa May her three Brexit plans for Ireland were incompatible with each other.
Theresa May was warned that her three Brexit priorities for Ireland were incompatible back in 2016, the UK's former ambassador to the EU has said.
Sir Ivan Rogers also said he discussed the same dilemma with Boris Johnson, the frontrunner to become the next prime minister.
The former diplomat told the Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday that Ms May's speech setting out her Brexit red lines prompted him to think they would cause a stir in Brussels.
And that he and then cabinet secretary Lord Jeremy Heywood had no sight of the address before it was delivered.
Sir Ivan said that in 2016 he delivered "one of the most unpopular things" he had told to the PM.
He said it was that "you have made three commitments in good faith to different audiences, but they are not really compatible with each other".
"You have said to the Irish ... under no circumstances will a hard border be erected across the island of Ireland.
"You have said to the Democratic Unionist community under no circumstances will there be divergence from the rest of Great Britain.
"And you have said to the right of your own party that you are heading out of the customs union.
"You can't do all three. You have got to choose two of the three."
The EU Parliament has confirmed Ursula von der Leyen is the new European Commission President after a 383-327 vote.
Here's a roundup on proposed changes for the Labour Party in the wake of the BBC's Panorama programme investigating incidences of alleged antisemitism in the party:
Labour's governing body has been urged to support a motion which would auto-exclude members where there is "irrefutable evidence" accusing them of racism and other forms of discrimination.
Tom Watson, the party's deputy leader, was among five members of the National Executive Committee who submitted the motion to the chair of the NEC.
The proposed change, which will be debated at a meeting next Tuesday, calls on the NEC to bring forward forward rule changes to the annual conference.
Labour has been rocked by a Panorama programme which claimed that senior figures, including Jeremy Corbyn's communications chief Seumas Milne and general secretary Jennie Formby, had interfered in anti-Semitism investigations.
The party has denied the claims and written a complaint to the BBC.
The motion states: "Members who express racist, sexist, homophobic or transphobic views have no place in the Labour Party.
"We need radical change and fresh thinking in our disciplinary rules to swiftly and fairly root out the evils of racism in our party and restore confidence in our processes."
It says the NEC resolves to "bring forward rules changes to this year's conference that: automatically excludes a member from the party where there is irrefutable evidence of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia or transphobia".
And it says the NEC resolves to establish an "independent process to deal with disciplinary matters involving all forms of racism, sexism, misogyny, homophobia or transphobia.
"This is to also include the process for overseeing auto exclusion of members and any subsequent member appeals.
"We will invite the Bar Council, or another appropriate body, to appoint a person wholly independent from the Labour Party to devise the detail of this scheme, consult with Jewish and other communities and report back to the NEC."
Labour MP Sir George Howarth and councillors James Asser, Nick Forbes and Alice Perry also signed the motion.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies