Brexit news: Farage hit by milkshake in Newcastle as Tories jockey for position in race to replace May
Conservative leadership race continues as health secretary refuses to rule out bid
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Nigel Farage has been attacked with a milkshake during a campaign stop in Newcastle. The Brexit Party leader was furious with his security team and later said that "normal campaigning is becoming impossible".
It came as Theresa May was set to make a last-ditch offer to MPs in a fourth attempt to win support for her Brexit deal, even as the race to replace her as Conservative leader continues. She will enter discussions with senior ministers after cross-party talks with Labour broke down last week.
Her plan has yet to be finalised, but it is understood to include additional protection on workers’ rights and the environment, as well as clarification of how the UK will seek to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. There is scepticism throughout Westminster about its chances of passing.
But the PM suffered a blow when the EU Commission said it would not revisit the withdrawal agreement.
It came as the Liberal Democrats warned that British consumers could face a greater risk of exploitation after Brexit if the UK loses the EU's clout to fine multinational companies.
New analysis by the party shows 44 companies have been fined a total of €13.8bn (£12.1bn) by the European Commission since May 2017, for offences that increase prices and reduce choice for consumers, such as operating cartels, abusing market dominance and misleading competition authorities.
And away from Brexit, the new defence secretary, Penny Mordaunt, was forced to order an urgent review of a secret policy under fire for allowing ministers to share intelligence with allies even if there is a risk of torture.
See below how we covered the day's events live
Nigel Farage has rubbished rumours that he could make a deal with Boris Johnson on Brexit, if the former foreign secretary becomes the next prime minister.
Mr Johnson is widely considered the frontrunner in the race to replace Theresa May.
"When this appalling worst deal in history, new European treaty honed into view Boris wrote in the Daily Telegraph, quite rightly in my view, that it would lead to vassalage and we would become a slave state," Mr Farage said during a campaign visit to Exeter.
"And then what did he do? Ah, yes, he voted for it. He tells us it is appalling and he votes for it and I worry that Boris puts party loyalty above his own conscience and what is good for the country.
"And even if Boris says, 'It's OK Nigel, I didn't really mean to vote for it...', how can I trust what he says, how can I believe anything any of these two mainstream parties tell us after three years of, frankly, open lies and deceit?"
Mr Farage's Brexit Party is currently leading in the polls ahead of Thursday's European elections.
Change UK and the Brexit Party have spent more on Facebook advertising than any other party, ahead of Thursday's European elections.
Change UK spent £107, 442 on Facebook in the 30 days from 19 April and the Brexit Party spent £95, 222 in the same period, new data shows.
Labour came sixth in the spending ranking, having invested £46, 516 on Facebook advertising, while the Conservatives were ninth having spent only £23, 218.
Facebook began releasing data on spending on its platform last year, after facing criticism for how it shared personal data with advertisers and political groups, including Cambridge Analytica.
A group of moderate Conservative MPs will meet in parliament on Monday, as the Tory leadership race intensifies.
Work and Pensions Secretary Amber Rudd and former Cabinet ministers Damian Green and Nicky Morgan are all expected to set out their vision for a centre-ground Conservative Party during a meeting of the One Nation group.
Ms Rudd has said the group stands for "the state having an active role in fighting injustices, in environmental standards and a belief in free enterprise".
"There are no simple answers to complex questions," she said.
"A pragmatic, compassionate centre right has never been more vital."
The creation of the group is viewed as an attempt to prevent hard Brexiteers from taking the UK out of the EU without a deal.
Former work and pensions secretary Esther McVey will also set out her leadership pitch at the launch of Blue Collar Conservatism, a group created to persuade working class voters to opt for the Tories.
Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has already confirmed that he will stand in the leadership election.
Christian Allard, an SNP candidate standing in Thursday's European elections, has told Gordon Brown to "apologise to Scotland" after the former prime minister criticised the party for its focus on Scottish independence.
"People in Scotland remember Gordon Brown as playing a key role in the campaign to ensure that we would continue having to live under Tory governments we didn't vote for - and now that Tory Government is trying to drag Scotland out of the EU against our will," Mr Allard said on Monday.
"So if he wants people to even consider listening to Labour on anything, Mr Brown should start by apologising to Scotland for the mess he has helped create.
"While Labour are all over the place on Brexit, a vote for the SNP is a vote to stop Brexit."
Treason laws in the UK may be updated to cover terrorists and "hostile state activity," Sajid Javid has said.
“If updating the old offence of treason would help us counter hostile state activity, then there is merit in considering that too," the home secretary said on Monday, during a speech to security officials at Scotland Yard.
Read our piece on Mr Javid's remarks here: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uk-treason-laws-sajid-javid-terrorism-syria-isis-bride-home-office-a8921616.html
Sajid Javid has refused to discuss the Tory leadership battle, despite speculation in Westminster that he is considering a bid for Downing Street.
"The prime minister has said herself at some point she will leave," he said on Monday.
"I think when she does say that, there won't be a shortage of candidates.
"Whether I will be one of those, you'll just have to wait and see."
Former foreign secretary Boris Johnson has already said he will stand in a future leadership race and health secretary Matt Hancock refused to rule out standing during an interview on Monday.
The health secretary has said he has a "strong view" about the sort of leader needed to replace Theresa May, despite refusing to confirm that will stand in a future leadership election.
"We need a leader not just for now but also for the future, we need to be absolutely four-square in the centre-ground of British politics," Matt Hancock said in an interview with the BBC.
He claimed that lots of people had urged him to stand despite poor approval ratings among Tory grassroots.
Read more about the health secretary's remarks here: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/matt-hancock-conservative-leader-run-tory-leadership-polling-members-boris-johnson-a8921531.html
Nigel Farage has accused Gordon Brown of "an absolutely disgusting smear" against the Brexit Party, after the former prime minister called for an investigation into its funding.
Mr Brown is expected to say that the party could be used to "fatally undermine ... the heart of our democratic system" during a speech on Monday.
Questions have been raised over whether foreign donations under £500 could be made to the party through Paypal.
Pro-EU Labour MP Chris Bryant also raised concerns, saying: "It would be simple for a foreign power or individual to fund (the Brexit Party) by paying hundreds or thousands of £499 in sterling or other currencies as the party does not even verify names.
"Our democracy is basically up for sale."
Downing Street has acknowledged US concerns over a "heightened threat" from Iran, but said the UK was concerned about the potential for "escalation" of instability in the area.
Donald Trump issued a stern threat to the Islamic Republic in a tweet on Sunday, saying: "If Iran wants to fight, that will be the official end of Iran. Never threaten the United States again!"
Asked whether Theresa May was concerned by the president's bellicose rhetoric, the prime minister's official spokesman said: "We know that the US has serious concerns about the heightened threat from Iran. We have ourselves long been clear about our concerns over Iran's destabilising activity and the potential for escalation."
Senior ministers will consider whether MPs should hold indicative votes on Brexit, Theresa May's spokesperson has said.
The possibility will be considered by the cabinet when they meet on Tuesday.
The prime minister is due to bring the Withdrawal Agreement back before the commons in early June.
Her spokesperson said he was unable to confirm further details about the bill.
Theresa May is also believed to be considering a package of measures to win support for the bill but few in Westminster believe that it will pass.
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