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Brexit news – live: UK ‘credibility’ at stake warns Macron as British and French leaders to meet

Brexit news – live: UK ‘credibility’ at stake warns Macron as British and French leaders to meet

The PM has suggested the UK is poised to trigger a legal battle with France over the ongoing fishing dispute as early as next week.

Boris Johnson said he was “worried” Paris “may be about to become in breach, or is already in breach” of the free trade deal agreed between the UK and the EU, and left the possibility of escalating the issue on the table.

It comes after the French president suggested that the UK’s “credibility” is at stake, with Paris threatening to retaliate against Britain’s limited granting of licences for French boats.

Speaking to the FT, Mr Macron said: “When you spend years negotiating a treaty and then a few months later you do the opposite of what was decided on the aspects that suit you the least, it is not a big sign of your credibility.”

Paris is threatening to increase checks on British boats, stop them landing in French ports, slow customs arrangements in Calais and increase tariffs on energy bills in Jersey from Tuesday.

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Key Points

  • UK poised to trigger legal battle with France as early as next week, PM warns

  • Boris Johnson warns of new ‘dark ages’ if world fails to tackle global warning

  • Food banks will have to ‘pick up the pieces’ after Budget, the Trussell Trust has said

  • Sinn Fein deputy leader says balance of power in NI has “shifted irreversibly"

  • No 10 has said they are working to resolve post-Brexit fishing dispute with France

Threats over fishing rights between the UK and France ‘ridiculous’, says chairman of the French ports

11:09 , Emily Atkinson

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Jean-Marc Puissesseau, President and chairman of the ports of Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer, said there would be “terrible” consequences if France carried out its threat of blocking British trawlers from French ports.

Britain are currently granting licenses to “40 little boats” to fish in UK waters.

“If no agreement can be found, it will be a drama, it will be a disaster in your country because the trucks will not cross [the border],” he said.

“I think it is a ridiculous point and I hope that the British will find an agreement, a solution to get out of this point.”

He added: “It will be terrible for both sides of the Channel: for you, for us, for the ports, the fishermen in your country, for the fishermen in our country. And that’s only for 40 little boats which are not allowed to fish in your country, so I hope there will be an agreement on that over the weekend.”

UK poised to trigger legal battle with France as early as next week, PM warns

11:16 , Emily Atkinson

Speaking at the G20 summit in Rome, the prime minister ramped up tensions between the two countries by hinting at sending the dispute to independent arbitration.

Asked if he is “not ruling out that you might trigger the mechanism next week”, Mr Johnson told Sky News: “No of course not. I don’t rule that out.”

Mr Johnson added: “If another European country wants to break the TCA – the Trade and Cooperation agreement – then obviously we will have to take steps to protect UK interests.”

Rob Merrick has the full story here: UK poised to trigger legal battle with France over fish as early as next week, Boris Johnson warns

Reform Party leader to contest by-election following James Brokenshire’s death

11:43 , Emily Atkinson

Richard Tice has announced he will enter the contest in the Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election, as he hit out against the “Consocialism” of Boris Johnson’s Conservative Party.

The by-election was triggered after the death of James Brokenshire, a former Conservative cabinet minister who died of lung cancer earlier this month at the age of 53.

Despite the clear Conservative lead in the constituency, Mr Tice told the Daily Telegraph he wanted to send a “powerful message to Boris Johnson” about the impact of the his government’s manifesto-busting decision to increase taxes.

“Though it is awful that this election is happening at all, I am standing to ensure that a choice is given to the people of Bexley and Sidcup,” said Mr Tice.

11:44 , Emily Atkinson

Reform leader Richard Tice to contest by-election after James Brokenshire’s death

Food banks will have to ‘pick up the pieces’ after Budget, the Trussell Trust has warned

11:53 , Emily Atkinson

Britain’s largest charity of emergency food parcels has warned foodbanks will have to “pick up the pieces” this winter after Rishi Sunak resisted calls to reverse a cut for all universal credit claimants at the Budget.

Speaking to The Independent, Garry Lemon, the director of policy and research at the Trussell Trust foodbank group, stressed that among all the spending announcements on Wednesday “there just wasn’t enough for some of those in our society who need it the most”.

He added: “From the point of view of someone who represents food banks, I’m deeply disappointed by the Budget. Obviously it’s a welcome thing to see low-earning people being able to keep more of what they earn, don’t get me wrong, absolutely welcome that, but foodbanks are once again going to be left to pick up the pieces for people can’t work.

11:54 , Emily Atkinson

Rishi Sunak warned foodbanks will have to ‘pick up the pieces’ after Budget

PM warns of new ‘dark ages’ if world fails to tackle global warning

12:13 , Emily Atkinson

The world could be hurtling toward a new “dark ages” if it fails to confront global warming, the prime minister has warned as in an appeal to the world’s leading economies to do more to cut emissions.

“Civilisation could go backwards and history could go into reverse,” he said in an interview with Channel 4 News.

“Here we are in the Colosseum of Vespasian, the Roman Empire, they weren’t expecting it and they went into reverse. We had a Dark Ages.

“It’s important to remember things can get dramatically worse.”

Mr Johnson was in the Italian capital for a summit of the G20 leaders ahead of the crucial Cop26 climate change talks which start in Glasgow on Monday.

Disgraced MP Rob Roberts to have Conservative membership reinstated

12:45 , Emily Atkinson

The disgraced MP who was suspended from parliament for sexual misconduct breaches will have his Conservative membership restored — a decision labelled by Labour as “scandalous”.

The MP for Delyn, Rob Roberts, was found by an independent panel to have made “repeated unwanted sexual advances” towards a member of staff, was forced to leave the Commons in May for six weeks.

Chair of the Labour Party Anneliese Dodds described the move as “scandalous”, saying Mr Roberts “should have resigned as an MP the moment he was suspended”.

“That he is now set to return to the Conservative party shows they’ve let him off the hook,” she added. “Yet again, there’s one rule for Tory MPs and another for everyone else.”

Sinn Fein deputy leader says balance of power in NI has “shifted irreversibly"

14:14 , Emily Atkinson

Michelle O’Neill has hit out the DUP after their boycott of the North-South Ministerial Council, calling their “continued denial” of equality and rights “dead-end politics.”

Ms O’Neill said during her opening speech at the party’s Ard Fheis that the balance of power at Stormont has “shifted irreversibly” and the political unionist majority is gone.

“It is for the people to decide the next first minister, not the DUP. Sinn Fein is aiming to return as the biggest party, not for the sake of it, but to deliver change.

“[The DUP’s] boycott of the North-South Ministerial Council has been declared unlawful by the High Court.

“Their futile stunt to provoke outrage is in vain. Harking back to a bygone era of unionist rule is a lost cause too.”

No 10 has said they are working to resolve post-Brexit fishing dispute with France

14:24 , Emily Atkinson

Downing Street has said the Government wants to resolve the dispute with France over post-Brexit fishing rights but have declared they will “act in a calibrated manner” should Paris proceed with their threats.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “We have been working with the French government to issue more licences. We stand ready to continue that work.

“We have seen a number of comments from the French government at varying levels in recent days and weeks that we don’t think are justified.

“If France were to proceed with the threats that they have set out, we will act in a calibrated manner.”

Britain has failed poorest nations on climate, chief government adviser warns

14:53 , Emily Atkinson

Lord Deben, chair of the Climate Change Committee, told The Independent the UK had “caused climate change more than anyone else”, but not done enough to secure global funding for those now hit hardest by its effects.

He also described the UK’s decision to slash the foreign aid budget as “immoral.”

He said: “The one weakness we go in with is over helping the developing countries.

“Britain has caused climate change more than anyone else. We invented the Industrial Revolution, it’s part of our history. We’ve caused climate change and we’ve got to pay for it.

“The fact that we haven’t yet put together the money which we promised to help the developing countries move from where they are to where they ought to be is a considerable drawback.”

14:54 , Emily Atkinson

UK has failed poorest nations on climate, top government adviser warns

The Queen is ‘on very good form’, PM says

15:27 , Emily Atkinson

Boris Johnson has described the Queen as being on “very good form” in an interview with Channel 4 News earlier today.

It comes after she was advised by her doctors to rest for at least the next two weeks and to undertake only “desk-based duties”, according to Buckingham Palace.

The Prime Minister said: “I spoke to her majesty and she’s on very good form.”

“She’s just got to follow the advice of her doctors and get some rest and I think that’s the important thing. I think the whole country wishes her well.”

15:31 , Emily Atkinson

Queen on ‘very good form,’ says Boris Johnson