Wanderlust

Tag: theresa may

  • UNITED KINGDOM ‘will now not industry away fishing’ in Brexit deal – Might

    Fishing boats moored in Brixham harbour Symbol copyright Getty Photographs Image caption The executive’s plan has received a cautious welcome from the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation

    The United Kingdom executive has insisted its Brexit agreement will protect the fishing industry despite claims it’s getting ready to “promote out” fishermen.

    The government’s draft agreement on put up-Brexit family members says the united kingdom shall be an “impartial coastal country”.

    The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation gave the document a wary welcome while it was published on Thursday.

    However First Minister Nicola Sturgeon predicted the industry could be used as a “bargaining chip” in the future.

    And Scottish Conservative MP Ross Thomson, a prominent Brexiteer who has been an outspoken critic of Top Minister Theresa Would Possibly’s option to Brexit, mentioned the settlement was once “unacceptable” because it intended “sovereignty over our waters” would be “sacrificed for a business deal”.

    Image copyright BBC / PA Image caption David Mundell and Nicola Sturgeon had clashed over plans for fishing put up-Brexit

    The Final draft of the political assertion – a textual content outlining the long run dating among the eu and the united kingdom after Brexit – accommodates impartial language about fishing.

    It says each side will “use their best endeavours” to finish talks in time for the uk to leave, and adds that they need to cooperate on access to waters and quota stocks “throughout the context of the overall financial partnership”.

    Look back on FMQs on Holyrood Live Will the uk and the eu succeed in a deal on fishing?

    Mr Thomson and Ms Sturgeon each argue that the latter element presentations ministers may use fishing as a “bargaining chip” in negotiations with Europe put up-Brexit, and each have called on Mr Mundell to consider his place.

    The first minister instructed MSPs that the announcement “represents some other Tory promote out of Scottish fishermen”.

    She said: “What we see is that the Scottish fishing industry will probably be used as a bargaining chip in wider business talks.

    “In phrases of David Mundell’s position I Might merely say this – his position is a matter for him, but when David Mundell is still in place of job by means of the top of today in light of this political statement he’s going to have forfeited perpetually any last ultimate scrap of concept or credibility that he had.”

    Skip Twitter put up by way of @RossThomson_MP

    🐟The political statement commits UNITED KINGDOM to “identify a brand new fisheries settlement on, inter allia, access to waters and quota stocks”. This Means sovereignty over our waters sacrificed for a industry deal. that may be unacceptable. We need to be a normal Unbiased coastal state like Norway. pic.twitter.com/wRCzdSNahf

    — Ross Thomson MP (@RossThomson_MP) November 22, 2018

    Document

    Finish of Twitter publish via @RossThomson_MP

    The Scottish Secretary hit again, announcing he was once “no longer taking lessons on standing up for fishermen from Nicola Sturgeon”.

    He said: “The prime minister has fiercely resisted the efforts of ECU states to make an explicit hyperlink among get entry to to our waters and get entry to to markets.

    “we will negotiate and judge, as an unbiased coastal state, on get admission to and quota on an annual foundation, similar to Norway and Iceland do now.

    “The most reliable solution to ensure the ecu get right of entry to to Scottish waters can be to rejoin the CFP – exactly what Nicola Sturgeon is demanding.”

    Mrs Might informed MPs later within the day that “the fisheries settlement is not one thing we shall be trading off in opposition to any other priorities”.

    ‘Practical sovereignty’

    The govt has gained a few backing from the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation, with chief executive Bertie Armstrong pronouncing the declaration “offers the uk the facility to say its place as an impartial coastal state with practical sovereignty over our waters and natural tools”.

    However he brought that “we all know that a number of EU nations won’t surrender their attempts to link get admission to with industry so as to keep absolute rights to fish round our coastline”.

    He delivered: “we will proceed to hunt assurances from the uk executive that it’ll stay steadfast. we will be able to not relax until the long run arrangements are signed, sealed and delivered and we safe this very important keep watch over over get admission to to our waters and who catches what shares, where and while.”

    Labour in the meantime has criticised the political assertion as “26 obscure and bold pages of buzzwords”.

    Shadow Scottish Secretary Lesley Laird said the file “makes a mockery” of the “purple line” set down by way of the Scottish Tories, announcing that “David Mundell must surrender with rapid impact, and his colleagues should make clear that they won’t improve this half-baked deal”.

  • Brexit plan will prevent EUROPEAN migrants ‘jumping the queue’ – May

    Image copyright EPA

    The Labour leader said Mrs Might’s “botched” deal “breaches the high minister’s personal pink strains” and “makes no mention of protecting frictionless trade”.

    Mr Corbyn recommended the european could imagine re-writing the draft agreement “at the eleventh hour” if MPs rejected the proposals.

    He additionally suggested the uk’s exit from the eu should be a catalyst for far-reaching economic and social modification and a “radical programme of investment” in infrastructure, training and skills.

    Why are other people unsatisfied with the deal?

    The draft report sets out the terms of the united kingdom’s departure, including how so much money can be paid to the european, main points of the transition period, and citizens’ rights.

    The transition length – lately due to remaining until 31 December 2020 – will imply the uk is formally out of the european, however still abiding by means of such a lot of its regulations. during this time, the two sides hope to negotiate a permanent trade deal.

    The UK and the eu need to keep away from a hard Northern Ireland border no matter what occurs, in order that they agreed to a “backstop” – described as an insurance policy through Mrs Would Possibly – geared toward reaching this if the sides can not agree a trade deal that avoids a physically visual border.

    Symbol copyright EPA

    But former International Secretary Boris Johnson used his column in Monday’s Day By Day Telegraph to renew his criticism of the draft agreement, describing it as a “585-page fig-leaf that does not anything to cover the embarrassment of our overall defeat”.

    And former Tory chief Lord Howard informed BBC Radio 4’s These Days programme that a vote of confidence can be a distraction.

    What’s the reaction from the european?

    Man Verhofstadt, The Ecu Parliament’s Brexit co-ordinator, said any ideas EUROPEAN nationals have been given preferential treatment had been incorrect seeing that they had been simply “workout rights which equipped freedom and possibilities”.

    Image Copyright @guyverhofstadt @guyverhofstadt

    Document

    Twitter post by @guyverhofstadt: EU citizens living, working, contributing to UK communities didn't Symbol Copyright @guyverhofstadt @guyverhofstadt

    Document

    Michel Barnier, the eu’s leader Brexit negotiator, called on all events to “remain calm” and deal with the longer term agreement.

    Speaking at a press conference in Brussels after meeting the 27 different EU member states, he said the withdrawal deal was once “truthful and balanced” however made clear a transition length extension couldn’t be indefinite, “it has to be a set duration of time”.

    During Monday’s assembly, the Spanish govt raised issues approximately articles within the withdrawal settlement (184 and three), announcing that taken together they upload as much as Gibraltar remaining completely as UK territory.

    The BBC’s Brussels reporter Adam Fleming says such a lot member states, in conjunction with The European Commission and The European Council, do not consider Madrid’s studying of the textual content and are trying to find to offer reassurance.

    (more…)

  • Raab: Proposed Brexit deal ‘worse’ than EU membership

    Video Raab: Deal ‘worse’ than staying in

    (more…)

  • Brexit: Will Spain’s Gibraltar concerns crash on the Rock?

    Spanish, British, EU and Gibraltarian flags Symbol copyright Reuters Image caption Could Spanish considerations scupper Brexit growth?

    How much of a threat is the Spain/Gibraltar question to the Brexit summit on Sunday?

    Well, it could end up to be both large or simply a pant of smoke. Madrid and Downing Side Road say they’re working on it.

    There’s no longer so much time left for the question to imagine both form.

    UK Prime Minister Theresa Might meets EU leaders in Brussels to log off on the Brexit texts in precisely over 36 hours.

    Brexit: The Place are we now?Your information to ECU jargon

    Grandstanding for his family target market aside, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez feels hoodwinked and offended.

    Image copyright Getty Pictures Image caption The small peninsula of Gibraltar has been a British territory due to the fact 1713

    After the uk’s Brexit vote, Spain at the very least noticed a possibility to re-achieve substantial affect over Gibraltar.

    Eyebrows shot up in the UK at the very get started of the article 50 procedure whilst article 24 of the european’s negotiating guidelines mentioned: “After the Uk leaves the Union, no settlement between the ecu and the United Kingdom would possibly observe to the territory of Gibraltar without the settlement among the dominion of Spain and the United Kingdom.”

    in reality, even though, the bilateral UK-Spain talks that then happened in parallel to EUROPEAN-UNITED KINGDOM Brexit negotiations went extremely easily… until only in the near past.

    what will Brexit imply for Britain’s in a foreign country territories? What are the competing claims over Gibraltar?

    Spanish resentment started construction after the european’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, and his crew proposed going right into a “tunnel” with UK negotiators – blockading out political and media noise – in an try to holiday the long deadlock over the wording of the Irish “backstop” – that ensure to circumvent a border among Northern Eire and Ireland.

    It Is right through that tunnel second that Spain feels it was “betrayed”.

    Via the time EU and UNITED KINGDOM negotiators emerged, the Irish backstop had turn out to be a UK-huge customs area, which means it was potentially straying into publish Brexit business deal territory.

    But neither in that textual content, nor in the draft of the political assertion on ECU-UNITED KINGDOM long run relations published on Thursday, is there mention of Gibraltar and the will for Spanish approval.

    Symbol copyright Reuters

    High Minister Sánchez believes the certain perspective Spain had proven in bilateral Brexit talks over Gibraltar is now being abused; that Spanish national interest used to be sacrificed within the tunnel so as to supply an extra “sweetener” to the united kingdom in wider Brexit negotiations.

    Ecu Commission negotiators flatly deny this.

    However Spain isn’t alone in believing that priorities of individual EUROPEAN countries had been ignored all through tunnel negotiations.

    France, Denmark and the Netherlands felt permit down by way of their EU negotiators over pinning down ongoing fishing rights in UNITED KINGDOM waters within the political announcement on submit Brexit EUROPEAN-UNITED KINGDOM members of the family.

    Will the united kingdom and EU succeed in a Brexit fishing deal? Fishing after Brexit: Sink or swim?

    we now have now heard that the fishing factor has been “resolved” (for now). The Details have yet to emerge.

    this means Gibraltar is the one exceptional issue prior to Sunday’s Brexit summit, consistent with the ecu.

    Image copyright Reuters Symbol caption Fishing has been some other contentious factor within the Brexit talks

    Now, Spain’s High Minister is vastly professional-Eu. He sees himself as somewhat of a Macron quantity two.

    It Is now not in his nature to scupper EU plans or an ecu summit.

    Understand That whilst Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini refused to soak up migrant boats in advance this yr, Mr Sánchez was the first to step in and help so as to keep an ecu crisis – and likewise to win brownie points in Brussels.

    Spain to just accept disputed migrant ship Migration to Europe in charts

    Pedro Sánchez is below so much of domestic pressure. He heads a minority government and has been time and again accused by way of the primary conservative opposition of being “cushy” over Gibraltar in Brexit negotiations.

    He additionally faces elections in the politically important Andalucia area on 2 December. An Element of Spain that neighbours – you guessed it – The Rock.

    It Is conceivable that Spain’s top minister has discovered a lesson from Italy’s deputy prime minister: that should you dig to your heels within the EU, you can get effects.

    Image copyright Reuters Symbol caption Matteo Salvini is a harsh critic of the ecu

    He is aware of, after all, that preserving the Brexit summit now, in November, used to be at Theresa’s Would Possibly’s insistence; that the ecu idea it conceivable to seal the deal subsequent month instead.

    this information is in Mr Sánchez’s back pocket.

    it will be significant to undergo in mind that even as Spain does not have a real veto over the Brexit divorce deal, EUROPEAN leaders want to succeed in choices by consensus at their summits. they don’t in fact submit their fingers to vote.

    there may be no means they can rubber stamp a textual content designed for a leaving member (the uk) when an existing member (Spain) is so strongly hostile.

    It Is real, there’s less EU harmony with Spain over Gibraltar than there was with Eire over the border factor. But the ecu has been so proud in regards to the very peculiar solidarity amongst its individuals over Brexit, they will not need to supply that up at this late degree.

    So, in impact, Spain may exercise an ethical or political “veto” on Sunday.

    Which means that even supposing Spain does not have a proper veto, it would exercise moral and political objections that may effectively stop other nations from vote casting in opposition to it.

    Image copyright AFP/Getty Symbol caption Considerations about a laborious border between the uk and Ireland have been a key characteristic of Brexit negotiations

    EU insiders do not believe it is going to come down to that. they think this may be solved with out reopening the Brexit texts by way of noting Spain’s insistence on continuing UK.-Madrid bilateral talks in a statement introduced to the texts or other imaginable ECU formulas.

    However although Spanish competition melts away sooner than Sunday, the bitterness over Gibraltar, over fishing rights, over ensuring that the uk has no aggressive advantages over Eu businesses in a submit-Brexit industry deal, these are examples of the really extensive stumbling blocks the uk will face from ECU nations in negotiating a industry deal with EUROPEAN after Brexit.

    and that’s a deal the parliaments of every unmarried ECU country – including Spain’s – will need to ratify unanimously.

  • Brexit: Why markets would possibly not bail out the PM’s deal

    Ben Bernanke, George W. Bush, Hank Paulson and Christopher Cox address the US in the week after the collapse of Lehman Brothers Symbol copyright Getty Images

    Financial markets have had a slightly unhealthy Brexit. they’ve taken solace in the fallacious issues and freaked out at ephemera. But there may be so much of talk on the moment that their conniptions might help be sure that Parliament passes Theresa Would Possibly’s withdrawal settlement.

    This is understood as the ‘Tarp’ state of affairs – a reference to the u.s. executive’s so-called Bothered Asset Aid Programme.

    In September 2008, the week that Lehman Brothers collapsed, Hank Paulson, the united states Treasury Secretary, asked a $700bn fund from Congress to fight the banking main issue – a fund to take care of “the illiquid property that are weighing down our economic system and perilous our economy”.

    In Short: he wanted $700bn to assist clean out the financial system and prevent the u.s. economy going into a out of control credit contraction that might cause an financial disaster.

    While he presented the initial draft, it was more or much less a request for blank cheque.

    Perhaps unsurprisingly, the u.s. House of Representatives grew to become him down – 228 votes to 205. Two-thirds of Republican contributors of congress voted by contrast thought from a Republican treasury secretary.

    The Dow Jones stock index fell 7%, its biggest-ever one-day fall.

    Confronted with that market disruption, 33 Republicans and 24 Democrats switched facets and the measure handed in a while afterwards.

    The Tarp situation in Westminster

    The Tarp scenario for Brexit that is circulating in Westminster is that MPs may vote down the regulation first time round. No Doubt, on the moment, it is hard to peer a path for it. However, the scenario is going, if there is a vicious monetary marketplace response, MPs will be cowed into balloting the withdrawal agreement through.

    There are, then again, a number of problems right here:

    First, the us is extra politically delicate to stock indices than we’re. And, even then, the case for voting the law through was once bolstered through a negative set of labour drive statistics that emerged between the first and second votes – the worst upward push in unemployment in 5 years. 2D, it is uncertain what marketplace response could shock MPs enough to modify their minds. so much of MPs get muddled approximately what to make of the converting price of government debt. And That I am doubtful whether our MPs may bear in mind what a large transfer – even a fifteen consistent with cent drop in the price of sterling, say – would mean or how they might react. it is simply now not in our political discourse. 3Rd, from the beginning to the tip of the method, the Tarp law ballooned from three pages to 450. there were tax breaks folded into the bill to buy off individual legislators. Our Parliament’s laws on amending regulation make it harder to add ‘pork’ to bills – but that still makes it much tougher to buy off individual MPs. Fourth, there was also a presidential election taking place and the 2 applicants – Barack Obama and John McCain – each supported the deal. The powers of patronage all went a method. The parties’ current and long term leaders all supported the plan. However it is unclear that anybody top any birthday party within the following couple of years will toughen this plan except Theresa Might. 5Th, if markets be expecting a loss on a primary vote, and anticipate it passing on a 2nd vote, these marketplace reactions might not happen whilst they are useful for parliamentary arithmetic. reckoning on Tarp makes it not likely to occur.

    This consequence remains to be conceivable and manageable – especially if one knows the Tarp scenario less actually.

    in the event you redefine it to a broader notion approximately how MPs might get freaked out through a few information at a few point and vote to accept no matter what deal is obtainable to them, then it becomes much more most likely.

    But perhaps it will be some news from Nissan or Airbus as opposed to the markets. Possibly it would possibly not be financial news at all. and maybe it’ll come while the deal had seemed lifeless in a couple of weeks time, now not between the primary and 2d votes.

    You can watch Newsnight on BBC 2 weekdays 22:30 or on iPlayer. join the programme on YouTube or practice them on Twitter.

  • David Davis, former Brexit secretary, urges Theresa May cabinet rebellion in Sunday Times

    Britain’s former Brexit secretary is urging members of Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet to rebel against her proposed deal with the European Union over the terms of Britain’s departure from the bl

    LONDON — Britain’s former Brexit secretary is urging members of Prime Minister Theresa May’s cabinet to rebel against her proposed deal with the European Union over the terms of Britain’s departure from the bloc.

    David Davis wrote in the Sunday Times that May’s plans for some continued ties with the EU under her Chequers plan is “completely unacceptable” and must be stopped. The fellow Conservative Party member said the time has come for ministers to shoot down May’s plan.

    “It is time for the cabinet to exert their collective authority,” he said. “This week the authority of our constitution is on the line.”

    May is struggling to build a consensus behind her Brexit plans ahead of a cabinet meeting Tuesday that will be followed by an EU summit Wednesday in Brussels.

    If Davis’ call for a rebellion is effective, the cabinet meeting Tuesday would be a likely place for opposition to surface.

    Davis and former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson resigned from the cabinet this summer to protest May’s Brexit blueprint. Both have become vocal opponents of her plan, calling it a betrayal of the Brexit vote that would leave Britain in a weakened position.

    May also faces obstacles from the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland, which has played a crucial role in propping up her minority government in Parliament.

    DUP leader Arlene Foster remains opposed to any Brexit plan that would require checks on goods traveling between Northern Ireland and Britain, as some EU leaders have suggested as part of a “backstop” plan.

    The Chequers plan has also been questioned by some opposition Labour Party lawmakers, further complicating the prime minister’s hopes of winning parliamentary backing for any Brexit deal she reaches with EU officials.

     

  • The Latest: EU’s Tusk says Brexit compromise still possible

    The Latest on Brexit, the political divorce between Britain and the rest of the European Union (all times local):

    LONDON (AP) – The Latest on Brexit, the political divorce between Britain and the rest of the European Union (all times local):

    6:30 p.m.

    EU Council President Donald Tusk says he remains convinced that a Brexit compromise that is “good for all, is still possible.”

    His comments come a day after a clear lack of progress at an EU leaders summit in the Austrian city of Salzburg and hours after Prime Minister Theresa May rebuked the EU for damning her Brexit proposals. The Brexit talks, she said, have hit at an “impasse.”

    In a statement, Tusk said “the U.K. stance presented just before and during the Salzburg meeting was surprisingly tough and in fact uncompromising.”

    In spite of that viewpoint, he insisted he remained “a close friend of the U.K. and a true admirer of PM May.”

    Ahead of the summit, Tusk said some parts of May’s plan were a step in the right direction, even though the Irish border and the economic cooperation proposals need to be reworked.

    ___

    4:15 p.m.

    British Prime Minister Theresa May’s parliamentary allies welcomed her assurances that Northern Ireland would avoid a hard border – even as they urged her to stand up for the interests of the entire country in talks on leaving the European Union.

    Nigel Dodds, a senior leader in the Democratic Unionist Party, says May’s remarks on Friday show “she is not going to be pushed around by Europe.”

    By contrast, the president of the Irish nationalist party, Sinn Fein, argued May’s comments were “an exercise in tired rhetoric.”

    Mary Lou McDonald says that rather than accept her plan has failed to resolve fundamental issues, May’s “focus has unfortunately remained on infighting within her own party and her pact with the DUP, instead of coming to an acceptable negotiating position.”

    ___

    3:05 p.m.

    The pound has fallen further after British Prime Minister Theresa May took a tougher line in the Brexit talks.

    The currency was down a sharp 1.5 percent at $1.3066 after May said Brexit negotiations are “at an impasse” after the European Union rejected her proposals for leaving the bloc.

    The proposal was to keep the U.K. in the EU single market for goods, but not services, to ensure free trade with the bloc and an open border between the U.K.’s Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland.

    EU officials dismissed the plan, saying Britain can’t “cherry-pick” elements of membership in the bloc.

    The disagreement raises the risk of Britain leaving the EU without any deal on future trade relations after Brexit day on March 29, which would mean tariffs on exports and disruptions to commerce, travel and other activities.

    ___

    2:30 p.m.

    British Prime Minister Theresa May has sought to reassure European Union citizens living in the U.K., saying they will retain their rights in case the country leaves the European Union without a deal.

    May issued an update Friday on the ongoing Brexit negotiations in the wake of the rejection of her plans by EU leaders in Salzburg – a situation she says might cause concern among the 3 million EU citizens who live in Britain.

    May says told those worried about their future that “you are our friends, our neighbors, our colleagues. We want you to stay.”

    She also addressed the other thorny issue in the talks: the border with Northern Ireland. May says that in the event of no deal, “we will do everything in our power to prevent a return to a hard border.”

    ___

    2:15 p.m.

    British Prime Minister Theresa May says Brexit negotiations are “at an impasse” after the European Union rejected her proposals for leaving the bloc.

    Speaking at 10 Downing St. in London, May said it was “not acceptable” that the EU had rejected her plan without offering alternatives.

    EU chief Donald Tusk said at a summit in Salzburg that May’s plan would not work.

    May says both sides want a deal, but remain far apart on key issues of future trade relations and the Irish border. She called for “serious engagement” to solve the problems.

    The pound fell on May’s comments, trading down a sharp 1.2 percent on the day to $1.3104.

    ___

    9:30 p.m.

    The British government on Friday accused the European Union of slamming the handbrake on Brexit negotiations, after the bloc said Prime Minister Theresa May’s blueprint was unworkable.

    European Council President Donald Tusk said bluntly at a meeting in Salzburg, Austria on Thursday that parts of May’s plan simply “will not work,” while French President Emmanuel Macron called pro-Brexit U.K. politicians “liars” who had misled the country about the costs of leaving the 28-nation bloc.

    A rattled May insisted that her plan was the only one on the table – and that Britain was prepared to walk away from the EU without a deal if it was rejected.

    The rebuff sparked British headlines saying May had been “humiliated,” and a strong response from the U.K. government.

    Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab accused the EU of rejecting Britain’s proposals without offering “credible alternatives” and said the bloc had “yanked up the handbrake” on negotiations.

  • Theresa May ‘humiliated’ after EU trashes her Brexit plan: U.K. media

    British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit blueprint is in tatters after it was rejected by the European Union at a summit the U.K. media branded a “humiliation.”

    LONDON (AP) — British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit blueprint is in tatters after it was rejected by the European Union at a summit the U.K. media branded a “humiliation.”

    European Council President Donald Tusk said bluntly at a meeting in Salzburg, Austria, Thursday that parts of May’s plan simply “will not work,” while French President Emmanuel Macron called pro-Brexit U.K. politicians “liars.”

    A rattled May told reporters that Britain was prepared to walk away from the EU without a deal.

    The rocky summit dashed British hopes of a breakthrough in stalled divorce talks, with just six months to go until Britain leaves the bloc on March 29.

    The judgment of British newspapers on Friday was brutal. The left-leaning Guardian said “May humiliated,” while the right-of-center Sun branded bloc leaders “EU dirty rats.”

  • PM to discuss no-deal Brexit plans

    Theresa May leaves Downing st Image copyright PA

    The prime minister is to hold a special three-hour cabinet meeting to discuss preparations for a no-deal Brexit.

    The government is also due to publish guidance on issues such as mobile phone roaming charges, driving licences and passports in the event of the EU and the UK not reaching an agreement.

    The Brexit secretary has said the UK will not pay its financial settlement to the EU in a no-deal scenario.

    He said the government was “stepping up” its contingency planning.

    Theresa May’s proposals, set out after a Chequers summit in July, are fiercely opposed by some Tory MPs and the EU has also expressed reservations.

    Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Roaming charges in EU countries were scrapped in 2017

    Extra charges for people using their phones in another EU country were scrapped in June 2017. But the EU regulation banning them will not automatically be part of UK law after Brexit.

    Mrs May has said the UK will no longer be part of the EU’s “digital single market” after Brexit.

    In theory this means UK mobile operators, if they want to, could reintroduce the charges that could make it expensive to use a mobile phone in another EU country.

    However, last month major operators told the BBC they had no plans to raise charges.

    ‘Nonsense’ and ‘scaremongering’

    Mr Raab said the no-deal plans were “not something we want to have to implement”.

    “No one should pretend that no deal would be straightforward,” he said.

    “There would be risks and some short-term disruption. Extra checks at the EU border would bring delays for businesses.”

    And trading with the EU on World Trade Organization terms – an outcome backed by a group of Brexiteers in a report this week – would be “inferior” to the current arrangements, he said.

    But Mr Raab also criticised those he said were “scaremongering for political ends” about no deal being reached.

    “It’s nonsense to claim that UK supermarkets would run out of food,” he said, adding that people should not be scared by the government’s request to pharmaceutical companies to stockpile extra medicine supplies.

    More no-deal publications are expected in the coming weeks.

  • Karen Bradley comment taken ‘out of context’

    Karen Bradley Image caption Secretary of State Karen Bradley was appointed to the post in January

    The Secretary of State has said that her recent comments regarding Northern Ireland’s voting patterns were “taken out of context”.

    Karen Bradley said that she did not understand that nationalists did not vote for unionist parties during elections.

    The original comment was made during an interview with The House Magazine.

    Mrs Bradley said she did not comprehend that campaigns are generally fought within each part of the community.

    Karen Bradley ‘did not understand’ NI voting patternsJames Brokenshire to step down on medical reasons

    She told the magazine that it was “a very different world from the world I came from”

    She added: “I didn’t understand things like when elections are fought for example in Northern Ireland – people who are nationalists don’t vote for unionist parties and vice-versa.”

    Mrs Bradley was appointed in January to replace James Brokenshire.

    “I am here doing the job”

    Mrs Bradley defended her comment on Wednesday while taking a walk in Belfast City Centre to see the damage caused by the Primark fire.

    She said: “One thing from the interview was taken out of context.

    “The whole point is that I am here as the Secretary of State doing the job, here on the ground, meeting people, dealing with people, listening to businesses and individuals living in Northern Ireland and really focusing on getting that devolved government back up and running.”

    When asked about possible funding from the Treasury to help revitalise Belfast, Mrs Bradley said she was looking at the best way to deal with the situation and could make no commitments at this stage.