Top story: Amendments fall as EEA vote divides Labour
Hello – it’s Warren Murray with you on this Thursday morning as World Cup fever takes hold.
Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership has been rocked by dozens of Labour MPs breaking ranks to vote either for or against keeping Britain in the European economic area (EEA). Ninety voted, when all the party’s MPs had been whipped to abstain. One frontbencher and five parliamentary aides resigned from the shadow cabinet before the vote.
Theresa May, meanwhile, largely succeeded in defeating a string of amendments to her Brexit bill. But she ended the day locked in negotiations with rebel Tories led by Dominic Grieve who want to guarantee that a hard, crash-out Brexit will be impossible without parliamentary approval. They thought they already had that commitment from the PM until No 10 appeared to backpedal.
Here is how the votes stacked up on a pivotal day in the Commons. The government is expected to table a compromise amendment today on the “meaningful vote” for parliament, which peers will vote on when the bill returns to the Lords on Monday. In Brussels, a bitter row continues over the Galileo satellite navigation programme. EU member states have voted to shut British companies out of the project despite UK taxpayers having already contributed £1bn towards it. And there is more than a little irony to the news that Jacob Rees-Mogg’s investment firm Somerset Capital Management is warning prospective clients about the financial risks associated with Brexit – when he has repeatedly dismissed such concerns.
World Cup 2018: we’ve got it covered
Football fans – finally the wait is over. Eight years and $19bn in the making, the 2018 World Cup is upon us. You can follow the latest news from Russia with our live blog – there will be a new one launching at 5am every day before we switch our attention to individual games. It all kicks off today with the hosts playing Saudi Arabia in Moscow after Robbie Williams’s soul-selling performance at the opening ceremony.
Over the next five weeks the greatest show on Earth will again demonstrate its power to enthral – kicking aside Fifa’s tarnished reputation and the murkiness of Putin’s regime, writes Barney Ronay. The build-up to tonight’s opening ceremony and first match has had its share of drama. Spain’s squad was plunged into crisis after the coach Julen Lopetegui was sacked two days before their opening game against Portugal, with director of football Fernando Hierro named as his replacement. A heady cocktail of anger and ethics was at the heart of the decision, writes Sid Lowe. And Travis Tygart, the US Anti-Doping Agency chief executive, has warned that it would be “naive” not to think that hosts Russia could violate the rules again during the tournament. Strap yourselves in for the kick-off …
‘A tough, smart guy’ – He is not the first western leader to break bread with a tyrant but few could match Donald Trump in waving away the ethical qualms. “So have a lot of other people done some really bad things,” said the US president, when asked about Kim Jong-un’s human rights record.
The secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, has lost his temper when asked why the statement signed by Trump and Kim in Singapore about disarmament did not contain words such as “verifiable” and “irreversible” that the Trump administration had stuck to doggedly beforehand. “Don’t say silly things,” Pompeo snapped at reporters during a tirade against what he called “insulting and ridiculous and, frankly, ludicrous” questions, despite similar questions being raised by observers and analysts worldwide.
What’s in a name? Macedonia’s president has refused to endorse changing the country’s name to the Republic of North Macedonia. In Greece, the government is being threatened with a vote of no confidence after the plan to end a bitter geographical and cultural dispute was attacked on both sides of the border. Officials in Brussels, London and Washington had all enthusiastically welcomed the deal, but for the two parties concerned, any conciliation lasted only a day. Macedonians are supposed to vote on the name change in a referendum this year.
‘Like coming back to life’ – An Italian politician forced to hide from the mafia for years has revealed her face publicly for the first time since 1993.
Piera Aiello went into witness protection after mafia hitmen killed her husband in 1991. In March this year she won a parliamentary seat – despite not being able to show her face in public, be photographed or freely hold campaign events in city squares. Aiello often wore a veil and became known as the “faceless candidate”.
Biscuit barrel – Are you familiar with the “cookie shot”? It sounds a bit … well, adult film oriented to be frank. But it is actually the patisserie sibling of the “cronut”. This tubular “cookie” filled with vanilla-infused milk is also the creation of French banker Dominique Ansel. Tasty by all accounts, though messy.
Still on food matters: when it comes to labelling, here’s the official word from Brussels on why consumers need to take terms like “artisanal”, “wholegrain” and pictures of healthy-looking fruit with more than a grain of pink Himalayan salt.
Lunchtime read: A year after Grenfell, where do we stand?
It is a year today since the Grenfell Tower fire. Eleven housing blocks have new cladding, out of more than 300 that need their flammable panels replaced. Almost 1,000 adults have been screened for PTSD, while psychologists continue to work with affected children at seven state schools.
Fifteen Grenfell households are still living in hotels. The public inquiry continues. And, in perhaps the most startling fact rounded up by Robert Booth and Owen Bowcott, combustible cladding remains on sale in Britain.
Sport
England won the first one-day international against Australia by three wickets but they did so messily, in a manner hardly befitting the side ranked No 1 in the world. Afterwards, Australia’s former coach Darren Lehmann staked out the moral high ground after some wiseacre investment company tried to stoke things up by handing out squares of sandpaper outside the ground. In the women’s game, New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr hit a world record 232 not out in the third one-day international against Ireland and then took five wickets to complete a remarkable day for the 17-year-old.
The US Open gets under way today with Americans seeking to maintain a run in which they hold every men’s major and significant transatlantic team trophy. Anthony Martial wants to leave Manchester United, according to his agent. And one of the most anticipated fights of the year appears to be back on after it was announced Canelo Álvarez will fight Gennady Golovkin on 15 September.
Business
The decision by the US Federal Reserve to raise its base rate to 2% helped send Asian shares down overnight. The move was telegraphed for several months so there was more concern among investors about chairman Jerome Powell’s concerns regarding deteriorating trade relations between the US and Europe and Asia. Closer to home the FTSE 100 is expected to slip 0.4% at the open. The pound is buying $1.339 and €1.134.
The papers
The Guardian has Brexit on the front page – “New fissure with EU as Britain blocked from security project” – as well as a feature about life a year after the Grenfell tragedy. The Mail wonders what Tory MP Dominic Grieve is doing addressing a meeting of people allegedly plotting to reverse Brexit, under the headline “Conspiracy in Smith Square”.
“Web giants ‘are fuelling child mental health crisis’,” says the Times, quoting the head of the NHS. By the Briefing’s count this is the third separate front-page story this week about the impact of the internet on children. The Telegraph also has the NHS chief’s comments on the front but leads with Sajid Javid relaxing the visa cap: “Doors open to thousands more skilled migrants.” The Sun splashes with “Brit held over jet secrets to China”, saying a former “Rolls-Royce boffin” has been arrested based on MI5 intelligence. “Trapped in hospital for six months” is the splash in the Express – it says the NHS will not allow a terminally ill pensioner home because it does not want to pay for carers.
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