Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Boris Johnson defends Brexit plan in BBC interview Boris Johnson has admitted he would need EU co-operation to avoid a hard Irish border or crippling tariffs on trade in the event of no deal. In an exclusive interview with the BBC, the favourite to be next prime minister said: “It’s not just up to us.” But he said he did “not believe for a moment” the UK would leave without a deal, although he was willing to do so. In an interview with BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg, Mr Johnson said the existing deal negotiated by Theresa May “is dead”. He insisted it was possible to broker a new deal with the EU before the end of October because the political landscape had changed in the UK and on the continent. “I think actually that politics has changed so much since 29 March,” he said, referring to the original Brexit deadline. “I think on both sides of the Channel there’s a really different understanding of what is needed.” – BBC News Boris Johnson: I would not ‘want’ tariffs in no-deal Brexit scenario – Politico No transition period without EU agreement, Boris Johnson admits – Guardian > WATCH: Boris Johnson’s interview with Laura Kuenssberg Theresa May wades into leadership race by ‘pressuring Johnson over chaotic Brexit plan’ Theresa May waded into the Tory leadership race yesterday by piling pressure onto Boris Johnson over his chaotic Brexit plan. Challenged in the Commons, the PM said the government was clear there could be no “implementation period” maintaining the status-quo with the EU after a No Deal Brexit. She said: “If we leave without a deal, there is no withdrawal agreement and therefore no implementation period.” Cabinet Ministers had lined up on Sunday to savage Boris’ No Deal plan for Brexit – saying it wasn’t a credible strategy. In last week’s BBC debate, Mr Johnson had insisted that Britain could resolve the Irish backstop and other controversial issues “in the implementation period after we’ve come out on Oct 31st”. – The Sun Tory MPs threaten to topple Johnson within six weeks of him becoming PM – to stop him going for No Deal… Tory Remainers could bring down Boris Johnson within six weeks of him becoming PM, they warned today. As many as a dozen MPs are threatening to trigger a snap election rather than accept Britain leaving the EU without a deal in October. Worried Brexiteers are now calling on Boris to explain how he would dodge the challenge from rebel MPs. And leadership rival Jeremy Hunt has taunted the frontrunner claiming he won’t be able to deliver on his Brexit plan. Mr Johnson has promised to reopen talks with the EU to get a better deal in time for the October 31 deadline. But he will also keep No Deal on the table, insisting that’s the only way to ensure Britain gets a good deal from Brussels. Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood said a dozen colleagues would do whatever it takes to block a No Deal Brexit. – The Sun Tories warn of government collapse if Boris Johnson pursues no-deal Brexit – Guardian …as Ken Clarke says he would be prepared to bring down a Tory Government to block No Deal Ken Clarke, the former chancellor, has said he would be prepared to bring down his own Government in order to prevent a no-deal Brexit. The father of the House of Commons and longest serving Tory MP said that he would be prepared to vote with the opposition in a confidence motion – even if it was tabled by Labour. Mr Clarke, an outspoken Remainer, acknowledged that by doing so “it might trigger an election, it might trigger a change of government without an election”. – Telegraph (£) Ireland under EU pressure to lay out plans for border as fears mount that a no-deal Brexit is unavoidable Ireland is facing demands from six fellow EU countries to set out detailed plans for how it will manage a no-deal Brexit as fears grow in Brussels that such an exit may be unavoidable, The Telegraph can reveal. In the first clear sign that EU solidarity with Ireland is starting to come under strain, a gang of six states: France, Germany, Belgium, Poland, Denmark and the Netherlands; are insisting that Ireland must set out in operational detail how it will protect EU borders. The move comes as EU leaders bid farewell to Theresa May, who had consistently ruled out a no-deal exit, and prepare to welcome either Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, both of whom have committed to leaving the EU without a deal as a last resort. It reflects growing impatience among EU member states over the refusal of the Irish government to spell out what will happen if the Irish backstop – which was designed to prevent the return of a hard border in Ireland – backfires and causes a no deal. – Telegraph (£) High-tech systems will not stop hard Irish border after Brexit, claims Labour MP Owen Smith Proposed technological solutions to avoid a hard Irish border after Brexit will not succeed in the absence of consent from populations in both the Republic and the North, a former shadow Northern Ireland secretary has warned. A new independent report claims that “alternative arrangements” based on existing technologies could be in place within three years to keep the border open and do away with the need for the controversial backstop. The interim report, co-chaired by Conservative MPs Nicky Morgan and Greg Hands, says that there is no need for the kind of futuristic high-tech systems branded “unicorns” by critics. – Independent > Sir Paul Marshall on BrexitCentral yesterday: A hard Irish border can be avoided under any Brexit outcome Unite union digs heels in against a shift in Labour Brexit policy… A definitive shift in Labour’s Brexit policy has been put on hold after the Unite union dug its heels in against moves to throw the party’s full weight behind a second referendum and a Remain vote. Hopes that a change in position would be agreed on Tuesday at a crunch shadow cabinet meeting were dashed after the union’s intervention in talks with Jeremy Corbyn. Senior shadow cabinet ministers including Tom Watson, the deputy leader and Sir Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, will continue to press for full-throated support for a Final Say vote, but now believe they will have to wait longer for a breakthrough. – Independent …as John McDonnell heaps pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to turn Labour into anti-Brexit party John McDonnell heaped pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to turn Labour into an anti-Brexit party – as he predicted they could back Remain today. Labour’s Treasury chief said there could be “white smoke” at a showdown meeting of the shadow cabinet this afternoon. Turning the screw ahead of the crunch clash, he said Labour’s Brexit policy has run its course and the time is ripe for change. He told a meeting in the City of London yesterday: “Watch this space. We might see some white smoke tomorrow. I am expecting some decision making to take place. I am in favour of going back to the people. If there is a referendum I would campaign for remain.” Mr Corbyn has faced fierce pressure to fully back a second referendum and commit to campaigning for Remain in the contest. – The Sun Sajid Javid orders rethink of plans to require migrants to earn £30,000 to work in Brexit Britain Sajid Javid has ordered a rethink of Theresa May’s post-Brexit plans for a £30,000 minimum salary threshold for migrants from the EU and the rest of the world. The Home Secretary announced today that he wants the Government’s migration advisory committee (MAC) to investigate lowering the prospective wage caps of £30,000 for skilled workers and £20,800 for recent foreign graduates at British universities. He wants the MAC to consider allowing firms to pay the going rate for foreign recruits after Brexit and also to look at the possibility of different salary thresholds in different areas of the UK. He is also asking them to study whether there should be exemptions to the salary thresholds, including for new foreign entrants who have just started the occupation, possibly after leaving university, or because they work in a shortage occupation. – Telegraph (£) Javid suggests post-Brexit migration salary rules could vary by region – Guardian Liam Fox: The Special Relationship has never mattered more. After Brexit, let’s work together to promote free trade around the world It is always in the face of the most difficult challenges that the relationship between the United States of America and the United Kingdom takes on most significance. That solid foundation of our shared values, our common purpose, and the strength of action which can grow from them means that, when the world needs it most, it is a relationship that delivers. That is as true now as it was on D-Day 75 years ago, when American and British soldiers fought heroically alongside our other allies to liberate Western Europe from the scourge of totalitarianism. Today a new challenge is before us, one which, yet again, requires leaders in the United States and the United Kingdom to think together about the future and how it should be shaped. In the last few weeks we have seen how the rules-based international trading system that has delivered unprecedented wealth to people across the globe is under severe pressure. – Dr Liam Fox MP for the Telegraph (£) Brian Monteith: Only by leaving EU can we reset Britain and politics Exactly three years ago this morning I walked out of Milbank Tower, Westminster, after an all-night party arranged to take in the results of the UK’s EU referendum. I had a smile as bright as the dawn and wide as the Thames itself. We had only gone and done it; the campaign to leave the European Union had blown the bloody doors off. British politics would never be the same again. I was always confident about the outcome of the referendum and repeatedly cheered-up my less optimistic colleagues that they were in the process of making history. Although behind in the polls for most of the campaign the cross-party and non-party coalition of Leave supporters had at least three advantages that gave us an underlying edge. The first was Prime Minister David Cameron had been poorly treated by the European Union’s political elite who stupidly dismissed his attempt to show he could win reforms. This was a serious political misjudgement by Merkel, Hollande, Juncker, Tusk and their aloof colleagues, displaying a symptomatic arrogance and condescension that continues to this day. Had they conceded deliverable reforms demonstrating a willingness to decentralise and loosen their inexorable drive towards ever closer union then the Leave campaign would have had a far harder fight on its hands. – Brian Monteith MEP for The Scotsman Henry Newman: The Alternative Arrangements Commission offers the best route through the backstop problem It’s now three years and a day since the referendum was declared for Leave on the morning of 24th June 2016. And yet Brexit seems – if anything – further away than it has for some time. The Conservative leadership race will change the occupants of Downing Street, but will leave the three essential paths unchanged: Brexit with a version of the current deal, Brexit with No Deal, and no Brexit. With almost no Parliamentary majority, it’s hard at this point to see a way through to any one of those paths. Over the next few weeks things may become clearer, unless Brexit day ends up being delayed again. A new Prime Minister will make no difference in of himself to the Parliamentary maths – although the stock of patronage in the Whips’ office may be reset. But various Conservative factions are already threatening to bring down the next government. One group would withdraw confidence if the Government pursues a No Deal Brexit; another has also threatened to do so if the Government fails to deliver Brexit on 31st October. – Henry Newman for Conservative Home Oliver Wright: Alternative arrangements need goodwill — which won’t exist There is no land border anywhere in the world that does not involve some kind of checks on the goods and vehicles that pass across — outside those countries that have joined in a customs union. Pessimists (and the European Union) say that this demonstrates why the Irish backstop is a vital part of any Brexit deal. Optimists (and Brexiteers) dismiss this as nonsense, arguing that it shows a lack of ambition, that a frictionless border is possible even with existing technology — all it needs is the political will to make it work. Today’s report by Prosperity UK is an attempt to examine the issue afresh. As a grouping of politicians, academics and business people it is perhaps at the Brexit end of the spectrum — but the report’s authors did at least visit Northern Ireland to take stock of the views of businesses that will be most effected. – Oliver Wright for The Times (£) John Redwood: The EU’s agenda for greater union – conclusions of the European Council 20 June The EU is busy trying to fill its senior positions without success yet. They meet again on June 30th to try to reach an agreement over who should be the President of the Commission. The EU Council last week revealed its new ambitions to take more control from member states. The EU wants member states to press ahead more rapidly with plans to decarbonise. Countries are being pressed to lower their CO2 output, to increase their renewable generation of power and raise their fuel efficiency. 2030 targets are being set, but the EU has still not agreed on a zero carbon target for 2050 which some wish to do. The EU is keen to weed out fake news from social media. It will be interesting to see what they regard as fake news, and to see if they start to cross the line between unacceptable material and censorship of material that is inconvenient to the EU. It is setting out a new “framework for targeted restraint measures” which will include asking social media platforms to prevent material harmful to the EU. – John Redwood’s Diary Asa Bennett: Theresa May might not have much of a legacy, but could she still outlast her successor? If you’ve just tuned in, the attention Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt have been getting as they confidently talk about the United Kingdom might lead you to think they are in charge as part of some new-fangled duumvirate. But no, there is still only one prime minister, and that is Theresa May. She has a few weeks left in Downing Street, which she has been using to try and shore up some sort of Brexit legacy besides a withdrawal agreement thrice-rejected by the House of Commons. To pile on the indignity, Mrs May has to put up with her ministers already dismantling key part of her blueprint for post-Brexit Britain. Sajid Javid has announced today that her proposed £30,000 minimum salary threshold for migrants – including those from the EU – to work in Brexit Britain would be dumped. – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) The Sun: Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, the next PM will have to risk an election to get Brexit done We don’t like Jeremy Hunt branding Boris a “bottler” and a “coward”. The Tories must avoid a juvenile slanging match. It is odd too for Mr Hunt to demand Boris rules out a snap election. How can he? Whoever wins will face a perilously thin majority and Brexit stalemate. The EU insists it will not budge on the deal, even though MPs will not pass it. A dozen Tory Remainers intend to prevent No Deal via a deranged martyrdom operation, apparently preferring to give anti-Semitic Marxism its chance. We understand why Boris has to guarantee we are leaving on October 31. But it is highly unlikely to be solely his call. To get Brexit done he might have no choice but to risk an election. – The Sun says Brexit in Brief Brexit will be someone else’s problem soon. No wonder Theresa May looks so cheerful – Michael Deacon for the Telegraph (£) The Tory two need to be grilled on much more than just solving Brexit – Iain Dale for the Evening Standard Creator of ITV drama Victoria blames repeats of Dad’s Army for people being pro-Brexit and says show should be ‘retired’ – The Sun