Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Boris Johnson rules out extending the Brexit transition period beyond 2020… Boris Johnson has offered an olive branch to Nigel Farage by ruling out extending the Brexit transition period beyond 2020. In the Prime Minister’s Sunday evening Twitter video he stressed that his agreement with the EU allowed him to pursue a Canada-style free trade deal with the Bloc and would be free of any political alignment. The Brexit Party leader has said he will pitch candidates in 600 constituencies unless Mr Johnson agrees to go for the hardest possible withdrawal in the form of No Deal or a ‘clean-break Brexit.’ But Mr Farage is facing calls to back down amid fears he could dash Brexit altogether if the Tories haemorrhage too many seats to the Brexit Party and allow Labour and the Liberal Democrats to succeed. Mr Johnson said in his video: ‘It’s a fantastic deal it means we can take back control of our money our borders, our laws, as soon as we come out of the EU. ‘There’s no need for that at all. We can have a free trade agreement on the model of a Super Canada Plus arrangement. We can get the fantastic new free trade agreement with the EU by the end of 2020. And we will not extend the transition period beyond the end of 2020. There’s absolutely no need to do that. So fantastic new deal, let’s get Brexit done, and then build a new partnership with the EU and do free trade deals around the world.’ The Mail on Sunday revealed that a close confidant of Mr Farage has held talks with senior Tory ‘power brokers’ over a deal to pull the vast majority of Brexit Party candidates out of the election. In return, Mr Johnson would promise to strike a harder deal with Brussels after winning a majority. – Daily Mail …as pressure builds on Nigel Farage to stand down Brexit Party candidates who could deny the Conservatives 90 seats… Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party are likely to “mess things up” for Boris Johnson by taking crucial votes from Conservative candidates in the general election, experts have warned. While Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party are unlikely to actually win any seats at the upcoming election, their candidates are likely to sway the election by taking votes from the Conservatives in dozens of crucial target seats. Telegraph analysis of the latest polling figures show that, should the Brexit Party and Conservative vote combine, the Brexit-backing bloc in Parliament would gain an extra 90 seats. Experts have warned of another hung Parliament if the Brexit Party continues to poll well until election day, splitting the Leave vote in marginals. Joe Twyman, co-founder and director of polling company Deltapoll, said that any Boris Johnson majority would be in part dependent on the success of Nigel Farage. He said: “Boris Johnson’s chance of success may be heavily influenced by the traction that the Brexit Party is able to gain. Farage’s approach to the election, and the Conservatives particularly, will be that you cannot trust the ‘elites’, Brexit has been delayed again and that the deal is rubbish anyway.” This so far does not seem to be resonating well, with Leavers sticking to the Conservative Party after Boris Johnson became Prime Minister on a promise of a “do or die” Brexit on 31 October. Still, the Brexit Party are polling at around 10 per cent nationally – and this could be decisive in determining the swing of dozens of constituencies. – Telegraph (£) Thousands of Daily Mail readers send letters to Brexit Party candidates urging them to stand down – Daily Mail …and even Arron Banks tells Leavers to ditch Farage and back the Tories… Nigel Farage is under pressure to pull out of hundreds of seats at the general election after a former ally told voters in three key Leave constituencies to forget him and back the Conservatives instead. In a warning shot, Arron Banks, who along with Mr Farage was one of the self-styled “Bad Boys of Brexit”, told residents of three constituencies in Stoke-on-Trent to vote Tory. Unless the Brexit Party leader stands down in most constituencies before Friday, Mr Banks’s Leave.EU group will release a tactical voting app showing Brexiteers who they should back in every seat. A spokesman for Leave.EU, which accuses Mr Farage of risking Brexit by splitting the Leave vote, said: “This app is ‘back Brexit, back Boris’. We will tell Brexiteers the right candidates to back for Brexit. If that is against the Brexit Party then so be it. We have to get Boris a majority so we can get Brexit done.” The row between Mr Farage and Mr Banks began after the businessman supported the agreement that Boris Johnson struck with the EU last month. Mr Farage has denounced the deal as “not Brexit” and vowed to stand more than 600 candidates across the country unless the Conservatives agree to an electoral pact, a demand that has been repeatedly rejected by Mr Johnson. – The Times (£) …as Farage pulls out of a TV interview amidst mounting pressure Nigel Farage pulled out of a TV interview today [Sunday] as his allies ramped up pressure to drop Brexit Party candidates and form a ‘Leave alliance’ with the Tories. Allies of Farage and of Boris Johnson were in secretive last-minute talks over the weekend to try to strike a deal ahead of Thursday’s 4pm cut-off for candidate nominations. Farage issued an ultimatum to Boris Johnson, writing in the Sunday Express: “The clock is ticking.” But he pulled out of a planned Sky News interview on Sunday as pressure mounted. He will now face questions from the media in Hartlepool on Monday. No reason was giving for him pulling out on Sunday. Banks said talks were still going on with Tory MPs led by former Ukip Treasurer Andrew Reid. Banks said of Farage: “Does he want top be remembered as the tireless campaigner who finally allowed us to leave the EU? Or the man who brought us to the brink of Brexit and no further?” – Mirror Labour campaign chief Andrew Gwynne refuses to rule out backing continued freedom of movement… Labour’s campaign chief has refused to rule out the party will keep free movement after Brexit, despite its 2017 pledge. The party’s last general election manifesto said “freedom of movement will end when we leave the EU”. However, shadow cabinet minister Andrew Gwynne would not be drawn this morning on whether the pledge will be included in the 2019 manifesto. He said only that he would be “able to answer more clearly this time next week” after the party’s Clause V meeting to “hammer out” their manifesto. Last week Mr Corbyn told a campaign event in Telford that free movement “enriches the lives of all of us”. He said: “I want our young people to be brought up in a world where they can travel, they can experience other societies, they can make their contribution there. I want to make sure all those European Union nationals do remain here, can come here, will stay here.” – Telegraph (£) > WATCH: Shadow Communities Secretary Andrew Gwynne speaking to Andrew Marr …allowing Michael Gove to rail at Labour ‘open borders’ policy Jeremy Corbyn would allow “unlimited and uncontrolled” migration into Britain, Michael Gove has claimed, as the Tories put free movement at the centre of the election campaign. In one of the strongest attacks on Labour so far Mr Gove says that Labour would instigate an “open borders” policy that would put massive pressure on schools, hospitals and housing. In an article for The Times, he also warns that British citizens would be “less safe” because a Labour government “wouldn’t put in place the controls necessary to stop criminals crossing our borders”. His comments come after Andrew Gwynne, the Labour election chief, refused to say whether a future Corbyn government’s Brexit deal would end people’s freedom of movement. The Labour conference voted to include a commitment to the free movement of EU citizens in the next election manifesto and reject any broader immigration system based on quotas, caps, targets or income. Mr Gove claims that Labour has “reneged” on a pledge to bring immigration under democratic control that was included in its 2017 manifesto. He warns that this would put massive pressure on public services and betray many Labour voters for whom immigration was a key issue in the 2016 referendum. – The Times (£) Business Minister Kwasi Kwarteng says Farage should ‘step aside’ and let Boris Johnson deliver Brexit… Nigel Farage should “step aside” and let the Conservatives deliver Brexit, business minister Kwasi Kwarteng has said. Mr Farage has warned the Tories the “clock was ticking down” to secure a Leave alliance with him at the election. Senior Tory “power brokers” have held talks with the Brexit Party over a possible deal which would see the vast majority of Mr Farage’s candidates withdrawing from the race.In return, he would want the government to push for a harder Brexit. Conservatives have warned that Brexit Party candidates would lure support away from would-be Conservative voters. Ministers say that if Mr Johnson fails to win a majority, Jeremy Corbyn would strike a deal with the Scottish National Party, paving the way for second referendums on Brexit and Scottish independence. Mr Kwarteng told Sky’s Ridge on Sunday: “I would say to Nigel: he was a big, big part of the fact that we voted to leave. He’s had a political success. I think that now is the time for him, really, to step aside. “It’s obvious to many people that the only way we’re going to get Brexit done is by voting for a Conservative Government.” – Telegraph (£) > WATCH: Business Minister Kwasi Kwarteng’s full interview with Sophy Ridge ….and backs Boris Johnson’s message on Northern Ireland exports post-Brexit One of Boris Johnson’s business ministers has insisted the prime minister was correct in arguing that businesses in Northern Ireland will not have to fill in forms to export goods to the rest of the UK after Brexit, despite this being an apparent part of the departure deal. Kwasi Kwarteng said Johnson was “absolutely on the money” when he told Northern Irish exporters last week that they would not need to fill in extra paperwork, prompting accusations the prime minister was misleading the public. In a video shot in Northern Ireland on Thursday night, Johnson told exporters they would not need to fill in customs declarations when they sent goods across the Irish Sea, adding that if firms were asked to they should call him “and I will direct them to throw that form in the bin”. This contradicted the view of Stephen Barclay, the Brexit secretary, who told a House of Lords committee that businesses would need to complete “exit summary declarations” for such sending shipments. – Guardian Election boost for Johnson as latest figures set to show UK economy growing… Boris Johnson’s election hopes have been majorly boosted as the latest financial data will show the UK economy growing once again after a previous quarter of contraction. Experts predict output to rise 0.4 percent between July and September, as the economy bounces back from a weak second quarter, when it declined 0.2 percent. The improvement in the economy’s performance will be driven by the UK’s dominant services sector, which account for 81 percent of total economic output (GDP). Growth in the third quarter means that the economy avoids going into a recession at a critical moment in the electoral race. However, the good news has been tempered by Bank of England warnings last week that the UK economy still faces serious challenges from a deteriorating global outlook and the continuing effect of Brexit uncertainty on business and household spending. The delay to Brexit looks set to dampen growth once again in the final quarter, although economic prospects are expected to improve once Brexit is completed. – Express …while London races farther ahead as the global hub for trading Chinese currency London is stretching away from its rivals as the world’s biggest centre for trading the renminbi outside China, easing fears that the impact of Brexit could threaten its status as the world’s dominant foreign-exchange hub. In the second quarter an average of $85bn of renminbi changed hands in London every day, up 10 per cent from the first three months of the year, and 23 per cent higher than the same period a year earlier, according to a report published on Monday by the City of London Corporation and the European office of the People’s Bank of China. That gave London a 43.9 per cent share of renminbi transactions carried out in offshore markets from April to June, up from 38.6 per cent in the same period in 2018. London’s gains came at the expense of Hong Kong and other minor centres such as Sydney and Toronto, and put its share of renminbi trading on a rough par with its total share of the $6.6tn-a-day FX market. “It’s no secret that the UK has long been a world leader in foreign exchange,” said Catherine McGuinness, policy chair at the City of London Corporation. “We’ve also grown to become the leading hub for renminbi trading, with levels of the Chinese currency going through London far outstripping that of any other financial centre.” – FT(£) David Lidington says it was the threat of terrorism that put Theresa May off a no-deal Brexit Theresa May rejected a no-deal Brexit after she was given grave warnings about the potential for terrorist atrocities in Northern Ireland, according to her de facto deputy, David Lidington. In his first interview since stepping down as an MP, the former chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster has revealed that May in effect ruled out crashing out of the EU without a deal after meeting community groups and police chiefs in Belfast in February. Meeting moderate nationalists had crystallised her fears about the threat to the union, Lidington added. “What really struck her was how the prospect of no deal was driving them towards actively supporting a united Ireland, rather than being content to let sleeping dogs lie.”Lidington did not believe that friction on the border would be a cause of violence, but “people who are inclined that way would seize upon any opportunity . . . because it would be a grievance they could exploit,” he said. “Anything on the border itself — even cameras — was certain to produce an increase in tension. I sat in meetings in Londonderry and in Newry and County Fermanagh, and I was told that in no uncertain terms.” – The Times (£) Mark Francois accuses Jo Swinson of “sticking two fingers up” at 17.4 million voters Clive Bull asked Mark Francois what he thought of Jo Swinson’s proposal to revoke Article 50 if she became Prime Minister. Francois replied: “Well, I think that’s two fingers at 17.4 million British people who voted to leave the European Union in a democratic referendum. “Now, if she says she will do this if she becomes Prime Minister, that’s a decision for the British people. There’ll be lots of opinion polls, there was one out this morning that says the Liberals will probably win 25 seats. So if that’s vaguely accurate, she’s unlikely to be the Prime Minister, I think. But I think what really will offend a lot of people is the sheer arrogance of it. We had a referendum, we promised to abide by the result. She’s saying if I become Prime Minister, on day one, I’m going to stick two fingers up at all of you. That’s neither liberal nor democratic, is it?” Clive Bull asked if he would accept her decision to revoke Article 50 in the situation that she might become Prime Minister. He replied: “Well, I’m a Democrat but I think it’s probably unlikely that Jo Swinson will be the Prime Minister.” – LBC People’s Vote staff refuse to return to work despite chief’s exit People’s Vote employees are refusing to return to work even after its chief executive stepped down pending an inquiry into allegations of sexual harassment. Patrick Heneghan, Labour’s former elections chief, is reported to have faced accusations of misconduct from three female staff members. The organisation is still understood to be stuck in a stand-off with workers, who say they have concerns about the governance of the campaign. On Saturday, People’s Vote launched a tactical voting app for Remain voters keen to get as many pro-EU MPs as possible returned to parliament in December. Mr Heneghan was installed as chief executive last month in what some staff have denounced as a “coup” by senior management. That triggered a walkout of more than 40 staff, who declared they had no confidence in Mr Heneghan and Roland Rudd, the campaign’s millionaire chairman. Staff have been told that Mr Heneghan has taken a two-week “leave of absence” pending an investigation by an external law firm and “wants the opportunity to try to clear his name”. Stuart Hand, who previously worked for the Conservative Party as an elections official, has been appointed in his place as acting head of the campaign. – The Times (£) Liam Fox: The choice is clear in this election: Boris’s Brexit, or Britain goes bust under Corbyn It appears that we might be reaching the Brexit endgame. The British people have endured the political equivalent of “cruel and inhuman punishment” watching their Parliament renege on their democratic contract with the electorate to deliver on the referendum result. Boris Johnson’s success in persuading parliament to have a general election provides Britain with a means of ending a shameful political stand-off that has damaged our nation’s reputation for political competence and stability. It is clear that a Conservative majority in the next House of Commons will see legislation that will enable Britain to leave the European Union with a deal in a managed and stable fashion passed quickly. It is also clear that anything other than a Tory victory will perpetuate the stalemate and dither that has characterised the painful political period since the referendum. This is, of course, the Remainers’ last hope. It is their final throw of the dice. – Liam Fox for the Telegraph (£) Daniel Hannan: Nigel Farage would rather scupper Brexit than let somebody else deliver it Donna Jones organised the Leave campaign in Portsmouth in 2016. She did a good job: that patriotic naval city voted to come out by 58.1 per cent. Now, Donna is the Conservative candidate in Portsmouth South. Yet, according to the latest poll, she is currently trailing the Liberal Democrats – because of a Brexit Party challenge. The latest local poll in Portsmouth South has the Lib Dems on 30 per cent, the Conservatives on 27 and the Brexit Party on 14. Other Tory Brexiteers find themselves in the same position: Caroline Ansell in Eastbourne, Maria Caulfield in Lewes, even Iain Duncan Smith in Chingford. The Brexit Party could, paradoxically, give all these seats to candidates who want to annul the referendum. Remainers, naturally, are delighted. They have always secretly thought that Eurosceptics are dunderheads. Their newspaper, The New European, carried a picture of Nigel Farage in a Stop Brexit hat. Its headline? “Remain’s Secret Weapon”. – Daniel Hannan MEP for the Telegraph (£) Nick Timothy: Nigel Farage has tragically turned into the Frodo Baggins of Brexit In Lord of the Rings, Frodo Baggins undertakes an epic journey and battles all as he seeks to destroy the One Ring, which gives absolute power to whoever wears it. When Frodo finally reaches the Fire of Mount Doom, he succumbs to temptation and chooses not to destroy the ring, but keep it for himself. Recently, friends of Nigel Farage have taken to comparing him to Frodo. Mr Farage has spent a lifetime campaigning to get Britain out of the European Union. He overcame incredible odds to become one of the few who can say they made Brexit happen. But now Britain has the opportunity to leave the EU, he risks upending all he has worked to achieve. This Friday, Farage will launch the Brexit Party election campaign. Despite his supporters’ boasts – that they can win in Labour’s Brexit heartlands where the Tories cannot – Farage will be not be in Sunderland or South Yorkshire, but the Conservative-held constituency of Walsall North. It is a curious choice. Three quarters of voters in Walsall North voted to leave the EU, making it the second most Eurosceptic constituency in the country. But voters there are not represented by some Labour Remainer, like Hilary Benn or Yvette Cooper. They are represented by Eddie Hughes, a Leave-supporting Tory. While Remainer campaign groups are encouraging tactical voting against Brexit, Farage is deliberately splitting the Leave vote. According to polling, the Brexit Party could win 22 per cent of the vote in Walsall North. With only a little tactical voting, Hughes might lose to a Labour MP who will vote for a rigged second referendum, allowing Jeremy Corbyn to keep Britain in the EU as well as wreck our economy. – Nick Timothy for the Telegraph (£) Telegraph: Nigel Farage risks losing everything with his great election gamble No-one is more responsible for Brexit than Nigel Farage. He campaigned for leaving the EU long before the idea was glint in Boris Johnson’s eye. His Ukip party’s success forced David Cameron to concede the referendum in which a record 17.4m people voted to leave. And yet his apparent intention to contest every seat at the general election on December 12 now risks jeopardising the very achievement he has spent a political lifetime trying to bring about. There are many Brexit party supporters who insist, taking their lead from Mr Farage, that the deal negotiated last month by Mr Johnson “is not real Brexit”. There are, indeed, elements of the agreement that will be problematic to those who want a clean break with no prospect of the UK being forced to sign up to future trade and regulatory arrangements that limit the national freedoms we have sought to recover. But in a tight election, to have two parties both committed to delivering on the referendum result fighting each other risks losing Brexit altogether, whether “real” or not. Mr Farage says Mr Johnson’s agreement is worse than staying in the EU but does he really believe that? The fact is that Mr Farage cannot win the general election and will be lucky if his party wins any seats. Mr Johnson, however, can lose it. If that happens there will be another referendum because Labour, the only other party likely to be in a position to form a government, is committed to one, albeit only after yet another renegotiation. The other parties want to stop Brexit altogether but will back a referendum. Mr Farage, who is to confirm his plans in Hartlepool today, may calculate that in another referendum the Leave side will win again and this time the country will know whether or not it is voting for a “real” Brexit. But it is a big gamble that risks losing everything. – Telegraph (£) editorial Michael Gove: Buy Jeremy Corbyn, get a second leader free One of the principal lessons of the Brexit referendum was the desire of the British people to end freedom of movement and bring immigration under democratic control. Labour briefly appeared to grasp that. Its 2017 manifesto was unambiguous: “Freedom of movement will end when we leave the European Union.” But two years on, Labour has reneged. This year its conference voted to “maintain and extend free movement rights”. Labour is now explicitly in favour of unlimited and uncontrolled immigration. And Nicola Sturgeon is their staunchest ally. The Corbyn-Sturgeon policy is extreme, dangerous and out of touch with the British people. It would mean massive pressure on public services — creating a shortage of school places, putting a huge strain on the NHS and increasing demand for housing. It would also mean Britons are less safe, as a Corbyn-Sturgeon alliance wouldn’t put in place the controls necessary to stop criminals crossing our borders. The only way to avoid the Corbyn-Sturgeon alliance for chaos is for a Conservative majority to be returned on December 12. A Conservative majority will get Brexit done. No more dither and delay, no more referendums — we will pass the deal tenaciously negotiated by the prime minister and we will leave. People will be able to move to the UK on the basis of what they can offer, rather than where they come from. That is the balanced approach people voted for in 2016 and we can deliver it swiftly, without the need for another two referendums. – Michael Gove for The Times (£) Brexit in Brief The week that will decide Nigel Farage’s place in history – Iain Dale’s Blog