Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Boris Johnson targets Labour Leave seats as the election campaign enters its final week… Boris Johnson will visit four Brexit-voting Labour-held seats in Humberside and north-east England later, with three days to go before polling day. In a speech in Sunderland – 61% of which voted to Leave – the PM is expected to tell voters: “The Labour party has let you down.” He will attack Parliament, saying it has “delayed” and “denied” Brexit. Mr Johnson will also travel to south-west England, where he will warn against voting for the pro-EU Lib Dems. Voters go to the polls on Thursday. The Conservative Party says the prime minister is intending to “visit every region in England and Wales” in the final three days before polling day on Thursday. Mr Johnson “will be visiting high streets, businesses, pubs and markets across England and Wales”, telling voters that “the only way they can get Brexit done and unleash Britain’s potential” is to vote Conservative, the party says. – BBC News Boris Johnson declares there’s three days to save Brexit amid fears Remainers’ tactical voting may oust him as PM – The Sun …with the PM heading to Sunderland to accuse Labour of a ‘great betrayal’ on Brexit… With just three more days of campaigning to go before Thursday’s election, Mr Johnson will play his trump card of Brexit relentlessly on a nationwide tour beginning in the Labour heartlands of the Humber region and Sunderland, each of which voted Leave by more than 60 per cent. He will emphasise that if the SNP and the Liberal Democrats were to win just six more seats each, it would be enough to put Mr Corbyn in Downing Street, meaning there are effectively three days left to save Brexit. Mr Johnson will visit four Brexit-voting Labour seats. He will tell voters in Sunderland, one of 12 seats in all-Labour Tyne and Wear: “It’s now been 1,264 days since Sunderland’s roar was heard on the night of June 23 2016. Parliament has bent every rule and broken every convention as it has delayed, diluted and denied Brexit. The Labour Party has let you down most of all. Under Jeremy Corbyn, they promised to honour the result of the referendum – before voting against Brexit every chance they had. They won their seats on a false prospectus and then stuck two fingers up to the public. Now they are proposing another referendum – this time rigging the result by extending the franchise to two million EU citizens. It’s been the great betrayal, orchestrated from Islington by politicians who sneer at your values and ignore your votes.” – Telegraph (£) …as he says this general election is the ‘last chance to save Brexit’ Boris Johnson today warns Daily Express readers that Thursday’s general election is the “last chance” to save Brexit. In an exclusive interview, the Prime Minister admits the race for Downing Street is “very, very close” with just three days to go until polling day. He insists that getting the UK out of the EU at last can unleash “a golden age of investment and growth” that could boost the economy by £150billion and “bring the country together” after years of division. But he also pledges to fight for every vote until polls close to save the country from more Brexit delay and the economic chaos of a Jeremy Corbyn-led hard-Left Labour government. “Thursday is the last chance, not only to save Brexit but also to save this country from chaos. It’s a choice between progress and chaos, as simple as that,” the Prime Minister says. “It’s a choice between resolution, harmony, moving forward or going backwards, acrimony and division.” Mr Johnson spoke to the Daily Express during a visit to the Tories main general election phone bank centre where dozens of party activists were yesterday calling voters around the country in the effort to maximise support. – Express Johnson insists there will be no NI-GB goods checks after Brexit… Boris Johnson has insisted there will not be any checks for goods travelling from Northern Ireland to Great Britain under his Brexit deal. He told Sky News that a leaked Treasury analysis document was “wrong” to suggest this would be the case. His Brexit deal means there will be goods checks from GB to NI, but there has been confusion on whether there will be checks in the other direction. Labour said the PM’s claims about his deal with the EU were “fraudulent”. And DUP leader Arlene Foster said she still had concerns over the withdrawal agreement Mr Johnson reached with other European leaders in October. The comments come as the main political party leaders continue to push their pledges ahead of Thursday’s general election. Under the PM’s agreement, Northern Ireland would continue to follow many EU rules on food and manufactured goods, while the rest of the UK would not. Northern Ireland would also continue to follow EU customs rules but would remain part of the UK’s customs territory. – BBC News …and declares the leaked Treasury document brandished by Corbyn to be ‘wrong’… Boris Johnson has claimed a leaked Treasury document about checks on the Northern Ireland border is “wrong”. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn obtained the document, claiming it proves there will be customs checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland after Brexit. Speaking to Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Mr Johnson said: “[This deal] allows the whole of the UK to come out of the EU including Northern Ireland and the only checks that there would be, would be if something was coming from GB via Northern Ireland and was going on to the Republic, then there might be checks at the border into Northern Ireland.” Pressed on the document talking about “checks both ways”, he said “that’s wrong because there won’t be checks”. Answering a question about whether the document was wrong, he said: “Yes. Because there’s no question of there being checks on goods going NI/GB or GB/NI because they are part of – if you look at what the deal is, we’re part of the same customs territory and it’s very clear that there should be unfettered access between Northern Ireland and the rest of GB. “We’re a UK government, why would we put checks on goods going from NI to GB or GB to NI? It doesn’t make sense. So the issue is how to avoid a hard border in Northern Ireland and we can do that by making sure that there are – by having some checks on goods that might be preceding into the Republic.” – Sky News > WATCH: Boris Johnson discusses Brexit and the general election with Sophy Ridge …although the FT claims a new leak from DExEU casts doubt on the Government’s plans Boris Johnson’s claim that Britain will make a clean break with the EU in December 2020 has been questioned by UK officials, who fear that a new customs arrangement for Northern Ireland may not be ready in time. A Department for Exiting the EU document, extracts of which have been seen by the Financial Times, warns that implementing Mr Johnson’s Brexit deal, which would see Northern Ireland remain part of the EU customs code, presents a “major” challenge. It also raises the possible “legal and political (domestic and EU) impact of not being able to deliver the protocol in Dec 2020” — a reference to the protocol covering Northern Ireland signed by Mr Johnson with the other 27 EU member states last October to secure an exit deal. The Dexeu document, circulated last week to senior officials in Whitehall, said: “Delivery of the required infrastructure, associated systems, and staffing to implement the requirements of the protocol by December 2020 represents a major strategic, political and operational challenge.” It adds that “delivery on the ground would need to commence before we know the outcome of negotiations”, a reference to the wider free-trade agreement that Mr Johnson insists he can agree with the EU in the course of 2020. The document, marked “Official Sensitive” and titled “Delivering the Protocol by December 2020”, concludes by discussing the possibility that the government would not be ready to put in place new systems and procedures to cover trade with Northern Ireland by the end of next year.- FT(£) Voters more likely to identify with Leave or Remain than political parties Voters are more likely to identify as either leave or remain instead of with a political party, according to new research. 2016’s EU referendum has left the country deeply polarised, resulting in people defining their politics by the way they voted on Europe more than party allegiance, Kings College London academics found. The Policy Institute at the university found 55% of British voters aged 18-75 said they “very strongly” identify with their leave or remain Brexit affiliation – up from 44% on last year. In contrast, just over a fifth said they very strongly identify with a political party. Professor Bobby Duff, director of the Policy Institute, said the results showed views on Brexit are continuing to “trump” party affiliation. – Sky News Nigel Farage reveals plan for the Brexit Party to become the Reform Party after Brexit… Nigel Farage has said he will rename the Brexit Party the Reform Party if the UK leaves the EU on January 31 as planned. The Brexit Party leader said he had already registered the name for his new party, which would “have to campaign to change politics for good”. Mr Farage’s election strategy has been to support a Conservative majority and give way to Boris Johnson in Tory target seats, while promising to exert pressure on the Prime Minister to pursue a “Canada-plus style” trade deal with the EU. Yesterday he predicted his candidates could win a “handful” of seats on Thursday, telling Sky News’ Sophy Ridge: “I think we will get some in, I genuinely do.” But Mr Farage also said the Brexit Party would “have to reform into the ‘Reform Party’” if Britain left with Mr Johnson’s deal on January 31. He said his party would “have to campaign to change politics for good, get rid of the House of Lords, change the voting system. So much to do and again you’ll see on Thursday a turnout much lower than the pundits expect because people have lost faith in politics,” he added. Asked if the Reform Party was a possible new name, he added: “Absolutely, I’ve registered it already.” – Telegraph (£) …as he claims his party could win ‘a handful’ of seats despite a split over its election strategy Nigel Farage insisted that the Brexit Party could still get its first MPs in Thursday’s election, brushing off a nosedive in the polls today as ‘laughable’. He claimed that candidates contesting Labour-held seats were in contention in ‘a handful’ of working class Leave-voting areas and insisted he has a long-term post-Brexit plan for the party to become the Reform Party pushing for electoral change in the UK. It comes after four MEPs including Annunziata Rees-Mogg, the sister of Tory Cabinet minister Jacob, walked out over fears the party would split the Brexiteer vote. She, John Longworth, the former British Chambers of Commerce chief, Lance Forman and Lucy Harris resigned and appealed for colleagues to follow their example. Mr Farage announced last month that his party would not stand in Tory-held seats but go after Labour and the Liberal Democrats. Some opinion poll this weekend have support for Mr Farage’s party as low as 2 per cent. But speaking on Sky’s Sophy Ridge on Sunday today he said: ‘I promise you, when you sit there and see the results coming through we will be on 13-14 per cent. There are a handful in which we really have a great chance of winning, but our vote could be split by the Conservatives. That’s the battle for the next four days.’ – MailOnline > WATCH: Nigel Farage discusses immigration, Brexit and the general election with Sophy Ridge Michael Gove tipped for trade job in Conservative reshuffle Boris Johnson is preparing a post-Brexit reshuffle that could give Michael Gove a leading role in trade negotiations. Senior Tory sources said that it was inevitable that the Department for Exiting the European Union (Dexeu) would be merged with the Department for International Trade to create a super-department. “Dexeu has already been hollowed out. By the time we leave, it will be completely pointless. The focus will be on securing trade deals with the EU, the US and other nations,” one source said. A cabinet minister said: “If Boris wins [the election] with a significant majority he can do whatever he likes. There’s been no No 2 during this election campaign, no other power base.” Mr Gove’s role as chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is likely to be significantly diminished after the election if the Conservatives win. – The Times (£) Labour Remainer Jon Ashworth pulled apart on the party’s Brexit policy Labour Shadow Health Secretary Jonathan Ashworth was savaged on his party’s Brexit plan during an interview with Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday. Mr Ashworth was appearing on Sky News to defend his party’s record ahead of the December 12 general election next week. The Labour Party chief was asked about his party’s stance on Brexit, which involves going “back to the people” for a “final say” vote on the UK’s membership of the Brussels bloc. Part of the plan is to negotiate a more “credible” Leave option with the EU – something Sky News’ Ms Ridge questioned as the majority of Labour frontbenchers are Remainers. Mr Ashworth insisted he was a Remainer as he believed staying in the EU was best for the nation – but Ms Ridge questioned why the EU would offer a better deal to a party made of up those who do want Brexit all. – Express > WATCH: Shadow Health Secretary Jon Ashworth discusses Brexit and immigration with Sophy Ridge Tables turned on Jo Swinson over ‘cosy electoral stitch-ups’ Jo Swinson was left stunned when Sky News’ Sophy Ridge turned the tables on her during a heated interview on Sunday morning. Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson was appearing on Sky News’ Sophy Ridge on Sunday ahead of next week’s general election. The Remainer told Sky News a “cosy stitch-up” between Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson “changes arithmetic and makes it more difficult” for the Liberal Democrats to win the election. But Ms Swinson was left squirming when Ms Ridge ruthlessly tore apart her argument by explaining she, herself, was in a “cosy stitch-up” with the Green Party and Plaid Cymru. Addressing her election chances, Ms Swinson said: “What we have seen is a cosy stitch-up between Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson. “Obviously that is very worrying to many people who have supported the Conservatives, as Boris Johnson is Nigel Farage’s candidate for Prime Minister.” But Ms Ridge fired back: “But you have had a cosy stitch-up with the Greens? You have been making your own alliances?” Ms Swinson replied: “Absolutely, I have worked with other parties. And I am very proud to have done so. Because the threat that we face to opportunities for future generations from Brexit is very significant. We have worked on a cross-party basis with other parties who want to remain. But that stitch-up between Farage and Johnson clearly changes the electoral arithmetic and makes it more difficult.” – Express > WATCH: Lib Dem Leader Jo Swinson discusses her Brexit policy with Sophy Ridge Nicola Sturgeon challenged over SNP’s betrayal of Scottish fisheries Nicola Sturgeon was left red-faced as Andrew Marr attacked the SNP leader over whether she was being honest with Scottish voters on the future of Scottish fisheries. Nicola Sturgeon stuttered in her response as BBC’s Andrew Marr insisted that under the SNP’s plans they would not be able to reform the common fisheries policy. Ms Sturgeon insisted that she and the SNP had long been committed to reforming the fisheries policy. However, she added that Brexit would have a negative impact on the fishing community as they rely heavily on migrant labour. Mr Marr said: “You have just come down from Aberdeenshire where you have been campaigning lots and lots of marginal constituencies up there. “Have you been frank with the Scottish fishing community that under your plans you will not be able to reform the common fisheries policy?” While stuttering Ms Sturgeon replied: “We have been long-term advocates of reform of the common fisheries policy.” – Express > WATCH: SNP Leader Nicola Sturgeon discusses Scotland and Brexit with Andrew Marr Ulster Hall rally garners resistance to the Government’s Brexit deal The organisers of a loyalist rally at the Ulster Hall have said that they staged the event in the hope of returning the maximum number of unionist MPs in Thursday’s General Election. In a statement on Sunday, organisers said the aim of the event was to motivate loyalists to vote unionist on December 12. Unionist candidates won 11 of Northern Ireland’s 18 seats at the last General Election in 2017. The rally was styled as a rejection of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Brexit withdrawal deal, described by loyalists as a ‘Betrayal Act’ as it would see Northern Ireland treated differently than the rest of the UK. It has been claimed that the deal would create a trade border in the Irish Sea and leave Northern Ireland tied to the European Union indefinitely. Some loyalists have claimed the deal would result in an “economic united Ireland”. A series of protest meetings have taken place across Northern Ireland to garner support for resisting the Prime Minister’s deal. – Belfast Telegraph DUP and UUP in heated clash over ‘Irish Sea border’ during UTV leaders’ debate – Belfast Telegraph Latest polling average shows Conservative Party lead stabilising at 10 points Boris Johnson’s lead over Labour has stabilised at 10 points, with the latest opinion polls revealing that Jeremy Corbyn has slowly started to narrow the gap with the Conservatives as election day approaches. Opinion polls so far show the Conservative Party still in front, with a 9.9-point lead over Labour. Though there are only days to go until election day, it is still possible for public opinion to shift – just as it did away from Theresa May in 2017. Labour have been steadily narrowing the gap with the Tories, in-part thanks to a relatively popular manifesto, but continue to suffer from the on-going accusations of anti-Semitism which are plaguing both party and leader. The latest polling average has the Conservative Party on 42.9 per cent compared to Labour’s 33 per cent. Although the Conservatives lead, it is still too early to predict a general election result. Theresa May held a polling lead of over 10 percentage points at the start of the 2017 election campaign, and that quickly diminished as Jeremy Corbyn surged in the polls. – Telegraph (£) Matt Ridley: The EU’s absurd risk aversion stifles new ideas With tariffs announced against Brazil and Argentina, and a threat against France, Donald Trump is dragging the world deeper into a damaging trade war. Largely unnoticed, the European Union is also in trouble at the World Trade Organisation for its continuing and worsening record as a protectionist bloc. Last month, at the WTO meeting in Geneva, India joined a list of countries including Canada, Australia, Argentina, Brazil and Malaysia that have lodged formal complaints against the EU over barriers to agricultural imports. Not only does the EU raise hefty tariffs against crops such as rice and oranges to protect subsidised European farmers; it also uses health and safety rules to block imports. The irony is that these are often dressed up as precautionary measures against health and environmental threats, when in fact they are sometimes preventing Europeans from gaining health and environmental benefits. The WTO complaints accuse the EU of “unnecessarily and inappropriately” restricting trade through regulatory barriers on pesticide residues that violate international scientific standards and the “principle of evidence”. Worse, they say, “it appears that the EU is unilaterally attempting to impose its own domestic regulatory approach on to its trading partners”, disproportionately harming farmers in the developing nations whose livelihoods depend on agriculture. The problem is that the EU, unlike the rest of the world, bases its regulations on “hazard”, the possibility that a chemical could conceivably cause, say, cancer, even if only at impossibly high doses. WTO rules by contrast require a full “risk” analysis that takes into account likely exposure. Coffee, apples, pears, lettuce, bread and many other common foods that are part of a healthy diet contain entirely natural molecules that at high enough doses would be carcinogenic. Alcohol, for instance, is a known carcinogen at very high doses, though perfectly safe in moderation. The absurdity of the EU approach can be seen in the fact that if wine were sprayed on vineyards as a pesticide, it would have to be banned under a hazard-based approach. – Matt Ridley for The Times (£) Annunziata Rees-Mogg: I resigned from the Brexit Party to back Tories so Britain can actually achieve Brexit On Thursday, with three other MEPs, I resigned from the Brexit Party and asked voters to support the Conservatives. Sadly, the Brexit Party, launched earlier this year with just one aim – to deliver Brexit – now puts at risk our chance to leave the EU. Nigel Farage, who so brilliantly led us to success, cannot accept that he has won. By fighting Conservatives in marginal, and not so marginal, constituencies he will split Leave supporters’ votes and let remainer candidates win. The Brexit Party has become the Anti-Brexit Party by following this strategy which is one I, as a strong believer in securing our independence from the EU, could no longer support. In early November, Nigel Farage wisely stood down all 317 Brexit Party candidates in seats the Conservatives had won two years ago because Boris Johnson’s deal was good enough not to fight them. As every single Conservative Party candidate has pledged to support this deal, why not stand down against every one? Why split the vote in seats too close to call or with small margins between a pro-Brexit Tory and a pro-Remain Labour, Lib Dem or SNP candidate? The strategy made no sense. Boris’s new deal is not perfect but it brings control back to our country and every constitutional lawyer I respect argues it would free us of the shackles of an undemocratic, sclerotic and power hungry EU. This is what I have fought for over the last three decades. Voting Conservative is the only way to achieve sovereignty. Vote Conservative to make Brexit happen. – Annunziata Rees-Mogg MEP for The Sun Telegraph: This week we finally get the chance to end months of political stasis Britain finally votes on Thursday and one interesting thing to watch will be the turnout. Has the delay of Brexit energised the nation or deflated it? The Tories are hoping, obviously, that Leavers are furious and determined to move the country forward. There is a lot to be getting on with. Brexit wasn’t all that got stuck under Theresa May. Much of the 2017 manifesto was jettisoned when she realised she didn’t have a majority – lifting the ban on new grammar schools, a vote on fox hunting, welfare reforms – and, as negotiations dragged on and Parliament became log-jammed, entire departments seemed to stop functioning. It was often said that ministers didn’t have “the bandwidth” to think about anything other than Brexit. An advert released by the Conservatives over the weekend depicts a chaotic parliament of MPs who have been “arguing amongst themselves for three long years”. Given the damage this is doing – to business and to the reputation of politics – it is incredible that members of the establishment have been touring the country arguing for a vote that leads to a hung parliament. Some Remainers will sadly never see beyond their opposition to Brexit. But for everyone else, this election offers the hope of fresh movement in public life. Business is waiting to invest; much of the public wants to get on with developing the post-Brexit economy. The only way to do all this is by returning a Conservative majority. No one can afford to stay at home on December 12. – Telegraph (£) editorial Brexit in Brief Peterborough: marginal seat where voters want to ‘get Brexit done’ – FT (£) Tories left raging after Channel 4 announces left-wing Remainer panel for election night – Express