Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Second round of Brexit negotiations begins with David Davis prioritising a deal on citizens’ rights… Brexit Secretary David Davis has called on both sides in the negotiations on the UK’s departure from the European Union to “get down to business”. Mr Davis was in Brussels to launch the second round of formal talks. He said his priority was to “lift the uncertainty” for EU citizens living in the UK and Britons living in the EU. The EU says there must be substantial progress on this – and on a financial settlement and the issue of the Irish border – before trade talks can begin. Appearing alongside EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier, Mr Davis said there had been a good start to the process and it was time to get to the “substance of the matter”. – BBC British officials shrugged off criticism of David Davis’ flying visit to Brussels which included talks with his EU counterpart Michel Barnier that lasted less than two hours.The Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) said the Brexit secretary’s fleeting trip to the Belgian capital was perfectly normal in international negotiations and added he was in constant contact with his negotiating team. – Express According to David Davis they are the most complicated negotiations “of all time”. So perhaps it was good sense that there wasn’t a single politician left in the room when EU and UK officials sat down to untangle 44 years of joint lawmaking. The UK has 98 officials in Brussels this week involved in the Brexit negotiations in various capacities. The EU side is a little more modest at 52. – The Times (£) One photo reveals contrasting mood between Britain and Brussels – Express Davis makes a sharp exit from talks in Brussels – The Times (£) Davis criticised for spending only an hour in Brussels – Politics Home Who’s who on Brexit negotiating teams – The Times (£) …as Boris Johnson says the settled status proposal is a good offer… Boris Johnson has called on the EU to accept the government’s offer of “settled status” to European citizens living in the UK as the second round of Brexit negotiations on the “substance” of withdrawal begin.The foreign secretary, who arrived in Brussels this morning, said the proposed light-touch regime that would give EU citizens who have lived in the UK for five years before the formal Brexit date indefinite leave to remain was “a very fair, serious offer”.MEPs from the EU27, including the European parliament’s chief Brexit negotiator Guy Verhofstadt, criticised the prime minister’s proposals on citizens’ rights as a “damp squib” that “cast a dark cloud of vagueness and uncertainty over the lives of millions of Europeans”. – The Times (£) Boris Johnson criticises EU for playing games over citizens’ rights – Express …but Michel Barnier is reportedly prepared to ‘stall’ Brexit talks over ‘exit’ bill The EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, is prepared to “stall” Brexit talks over the British government’s unwillingness to present proposals for calculating the U.K.’s financial obligations, according to two EU diplomats… The two EU diplomats briefed on the internal deliberations said Barnier was preparing to issue a warning on Tuesday to his British counterparts that he will stop talking over their refusal to make a counter-proposal on the Brexit tab, which could run to €100 billion. – Politico Czech Secretary for European Affairs says UK can strike ‘broader and deeper’ trade deal with EU than Canada’s A Senior European Union politician has said that Britain can get a “broad and deep” trade deal after Brexit. The comments by the Czech Secretary of State for European Affairs Ales Chmelar came as round two of the Brexit talks began in Brussels today. Brexit Secretary David Davis said that the talks over four days this week will tackle the “substance” of the divorce arrangements including the EU’s ludicrous exit bill demands, citizens rights and Irish border with Northern Ireland.However, Mr Chmelar’s remarks reflect growing frustration among governments of EU member states that the Commission’s negotiating team led by Michel Barnier is obsessing with “technicalities” and not getting on with setting up a trade deal. Last week it was revealed that Mr Barnier had been given a dressing down by French President Emmanuel Macron and other heads of government over the failure to discuss trade. – Express Paris and Frankfurt team up to shut out the City of London France and Germany have joined forces to exclude the UK from a €1 trillion financial market after Brexit. Lobbyists for Paris and Frankfurt have put aside rivalries in an effort to persuade the EU to make it unviable for financial institutions based in London to clear trades made in euros when Britain leaves the bloc. The move is understood to be part of a wide and aggressive push to diminish London as a financial centre and win business in the eurozone… In a memo sent to ministers, Mr Browne claimed that the French government and banking chiefs were plotting to “actively disrupt and destroy” the UK’s financial sector. – The Times (£) EU could force UK to change anti-terror laws after Brexit The European Union could demand more say over Britain’s anti-terror laws after Brexit, a report from the House of Lords’ EU Affairs Committee has warned. Britain’s security laws could be subject to greater scrutiny after it leaves the EU if it is to meet the strict data protection standards in Brussels required for the free flow of information, the report said. Data movement across borders is vital for companies and law enforcement to function, the report said, but can only happen if the UK’s protection of citizens match those of the EU. The House of Lords EU Affairs Committee said the UK’s surveillance laws could be incompatible with EU regulations. – Telegraph (£) Gibraltar’s Chief Minister says Brexit will be a success Gibraltar’s Chief Minister has defiantly stood up to pressure from Spain, saying the Rock will never stop being British.Fabian Picardo, 45, also pledged to residents they would not become the “victims of Brexit,” in a rousing interview. He added Gibraltar will “energetically and enthusiastically” work to deliver a successful Brexit, Mr Picardo said Gibraltar had made its position clear as to what it needed from the Brexit negotiations and had received assurances from the UK Government that its interests would be looked after. – Express Prince George and Princess Charlotte join Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on ‘EU diplomacy tour’ The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their two children have arrived in Warsaw for the start of their visit to Poland and Germany. Their five-day tour of the two European countries is at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Kensington Palace said Prince George, three, and Princess Charlotte, two, will be seen “on at least a couple of occasions over the course of the week”. They joined their parents in Canada last year for an official trip. “The duke and duchess are very much looking forward to this tour and are delighted with the exciting and varied programme that has been put together for it,” a Kensington Palace spokesman said. – BBC Prince George and Princess Charlotte are ‘little ambassadors’ to win European hearts post-Brexit – Evening Standard Conductor Daniel Barenboim interrupts BBC Proms to make plea for European unity Daniel Barenboim, the acclaimed conductor and opponent of Brexit, interrupted a BBC Proms concert to make an impassioned plea for European unity. A day after pianist Igor Levit performed an improvised version of the EU anthem, Barenboim took to the podium to warn about the dangers of nationalism in what are fast becoming the anti-Brexit Proms. Beginning by telling an audience at the Royal Albert Hall that his words were “not political”, Barenboim said: “When I look at the world with so many isolation[ist] tendencies, I get very worried and I know I’m not alone. – Telegraph Being berated about Brexit at the Proms is deeply irritating – but it’s a price worth paying for genius – Stephen Pollard for the Telegraph (£) Former Met chief claims losing access to EU intelligence data sharing will make UK citizens ‘less safe’ British citizens will be less safe if ministers fail to retain access to “mission critical” European intelligence services after Brexit, according to the former Metropolitan Police commissioner Lord Condon. Speaking to the The Independent, Lord Condon said that losing access to the cross-border flow of data after Brexit would severely impact the ability of the police service to deal with terrorism, serious crime, drug dealing and people smuggling. – Independent Policing and security fears over sharing of data after Brexit – The National Brussels rejects Blair’s exit compromise bid Brussels bureaucrats have rubbished claims by Tony Blair the European Union (EU) would be willing to compromise on freedom of movement for Britain to remains in the bloc.The ex-prime minister and staunch Remainer said the nation could compromise with the bloc on movement because “reform is now on Europe’s agenda” following Emmanuel Macron’s victory. However, dozens of diplomats strongly refuted the claims, telling Politico.co.uk eurocrats would not give up freedom of movement of workers to keep the nation in the bloc.Mr Blair had brazenly claimed Britain could stay in a reformed EU despite last year’s Brexit vote. – Express Lord Tebbit: Soft Brexit is just a euphemism for staying in the EU. That’s why we Tories can’t accept it The Remoaners are still in denial about the result of the referendum of over a year ago. The voters, they declare, were deceived as they did not know that voting to leave meant leaving the European Union. Their favourite tactic these days is to question what the words “leave” or “Brexit” mean and on top of that they add various prefixes to the word “Brexit”. – Lord Tebbit for the Telegraph (£) Mark Lund: This nation is still proud to be British; let’s make Brexit nurture that The second round of Brexit negotiations are well underway, no doubt being followed worldwide in the first big test for the Conservative–DUP supply and confidence agreement. We all knew how difficult the task in hand was going to be, and we will now start to see this in full motion. It is expected that the attention of the talks will focus on the Brexit bill, and the rights of EU citizens living in the UK – an issue widely debated during the General Election campaign. Whether we like it or not, since the Brexit vote last year the lives of the British public have been dominated by the decision. – Mark Lund for City A.M. Stephen Bush: Divided Labour hasn’t a clue – or a clear leader – on Brexit Labour doesn’t have a policy on Brexit but it does have a series of objectives. The bad news is that these objectives cannot be reconciled with one another, let alone with the European Union. The party leadership’s primary objective is to defeat the Government, all the better to strengthen the smell of decay coming from Theresa May’s administration and to force an election while the Conservatives are still suffering from a loss of confidence and internal disarray. But its secondary objective is to free a future Labour government from the confines of single-market rules and the reach of the European Court of Justice, which means that, come the crunch, its natural instinct is to vote with the Government, not against it. – Stephen Bush for the Evening Standard Georgia Bachti: Has Brexit catalysed EU defence integration? At the biannual Franco-German joint ministerial meeting held in Paris last Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron announced their intention to develop joint defence projects, such as a new generation of European fighter jets. This move, which Macron called a “far-reaching revolution”, comes in the context of a renewed impetus for European defence integration reflected in a series of initiatives adopted by the EU over the past months. – Georgia Bachti for Open Europe Mark Wallace: Use leaving the EU to deliver lower food prices ..inside the EU – and, Labour should note, inside the Customs Union – we levy sizeable tariffs on imports, particularly of food. A recent Policy Exchange report cites estimates that food prices in the UK are 17 per cent higher than they would be outside the EU. This was always a known effect of joining the European project. Heath’s 1971 White Paper on joining the Common Market forecast increases in the price of food of two and a half per cent per year for six years – which makes it all the more strange that Nick Clegg and others talk as though Brexit will inevitably make food more expensive. – Mark Wallace for ConservativeHome Tim Stanley: Theresa May is in a mess because she isn’t a proper Brexiteer. The next Prime Minister must be Who should replace Theresa May as prime minister? The answer is not who but what: a Brexiteer. And I mean a proper Brexiteer, not one of these late converts. An old money, Churchill-quoting true believer who knows their Article 50 from their elbow. Technically speaking, the position isn’t vacant. I’d rather it remained so. Theresa May is the only MP with any mandate from the electorate to govern and I truly believe she could turn things around given a chance. But party discipline has been lost, as the row over Cabinet leaks shows. – Tim Stanley for the Telegraph (£) Brexit comment in brief The French are jealous of Brexit. They don’t have enough history to do the same – RT Howard for the Telegraph (£) If Brexiteers need a real reason to leave the EU, just look at Italy – Steve Sedgwick for City A.M. Brexit is Britain’s chance to become a human rights superpower – Ryan Shorthouse for the Telegraph (£) For EU reforms, watch Germany, not France – Mujtaba Rahman for Politico Four priorities to secure the UK finance sector post-Brexit – Stephen Barclay MP for City A.M. A major update of the Government’s Brexit programme is overdue – Henry Newman for ConservativeHome It’s time for the Norwegian option – Andrew Stuttaford for CapX The Tories were never the party of Brexit – Tom Slater for Spiked Internal briefings are damaging Brexit – The Times editorial (£) Brexit won’t help Britain survive the rise of the robots – Paul Mason for the Guardian What MEPs in Brussels really think about David Davis – Shehab Khan for the Independent Brexit news in brief China investing heavily in countries that might one day join the EU – Politico Former EU judge pours scorn on EU’s ambition to be a global player – Express Watchdog calls for transparency on post-Brexit border plans – The Times (£) Business survey says Brexit not chief concern for workers – City A.M. Dutch nationals taking UK citizenship to be stripped of passports by Holland- Guardian Lord Trimble snaps at claims Brexit has made ‘UK a laughing stock’ – Express City of London boss claims time running out to prevent banks’ Brexit exodus – Reuters Business bank ‘must plug EU funds gap’ – The Times (£) EU mercilessly mocked after running emoji poll online – Express Polling claims Labour members want UK to remain in single market – Guardian Thinktank blames Brexit for ‘wobble’ in job creation – Evening Standard Polish MEP taunts UK for Brexit push to leave Customs Union – Express ‘Brexit changed my view of Europe’ Angela Merkel reveals – Express Number crunchers warn who has most to lose from Brexit – The Times (£)