Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Theresa May appeals to EU for deal she can ‘defend’ to British people amid demands for huge divorce bill… The Prime Minister said at a dinner in Brussels that there is a “clear and urgent imperative” for the EU to break the Brexit deadlock and move on to trade talks. It came after a succession of EU leaders told the Prime Minister that she must make a clear commitment to paying a Brexit divorce bill if she wants to move on talks… A senior Government official acknowledged, however, that she is “working against a difficult political backdrop” amid growing calls for her to leave without a deal. Mrs May said: “Both sides have agreed subsequent rounds will be conducted in a new spirit. There is increasingly a sense that we must work together to an outcome we can stand behind and defend to our people.” She concluded by telling EU leaders: “The clear and urgent imperative must be that the dynamic you create enables us to move forward together”. – Telegraph (£) Theresa May has warned EU leaders of her political difficulties in the UK and urged them to help deliver a deal she can defend domestically. The high-stakes plea, a clear reference to the internal wrangling within her own Cabinet, seeks to persuade European leaders to help her own political capital in the UK, by offering something in return for her Florence speech offer. Addressing her fellow leaders over an EU Council summit dinner, the Prime Minister said the UK intended to take a “creative and pragmatic approach to securing a deep and special partnership”. She reiterated an “unconditional commitment to security” in Europe… The PM referenced “a difficult political backdrop” in the UK and said the EU27 must deliver to her a deal “we can stand behind and defend to our people”. – Sky News Theresa May urges new dynamic in Brexit talks – BBC News Theresa May warns EU leaders to soften their Brexit demands or she won’t be able to sell any deal to the British people – The Sun Theresa May asks EU not to back her into corner on Brexit – FT (£) David Davis wants EU leaders to recognise ‘significant progress’ in Brexit talks – Politico How are the talks really progressing? – Chris Morris for BBC News EU sees path to ‘sufficient progress’ on Brexit but it’s no sure thing – Politico Today the EU must choose between the tedious game-playing and finally doing the right thing by its citizens and ours – The Sun says …as Angela Merkel suggests the EU will agree to move talks on in December… Angela Merkel said that Mrs May’s speech in Florence was an “important” step and promised to maintain a constructive atmosphere in the negotiations but that both sides would need to work to achieve a good outcome. “We are going to achieve a good result, there will be a good outcome,” she added. The German Chancellor, speaking in Brussels on Thursday evening, said that there has not yet been sufficient progress to begin the next stage of Brexit talks. She added that there had been enough positive signs to encourage her to think that it will be possible to “take the work forward and then reach the start of the second phase in December”. – Telegraph Merkel comes to May’s aid on Brexit – Bloomberg Merkel has ‘no doubt’ EU and UK can clinch Brexit deal – Politico Merkel: “Absolutely no doubt” there will be a deal – Guido Fawkes Merkel settles the ‘Brexit game’: Ball is in both EU and UK courts – Bloomberg …while Netherlands said to be “losing patience” with Paris and Berlin’s hard line against UK In a desperate bid to break the deadlock, Mr Rutte revealed he rang Theresa May to plead with her to give some ground on the EU’s jumbo divorce bill demand. As near neighbours, the Netherlands and Britain have major trading links and no deal would hurt the Dutch economy harder than any other in the EU… At the Brussels summit, Mr Rutte is also pushing the EU’s other leaders to declare their own internal preparations for the negotiations’ next stage to be completed before the end of the year so trade talks can start immediately. Senior Foreign Office sources have told The Sun that the Dutch are “losing patience” with Paris and Berlin’s hardline against Britain. They are ready to start breaking the EU’s unified line on Brexit if the UK is not given more leeway, one senior diplomat claimed. – The Sun Sweden drawing up Brexit trade plans – Guido Fawkes > On BrexitCentral today: Finnish Foreign Minister urges Britain not to give in to pressure to reverse Brexit May privately tells European leaders how much Britain is prepared to pay for Brexit… Theresa May has discussed in private what Britain is prepared to pay the European Union to secure the start of trade talks. In discussions with a selected group of European leaders over the past two weeks, the prime minister has gone further than her Florence speech and outlined how Britain intends to honour its long-term EU budget commitments. The Times understands that she has indicated that Britain is prepared to pay future liabilities — likely to amount to an extra €20 billion — which would be acceptable to most European governments. The total figure will be subject to detailed negotiations and will probably never be explicitly set out by either side. – The Times (£) EU pensions rip-off: Brussels ‘overcharging Britain on liabilities by €7bn’ – Telegraph (£) Explaining the Brexit bill – and whether Britain will pay up – Bloomberg Asking for £90 billion to leave EU is an insult to UK – Express editorial …amid reports that both sides remain far apart on the legal governance of citizens’ rights Sources from both sides of the Brexit negotiations confirmed that there is still no agreement between the UK and EU over the question of the governance of the Article 50 Withdrawal Agreement that will guarantee the rights of citizens on both sides of the border… The Telegraph understands that following Mrs May’s speech, the EU demanded further concessions from the British, requiring that the UK agree that the Supreme Court “must” take into account ECJ judgments where they impacted the law underpinning the Withdrawal Agreement. This was rejected by the British side as too close to the current European Communities Act (ECA) which requires that where EU law contradicts domestic law, the EU law must take precedence. – Telegraph EU citizens could be offered window of time for family reunion after Brexit, David Davis suggests – Telegraph Special report: The Brexit tug-of-war that could pull apart Northern Ireland – James Rothwell for the Telegraph (£) David Davis draws up plans for no deal on Brexit talks… David Davis is to present an upbeat assessment of a “no-deal” Brexit to the cabinet in a big shift in Britain’s negotiating strategy. The Brexit secretary has ordered officials to step up the preparations for a failure to strike a deal with the EU, The Times has been told. He is expected to outline the benefits of the scenario in a presentation on Hallowe’en, a move that will alarm some pro-Remain colleagues… Theresa May has so far resisted calls to talk up Britain’s prospects without a deal because it would undermine her preferred option of a trade agreement, with EU leaders concluding that she was resigned to failure. Her decision to allow Mr Davis to present his assessment points to a change of approach. – The Times (£) David Davis ‘to prepare for no-deal’ Brexit as EU refuses to budge on trade and transition – Express …as Boris Johnson says UK will do ‘very well’ without a Brexit deal U.K. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said that if Brexit negotiators failed to achieve a deal, Britain will “do very well.” “We have to prepare for every eventuality…we will come through it very well whatever happens,” Johnson told reporters on Thursday following a bilateral meeting in London with his Mexican counterpart Luis Videgaray Caso… “I think that we will get a deal and it will be a great deal and a great Brexit but with any negotiation you’ve got to be prepared to walk away,” he said. – Politico We don’t need a trade deal with the EU – WTO rules will suit us just fine – Liam Halligan for the Telegraph (£) The Government considering Brexit on World Trade Organisation terms might strengthen our hand with Brussels but it would be a risky route – Times leader (£) Jeremy Corbyn refuses to say he would honour Brexit deal struck by Theresa May Jeremy Corbyn has declined to say that he would honour the terms of a Brexit deal struck by Theresa May, if he succeeded her at Number 10. He also defended dismissing “no deal” as a viable outcome to the Brexit negotiation, saying it would be “catastrophic for manufacturing”. He told Sky News: “It depends what the deal is and what is achieved, if it was before 2019 then obviously we’d have to look at it very carefully.” …Mr Corbyn was in Brussels at a pre-summit of centre-left European leaders and MEPs in Brussels, meeting three EU Prime Ministers and chief EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier. The Labour leader was met with a rapturous applause by the meeting of European left-wing politicians. – Sky News Jeremy Corbyn heralded as the UK’s new Prime Minister by leftie EU leaders – The Sun Corbyn tells Brussels Britain should “not countenance” no deal – Guido Fawkes Jeremy Corbyn is ‘Michel Barnier’s puppet’ and is helping the EU, top MEP in Brussels says – Express The EU would love to negotiate Brexit with Jeremy Corbyn: he would take any deal on offer – Tom Harris for the Telegraph (£) Crucial Brexit legislation ‘paused’ by Government amid threat of Tory rebellion A crucial piece of Brexit legislation has been delayed and will not be debated by MPs next week, ministers have confirmed, amid concerns of a potential Tory rebellion. The European Union (Withdrawal) Bill, which will transfer EU law onto Britain’s statute books to avoid a legislative cliff edge after Brexit, had been widely expected to be tabled for debate in the House of Commons next week… More than 300 amendments and a series of new clauses have been proposed by MPs with a handful likely to have enough support from disaffected Tories to hand the Government a series of defeats. – Telegraph Ministers may have to withdraw the EU Withdrawal Bill for a long time – Isabel Hardman for the Spectator Why Dominic Grieve is UK’s most important man on Brexit – Kitty Donaldson and Robert Hutton for Bloomberg Backlash against Goldman Sachs after its chief executive tweeted that he would be spending “a lot more time” in Frankfurt after Brexit Jacob Rees-Mogg, the MP for North East Somerset, accused Mr Blankfein of seeking to distract attention from his company’s recent performance. “I assume this is some sort of displacement activity since Goldman’s results weren’t so hot. I’m sure his shareholders would rather he stuck to business rather than politics.” …Responding to Mr Blankfein’s comments, a Downing Street spokesman told reporters: “We’re not going to comment on an individual statement. But let’s be clear, London is and will remain the world’s leading financial centre. We have the breadth of talent, legal system, regulation and deep pools of capital that are simply unrivalled by centres anywhere else in Europe and we are confident of securing an ambitious economic partnership with the EU that will include financial services.” – The Times (£) Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein takes potshot at Brexit by saying he’ll be spending more time in Frankfurt – Telegraph Ex-MI6 chief suggests Brexit may not happen The UK’s former spy chief has suggested Britain might not actually quit the EU – and warned greater spending on diplomacy, defence and intelligence will be needed if Brexit does go ahead… Speaking to the House of Lords’ EU external affairs sub-committee, Sir John [Sawers] even cast doubt on whether Brexit will proceed. He told peers that “Brexit – assuming it goes ahead – will have an impact” on the UK’s participation in co-ordinated foreign policy action against countries such as Russia, Iran or North Korea and terror groups such as Islamic State. – Sky News Sir Keir Starmer: May needs to face down the ‘no deal’ fanatics The EU needs to acknowledge that some issues (e.g. Northern Ireland) cannot be resolved in isolation. There also needs to be a sensible and rational resolution of our legal obligations and any financial settlement. And the prime minister needs to deliver on her belated warm words about the rights of the three million EU nationals living in the UK… The prime minister also needs to drop her ideological red lines that have already hindered these talks and will continue to prevent a sensible deal. Most importantly, she needs once and for all to face down the fanatics and fantasists on her own benches who crave no deal. – Sir Keir Starmer MP for The Times (£) Asa Bennett: If European leaders really care about trade after Brexit, now is the time to prove it Can she do much to bring about a thaw in relations? Her European counterparts seem to have already decided that they will not let Michel Barnier talk about trade with the British until December at earliest… The Brexit Secretary warned MPs of this earlier in the week: “They are using time pressure to get more money out of us. Bluntly that’s what is going on. It’s obvious to anybody”. European politicians can see that too, and struggle to hide their interest in firming up their post-Brexit trading relationship with Britain, but are doing little to move things on… Now some are tiring of the rigid bureaucracy holding up the process, they should be confident enough to push to loosen it. Senior European politicians do their side few favours by trying to browbeat Mrs May into submission… if they are serious about post-Brexit trade, they need to do more than serve Mrs May cold cuts. – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) Liam Halligan: Leaving the EU with no Brexit deal really would be no big deal The prospect of a “no deal” Brexit has lately loomed into view — and not a moment too soon. Rather than focus on issues that matter to real people, such as commerce and residency, Brussels remains fixated on process. This intransigence highlights why we must prepare to operate without a free-trade agreement. The good news? Using the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) instead is entirely acceptable. It would be a strategic error to think otherwise. Trading under the global body’s rules is often presented as “disastrous”. That is both alarmist and wrong… This in no way stops UK trade with the EU, as some gloom-mongers claim. All nations have access to the single market provided regulatory standards are met and the generally low tariffs are paid. – Liam Halligan for The Sun Chris Cummings: Investors in Europe need to retain the UK’s expertise The longer it takes to agree a transition, the less valuable it will be as the greater the number of firms that will have pressed the relocate button, moving jobs outside the UK. There are those who think that this is precisely what some European capitals are trying to do, to benefit from a fragmentation of industries such as the financial services sector in the City. But there is no guarantee that London’s loss will be Paris or Frankfurt’s gain. Quite the opposite – there is every chance that this approach would see the biggest winners being in Singapore, Hong Kong or New York… As an international centre of finance, the UK delivers investment choice, deep capital markets, product innovation, cost efficiencies, unrivalled professional expertise and a unique supporting ecosystem that has grown up over decades and is impossible to up-sticks and replicate in any other European capital. That is why savers and pensioners across the EU entrust hundreds of billions of pounds of savers’ money to be managed in the UK. – Chris Cummings, chief executive of the Investment Association, for the Telegraph (£) Brexit comment in brief Work on a trade deal has begun, even if the EU hasn’t noticed – Christian May for City A.M. A bungled Brexit could hand the SNP a new impetus – James Forsyth for the Spectator I can scarcely believe it, but Theresa May is now Brexit Britain’s best hope – Polly Toynbee for the Guardian How the Austrian Elections affect the EU – James Holland for Reaction Brexit news in brief Transition troubles: UK’s top priority at EU summit could be ‘fool’s gold’, official warns – FT (£) New Tory civil war erupts as Damian Green claims George Osborne’s efforts as newspaper editor were little better than Kremlin propaganda – The Sun Treasury Select Committee chair Nicky Morgan says Theresa May must plan for her exit ahead of the next General Election – City A.M. Sinn Fein and DUP given 10 days to do a power-sharing deal or face ‘intervention’ from Westminster Government – The Sun Far-Right Czech election ‘kingmaker’ calls for referendum on EU membership ‘just like Britain’ – Telegraph (£) Madrid brings Catalans to heel with direct rule as battle over independence vote heats up – The Times (£) Austria’s Eurosceptic new leader has to dodge kiss from Jean-Claude Juncker as he arrives at his first EU summit – The Sun Watch: Alastair Campbell’s Brexit ding-dong with John Redwood – Spectator Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson: “What a good time to get out” of EU – Guido Fawkes