Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Boris Johnson declares that rights of EU citizens in UK will be protected ‘whatever happens’ after Brexit Mr Johnson made the apparent unilateral offer in an address to the Belvedere Forum on Polish-UK relations on Tuesday evening last week. A clip of his comments was put on Twitter by the official account of the Polish embassy in the UK. He said: “We have 30,000 businesses in this country that are Polish. We have one million Poles in Britain. We are thoroughly blessed, we are lucky. And I have only one message for you all tonight: you are loved, you are welcome, your rights will be protected whatever happens. Yes. You are recording this? Your rights will be protected whatever happens.” …It comes after the Prime Minister pledged that EU citizens living in Britain will be able to stay even if negotiations break down. – Telegraph (£) Boris Johnson says EU citizens’ rights will be protected ‘whatever happens’ – Guardian EU Withdrawal Bill to return to Parliament for debate on 14 November… MPs, including Conservatives, have tabled almost 400 amendments to the legislation which is designed to bring European Union law onto the U.K. statute books when Britain leaves the EU… A spokesperson for the Department for Exiting the European Union said: “Nearly 400 amendments have been tabled and we are looking at those with the utmost seriousness. We look forward to continuing the debate and working with parliament to ensure that we deliver a functioning statute book on exit day.” The committee stage is where detailed examination of a bill takes place. Once the bill clears committee stage, it faces report stage and then a third reading in the House of Commons before it is sent to the House of Lords for consideration. – Politico …as pro-EU Tory MPs warn David Davis they are ‘deadly serious’ about rebelling over final Brexit vote… Nicky Morgan, the chairman of the Treasury select committee, warned the Brexit Secretary that a group of Tory MPs are not bluffing in their demand for a meaningful vote on the terms of withdrawal before the UK leaves the bloc in March 2019. Meanwhile, Labour insisted it wanted a “cast iron guarantee” that a vote will be held in a move which is likely to heap further pressure on ministers to grant a concession to avoid a damaging defeat… Tory rebels have backed an amendment to the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, tabled by Dominic Grieve, the former attorney general, which states that there must a vote before the UK leaves the EU. – Telegraph (£) David Davis warned over Brexit vote promise for MPs – BBC News …with new legal battle set to be launched by group including Gina Miller to force government to pass deal as full Act of Parliament Anti-Brexit campaigners are poised to launch a second legal action against the government over Theresa May’s failure to offer parliament a binding vote on the deal she negotiates with the EU. The Times understands that the group behind the successful Article 50 challenge may go back to court unless ministers drop their opposition to enshrine the agreement in primary legislation. The group includes Gina Miller, the businesswoman who secured a Supreme Court victory in January, forcing the government to consult parliament over triggering Brexit. – The Times (£) European Union is secretly preparing for Britain to leave without a deal, Michel Barnier adviser admits… Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council, said earlier this month that EU leaders are not working on a “no-deal” scenario and are negotiating in “good faith”. Emmanual Macron, the French President, last week accused Britain of “bluffing” by threatening to leave the EU without a deal. However Stefaan de Rynck, an adviser to Mr Barnier – the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator – conceded that preparations are underway… “We are preparing for it, that is for sure, the 27, but it is not something we in the negotiation room want to bring in that negotiation room.” – Telegraph (£) …with Brexit talks still ‘stalled’, despite ‘acceleration’ plan… It was a rare moment of harmony between Brussels and London when Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and Prime Minister Theresa May issued a joint statement 10 days ago pledging to “accelerate” the talks. Since then, there have been no further negotiations. As of Thursday afternoon, none were scheduled, according to officials on both sides, and November 6 appears to be the earliest they might resume… [O]fficials have made clear that the money is the main obstacle to convincing the European Council to let the discussions shift to the next stage, and focus on a transition period and the framework of a future trade deal. – Politico Brexit’s hard now? Wait until trade comes up – Jacopo Barigazzi for Politico …as EU says the UK must sign up to a method for calculating the Brexit bill before talks can move on to trade The U.K. must sign up to a method for calculating what it owes the European Union in order for Brexit talks to move on to trade, a senior official from the bloc said, as the 27 remaining nations plan their response if negotiations fail. “We need a method to be able to reassure the 27 of the solidity of the U.K.’s guarantees,” Stefaan De Rynck, an aide to the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said in London on Thursday… The EU wants a divorce settlement of about 60 billion euros ($70 billion), and the U.K.’s offer so far is about a third of that. While a methodology may allow informal calculations of an approximate number, the final sum that Britain pays won’t be known until it leaves the bloc in March 2019, if ever. – Bloomberg Overseas students could be offered loans to study in Brexit Britain if their country agrees to free trade deal Overseas students could be offered loans while they study in Brexit Britain – if their country agrees to a free trade deal… Talks have taken place between the Department for Education, Universities UK and the Student Loans Company, according to the Times Higher Education Supplement. Officials have discussed setting up “commercial style loans” because after Brexit EU students will lose their ability to take out loans here… The source said any foreign trade agreement would include a collaboration on collecting repayments in the country of origin once the student goes home. They described it as a “net positive” for the UK Treasury and separate from loans for British students. – The Sun EU students could be offered loans after Brexit – The Times (£) Sturgeon calls on May to clarify Brexit transition deal In an interview with the Financial Times, Scotland’s first minister said she was sending a letter to Mrs May asking whether the UK government was working to secure a transition deal maintaining current EU rules for at least two years by the end of the year. Ms Sturgeon has long opposed Britain leaving the EU, but she insisted that her intervention was not an attempt to obstruct Brexit. She said she was motivated to write the letter after hearing directly and indirectly of numerous companies who say they will need to act soon to mitigate Brexit-related risks… Ms Sturgeon declined to name companies that are rethinking expanding their operations in Scotland, or considering moving elsewhere. – FT (£) Withdrawal Bill sending UK to constitutional crisis, claims Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones – Sky News Scotland must be given a say in face of the UK government’s utter Brexit irresponsibility – Stephen Gethins MP for The Times (£) Consumer confidence has bounced back to its highest level since March British consumer confidence continues to bounce back, surging to its highest since March, according to a new poll out today. The analysis of over 6,000 interviews was carried out by YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), with its consumer confidence index for October showing the score had increased from 108.7 last month to 109.3. A score over 100 reflects that more consumers were confident than not. – City A.M. Slowing migration takes 2m off UK population estimate The UK population is projected to be two million lower in 25 years’ time than previous estimates, as a result of lower net migration and women having fewer children. Official projections published yesterday show a slowing in the population growth rate. The overall population is projected to increase by 3.6 million to reach 70 million by mid-2026 — 600,000 below the previous Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimate in 2015. – The Times (£) Downing Street says soaring population proves UK needs tougher immigration laws – Independent It’s vital the Government plans for the predicted huge increase in UK population – The Sun says We must control borders when we finally leave the EU – Express editorial Priti Patel: London can – and should – be the leading financial hub for the developing world The UK is a global leader in enterprise, free markets and trade – and the City of London is one of our great success stories. Combined with Britain’s proud history of fighting poverty, it is clear that London can – and indeed should – be the leading financial centre for the developing world… Nigeria is home to Africa’s largest population and largest economy, and the UK has long and enduring business links with this country. One fifth of FTSE 100 companies have a presence in Nigeria, and bilateral trade between our countries is worth £4bn a year. Brexit will enable us to strengthen these links by removing current EU barriers to trade and replacing them with free and fair trade, providing a unique opportunity to redefine and build on the relationship between London and Lagos – with huge economic benefit for us all… I believe that trade, investment and free markets provide the route out of poverty, and I am committed to helping countries to stand on their own two feet. No country can defeat poverty without sustained economic growth. – Priti Patel MP for City A.M. Chi Onwurah: Brexit ‘trade not aid’ to help world’s poorest Nearly five months after we began Brexit negotiations I continue to believe that Britain must use Brexit as an opportunity to rectify parts of previous agreements that negatively impact poverty reduction, sustainable development and regional integration. Agreements like the [EU’s] EPAs haven’t met its aim to help African economies integrate into the global economy by continuing to place emphasis on tariff elimination and not market sophistication. The UK can act as an example to the rest of the Western world by not rolling over existing EU agreements or plans. Instead we should work with African governments to understand what sort of agreements would truly benefit their development and also allow the development policy space for African countries to make their own decisions regarding their industrialisation policies. Only then can we work to create a model where Africa no longer relies on aid. – Chi Onwurah MP for CommentCentral Asa Bennett: The Brexit divorce bill row is Britain’s chance to teach the EU some thrift Prudent spending seems to be a novelty for the European Union, rather than a necessity. Billions of euros are wasted every year. It decided for the first time ever to impose a real-terms cut to its spending back in 2013. That may seem big, but its restraint meant it was only going to spend just shy of €1 trillion over the following seven years. The EU’s habit of budgeting over seven year periods has left it highly vulnerable to Britain walking off without paying what David Cameron had promised it would. That is why European leaders are fixated on getting Britain, hitherto one of the bloc’s biggest net contributors, to promise as much as possible before Brexit negotiations conclude. Their nightmare is Britain walking away from the table, as it means (alongside the disruption to UK-EU trade) that they would not receive a single euro. The British would be perfectly entitled to withhold payment too, which the EU fears could blow a hole as big as €20bn a year in their budget. – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) Graeme Leach: 10 reasons the UK should not fear a ‘no deal’ Brexit outcome The good cop, bad cop routine between the European Council and Commission makes it very difficult to assess whether or not the Brexit negotiations will lead to acrimony and breakdown. My guess is that there is a 50:50 chance that the UK could end up walking away with no deal. And we know what would happen the morning after. Politicians, business groups, the chattering classes, the establishment, and the media would work themselves up into a right lather… Frightened that the economy were about to fall off a cliff, financial markets would sell the UK and short sterling big time. But they’d be wrong, very wrong. Amid the chaos, more sober minds would recognise the 10 unique opportunities, which would rise like a phoenix from the ashes. – Graeme Leach for City A.M. Brexit comment in brief Mark Carney has consistently got it wrong over Brexit – Tim Newark for the Express It’s true: British universities are grotesquely biased against Brexit – Professor Alan Sked for the Telegraph (£) Ireland shouldn’t bank on taking the Square Mile’s business – Keith Boyfield for CapX Sexual harassment is not confined to Hollywood — it’s time for the EU to step up and stamp it out – Mary Honeyball MEP for the Telegraph (£) This is why working-class Welsh people voted for Brexit – Roger Scully for the Independent Mass migration threatened to overwhelm Sweden. But now there is hope – Fraser Nelson for the Telegraph (£) Brexit news in brief Fury as Britain set to keep ‘hated’ EU fishing rules beyond March 2019 – Express EU launches tax avoidance probe against UK – Telegraph ‘Further proof Brexit is right’: EU slammed over ‘pointless’ state aid probe into Britain – Express Tory MP David TC Davies leaves Brexit ‘belly-aching’ seminar – BBC News Madrid to impose direct rule amid chaos in Catalonia – The Times (£)