Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Michel Barnier questions Theresa May’s Brexit White Paper… Michel Barnier has said Theresa May’s plan for a future trade relationship with the EU could weaken the single market and create burdens for business. The EU Brexit negotiator said the White Paper opened “the way to a constructive discussion” but must be “workable”. He questioned whether UK plans for a common rulebook for goods and agri-foods were practical. Earlier, Theresa May urged the EU to “evolve” its position on Brexit and not fall back on unworkable proposals. – BBC News Barnier rips Theresa May’s Brexit plans to shreds and says it could create more fraud and red-tape for businesses across Europe – The Sun Barnier kills customs plan – but opens door on backstop – City A.M. Theresa May’s Brexit plan savaged by EU chief Michael Barnier – The Sun …claiming it would expose the EU to fraud risk… Theresa May’s plan for a customs deal with Brussels would leave the rest of Europe wide open to fraud, the EU’s chief negotiator claimed yesterday. Responding for the first time to the government’s Brexit white paper, Michel Barnier questioned whether many of the proposals were legally or practically feasible. In particular he criticised the central British plan for a facilitated customs arrangement where the UK would collect tariffs on behalf of the EU on goods destined for the continent but remain free to charge a lower tariff if they were intended for the UK. – The Times (£) …after the PM warned Brexiteers they cannot ‘wash their hands’ of the Irish border issue Theresa May has warned Eurosceptics the UK cannot “wash our hands” of the Irish border issue as she urged the EU to increase the intensity of Brexit talks. Speaking in Belfast, the Prime Minister said the UK and EU would need to work together in order to ensure the continuation of a “seamless border”. Her comments will be seen as a slapdown to Brexiteers on her own benches who believe the UK should tell Brussels the Government would under no circumstances impose a hard border and dare the EU to do so in the event no withdrawal deal can be done. – Telegraph (£) Theresa May warns Eurocrats to stop blocking Brexit talks and take her Chequers plan seriously as she makes landmark speech in Northern Ireland – The Sun Theresa May is preparing to go down fighting for her Chequers Brexit plan – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) > Read or Watch on BrexitCentral: Theresa May’s Belfast Speech in full > Hugh Bennett on BrexitCentral: May’s Belfast Speech is another step on the wrong road to Brexit Downing Street hits back against Leo Varadkar’s Brexit plane ban threat… Downing Street said Ireland had no power to stop British planes flying over Ireland – in a furious rebuke to the Irish PM’s threat. Leo Varadkar issued the extraordinary warning amid growing fears of a no-deal Brexit. But a spokesman for Theresa May shot back this morning – saying he was ill-informed. In a fiery slap-down, a Downing Street spokesman said: “It’s wrong to claim that Ireland could simply stop the UK from flying over its land as a result of Brexit. “The reason why we say that is because over flight rights are not guaranteed by the EU – rather by the multilateral treaty which both ourselves and Ireland are signed up to.” “It’s something that’s agreed by a treaty and regardless of it we think we will secure a deal which will maintain our aviation access.” – The Sun …as the Irish PM criticises ‘name-calling’ from Britain… Leo Varadkar has criticised “name-calling” from British politicians after he was described as an “airhead” for his comments about potential flight restrictions in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Jacob Rees-Mogg, the pro-Brexit Conservative MP, made the remark after the taoiseach said that flights could be grounded if the UK left the European Union without a deal. British politicians advocating a clean break from the bloc should realise what it would mean in practice, Mr Varadkar said. “I always think that when people engage in name-calling it’s because they don’t want to engage on substance or facts,” he said. – The Times (£) …and it was revealed Ireland expects RAF help in the event of a terrorist hijack The sabre-rattling by Irish PM Leo Varadkar that in the event of a no deal Brexit Ireland might block off UK access to Irish airspace is pathetic. Treaties dating back to the beginning of the International Air Services Transit Agreement signed as part of the Chicago Convention in 1944 guarantee the freedom of the skies. This is signed by 133 countries, including the UK and all EU member states.Ireland has been a signatory since 1957. There is another agreement permitting British aircraft to fly over Ireland which the Irish government chooses not to publicise. – Guido Fawkes Andrea Leadsom ‘told Cabinet she hated Chequers deal’ Andrea Leadsom said that she “hated” the prime minister’s Brexit compromise and claimed that it betrayed the referendum result, according to minutes of the Chequers cabinet meeting leaked to The Times. The leader of the Commons also accused a majority of fellow ministers and officials of “arrogance” and said that they had “Remainer tendencies” in the meeting with the prime minister and cabinet just over two weeks ago. Mrs Leadsom also attacked the Treasury’s ability on economic forecasting and revealed that some numbers would in future no longer be published. The leak, the first to emerge from the Chequers meeting, is intended to embarrass and damage Mrs Leadsom. – The Times (£) Chancellor Philip Hammond accused of betraying PM’s Brexit red line to end EU freedom of movement – The Sun India now eyes post-Brexit UK trade agreement with EU deal almost dead The India-EU free trade agreement (FTA) is on the verge of death In a few days, the two sides are expected to formally state, in diplomatic language, that FTA talks may no longer be resumed. Indian negotiators now say India might be better off waiting The UK has the lion’s share of India-EU trade and investment , and all signs appear to show that the UK is keen on working out a trade deal with India as they near their separation date. – The Times of India Tory chief whip accused of ‘lying’ to Tory MP after she was allegedly told to vote during her maternity leave The Chief Whip has been accused of “lying” to one of his own MPs after she was allegedly told to vote repeatedly during her maternity leave. Julian Smith allegedly told Andrea Jenkyns that she had to vote in the wake of the snap election in June last year because Labour was refusing to “pair” with her. Under the parliamentary convention pairs of MPs on different sides of the house agree not to vote so an absence for illness, travel or maternity leave does not affect the result. – Telegraph (£) Theresa May supports the chief whip at the centre of ‘pairing’ cheat claims – The Sun Libya refuses to accept proposed EU migrant processing centres The European Union’s migrant strategy suffered a major new setback Friday with Italy refusing to freely accept people rescued at sea and Libya spurning a proposal for asylum processing centres. The salvoes follow a fractious EU summit in June which agreed to set up “disembarkation platforms” outside the bloc to process migrants after Italy’s new populist government said it was closing its ports. “Italy does not want to be the only country where migrants saved at sea by its own naval units disembark,” Foreign Minister Enzo Moavero Milanesi said in a letter to EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini. – Telegraph (£) First “no-deal ready” legislation becomes law Yesterday the first “no deal ready” legislation quietly got Royal Assent for a little thing called the Haulage Permits and Trailer Registration Act. Whilst sounding very boring, this is very significant as it is the first “no deal ready” bill to become an Act. The Department for Transport is pleased that for once they have arrived ahead of schedule with this Act in place to provide for all kinds of eventualities (in this case relating to cross-border road haulage) in a no deal situation. The word around Whitehall is that Downing Street were not keen to boast about “no deal ready” legislation. – Guido Fawkes Margaret Thatcher’s famous Bruges speech was to have been much more critical before it was toned down Margaret Thatcher’s famous Bruges speech on the future of Europe was actually toned down and would have been much more critical, her private papers have shown for the first time. The 1988 speech, credited as a turning point towards Euroscepticism, had never been intended as the attack it was received as and personal references to Jacques Delors, then President of the European Commission, and “Euro waffle” were removed, drafts show. Furthermore, it has emerged that it was largely written by a Europhile, Hugh Thomas, who was “disappointed” with the reaction as it was seen as an an attack by Mrs Thatcher on the European project. The prime minister was in a fact an ardent supporter of the single market and the speech was “not anti Europe it is anti-Federal”, historian Chris Collins or the Margaret Thatcher foundation said. – Telegraph (£) Asa Bennett: Theresa May is preparing to go down fighting for her Chequers Brexit plan Eurosceptics can’t say they weren’t warned about how the Government’s Brexit policy might change after Lancaster House. “We are about to enter a negotiation,” Theresa May declared in that speech, now a gospel text for Brexiteers. “That means there will be give and take. There will have to be compromises . It will require imagination on both sides.” But Brexiteers like Boris Johnson, David Davis and Steve Baker are up in arms about how much she has given, and how much the European Union has taken, in the negotiations so far. – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) Kai Weiss: The EU is finally getting its act together on free trade – Britain must follow suit It’s not often the Brussels bureaucracy does something truly praiseworthy, but this week’s signing of a free trade agreement between the EU and Japan, is indeed good news. The deal, which almost eliminates all tariffs between the EU and the second largest economy in Asia, is just one part of a bigger effort from Brussels to sign off a series of big free trade agreements. Confronted by an unapologetic protectionist in Donald Trump, Europe’s leaders have realised they need to get their act together. – Kai Weiss for CapX Katy Balls: Michel Barnier’s pointed questions point to no deal Michel Barnier’s press conference responding to the UK government’s Brexit white paper will have been music to the ears of ‘no deal’ Brexiteers. After Theresa May pushed her Cabinet and premiership to the point of near collapse with her Chequers proposals for a softer Brexit, the EU’s Chief negotiator has today repaid her efforts by pouring mild scorn on the proposals.Barnier began by trying to play nice. He said he welcomed the development of the UK government’s position – he understood that it was the result of a debate and, for some, that debate is still ongoing.- Katy Balls for The Spectator City Grump: Enough Project Fear – let’s trade on WTO terms after Brexit Prime minister Theresa May has said we have no choice but to protect our EU facing trade from destruction other than to go along with continuing to be a rule taker from the Brussels superstructure. I disagree with this and for years now Patrick Minford’s Economists for Free Trade have been explaining why. Their position was written in a seminal paper, entitled “When we can’t agree. Why a world trade deal exit from the EU will be best for the UK”. It will take you 20 minutes to read and digest, so here are a few highlights. – City Grump for Reaction May searches for an Irish border solution as ‘no deal’ looms – William Davison for CapX Why the EU’s too clever by half negotiating strategy leads to no deal – Iain Martin for Reaction In Brief Ignore the Remainer word games – Leave means Leave means Leave – Sean Walsh for ConservativeWoman Over-shuffling the whips’ office has undermined its effectiveness – Henry Hill for ConservativeHome MP reveals angry demands from Brexit backing constituents – Express Jacob Rees-Mogg says Brussels chiefs are acting like the Mafia — this is why – The Sun Jeremy Corbyn’s strategists in private bust-up over confusing Brexit policy – The Sun Top Eurocrat Jean-Claude Juncker ‘swigs gin instead of water and lets his aide run the EU’ – The Sun Gary Lineker goes on massive anti-Brexit rant calling for a second referendum – a week after hitting out at politicians who talk about football – The Sun Europe would take £200bn economic hit from No Deal Brexit with Ireland suffering as much as UK – The Sun