GDP growth confirmed in three months after Brexit vote… British businesses continued to invest and consumers carried on spending in the months following the Brexit vote, defying predictions that a wave of uncertainty would hit economic activity. In the first official estimate of how firms’ spending fared after the referendum, the Office for National Statistics said business investment rose 0.9% in the July-to-September quarter. That was only a small slowdown from 1% growth in the previous quarter and beat forecasts for 0.6% growth in a Reuters poll of economists. The figures echoed business surveys suggesting companies have shrugged off the shock of the referendum result for now. – The Guardian Business investment helps UK growth stay firm after Brexit vote – Sky News Trade, consumer spending and business investment all boost UK growth – Daily Telegraph …as Jaguar Land Rover plans to create 10,000 jobs in the UK Jaguar Land Rover yesterday unveiled plans to double production and create thousands of jobs in Brexit Britain. The car giant threw its weight behind the UK by indicating it could expand its workforce by 10,000 and make a million vehicles a year by 2020… A string of economists claimed this week that Brexit was likely to harm the economy – while citing highly uncertain figures. But MPs and ministers pointed out that their ‘doom-mongering’ forecasts of an immediate recession after the June 23 referendum had proved false. That stance was boosted by the announcement from Jaguar Land Rover boss Ralf Speth. He vowed to use the UK as a base to take on the powerful German motor industry and make Britain the global leader in electric cars. – Daily Mail Half of City firms have no plans to relocate post-Brexit – FT Adviser Tata set to commit to UK steel for the next decade – The Guardian Britons could buy EU citizenship under top Brexit negotiator’s plan Britons who want to live and work in Europe after Brexit would have to pay for individual EU citizenship under proposals backed by the chief negotiator in the European Parliament. The plans would mean British citizens sending an annual fee to Brussels to retain many of the benefits of EU membership. Guy Verhofstadt, who was appointed lead Brexit negotiator at the European parliament in September, told The Times that he supported the idea in principle. An advocate of a “United States of Europe”, the former Belgian prime minister has vowed to fight for the “rights of the 48 per cent” of British voters who voted for Remain. – The Times (£) “Anglophile” Guy Verhofstadt hopes Britain will stay inside the single market – The Times (£) Brexit Bill could be pushed through Parliament in just five days if Government loses Supreme Court battle The Prime Minister and David Davis have drawn up plans which ensure that the process for leaving the EU in March 2019 is not blown off course. Mrs May said the public had spoken and there could be no attempt to ‘weasel out’ of the referendum verdict. The plans come as Brexit faces the another onslaught – with ex-prime ministers Tony Blair and John Major saying the process could be stopped or that a second poll should take place. – Daily Mail Lawyers for Britain granted permission to intervene in the Supreme Court – Lawyers for Britain Bid to challenge Brexit gathers pace among pro-Remain politicians A series of informal but concerted efforts by pro-remain politicians to reshape or even derail the Brexit process is under way and gaining momentum, according to people involved. MPs from across the parties had discussed how to push the government into revealing its Brexit plans and to ensure continued single market access, sources said, as a series of senior political figures made public interventions suggesting the result of the EU referendum could be reversed.Tony Blair and John Major both suggested this week that the public should be allowed to vote on or even veto any deal for leaving the EU. However, those connected to efforts by serving pro-remain MPs say the former prime ministers’ views had little support in the Commons. – The Guardian Iain Duncan Smith accuses John Major of ‘dismissing democracy’ over Brexit comments – PoliticsHome If John Major likes referendums so much, why didn’t he hold one on Maastricht? – Asa Bennett for the Daily Telegraph Sir Bill Cash MP skewers out of touch Blair and Major over Brexit – Daily Express John Major and Tony Blair must stop hysterical ranting about Brexit ‘tyranny’ and accept the vote – The Sun Says Sir John Major and the Remainers want a tyranny of the minority – Daily Telegraph editorial Tony Blair can’t stop Brexit. He’s the one who caused it – Tim Stanley for the Daily Telegraph (£) Tom Watson to take aim at ‘Brexit deniers’ who want to ignore ‘will of the British people’ – Daily Express > Nick de Bois on BrexitCentral: Sir John Major denied the public a referendum on Maastricht – how ironic he should want a second one on Brexit Nicola Sturgeon’s call for a Scottish Brexit deal won’t work because it would mean border posts inside the UK, warns Welsh First Minister Referring to Greenland which left the EU in 1982, [Wales First Minister Carwyn Jones] added: ‘If you’re Greenland and you’re a long way away from the European land mass it’s easier, but otherwise how do you control the flow of goods that are traded on different terms on the same island. For me, what is absolutely crucial is that we get the best deal for the UK, all four nations of the UK, and that there is agreement on that.’ – Daily Mirror PM should have been at Brexit summit says Carwyn Jones – ITV News Lord Advocate to argue in Supreme Court for Scotland ‘veto’ over Brexit – Daily Telegraph The Irish Prime Minister thinks it will be ‘impossible’ to do Brexit deal in two years – Sky News Why I trust Major and Blair, but not Sturgeon, over Brexit – Alan Cochrane for the Daily Telegraph (£) Theresa May accused of contempt by SNP over Brexit hotline – The Herald EU leaders ‘not bluffing’ over Brexit terms, warns Malta’s PM Much political debate has focused on the possibility of a “soft” Brexit – the UK retaining some form of membership of the single market in exchange for conceding some control over immigration – and “hard Brexit” – leaving the single market but having fuller control over migration. But Mr Muscat said the UK and EU needed to first reach agreement on a range of other details once Mrs May triggers Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. He said these included the bill the UK must pay before leaving, establishing what will happen to the UK-Republic of Ireland border and working out interim arrangements on issues like security. – BBC > WATCH on BrexitCentral’s YouTube channel: Maltese PM tells UK that Brussels will ‘bash you back’ Michel Barnier to host Brexit seminar with senior national officials next week Michel Barnier, the EU’s top Brexit negotiator, has called a meeting next week of senior officials from national governments and the European Parliament to discuss upcoming talks over the terms of the UK’s departure from the bloc. The meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 29, and is understood to be a technical seminar lasting half a day. It’s the first meeting of its kind since the UK voted to leave the EU in a referendum on June 23. – MLex Barnier, the French politician who will lead EU negotiations with London on Britain’s exit from the EU, had announced plans to tour member states once he took office on 1 October. He was in Portugal and Italy this week. Apparently, Barnier’s ambition is to forge a united position among the 27 for when Britain actually triggers Article 50. – EurActiv Leaving the EU: not easy for us, not easy for them – Guardian editorial What are the negotiating aims of the EU27? – John Redwood MP on his eponymous blog Germany needs post-Brexit EU trade deal with Britain to minimise own economy fallout, Bavarian minister warns Germany needs a “comprehensive” new trade EU deal with the UK after Brexit to minimise the potential fallout for its own economy, a leading politician has warned. Ilse Aigner, the Bavarian economy minister, said that Brexit poses a “high risk” to the economy and argued that the UK is one of the “most important trading partners for Bavaria”, one of Germany’s most prosperous states. – Daily Telegraph Jonathan Isaby paints a vision of life in Brexit Britain in 2019 Businesses will still sell their wares to our trade partners on the other side of the English Channel, just as we will still be buying from them. And good bilateral relations and international co-operation remain in a whole series of policy areas. The doomsday scenarios have been proven to be hyperbole of the most ludicrous order. The British economy has outperformed all the predictions. – Jonathan Isaby for The i Patrick Minford: Follow the Bright Star! In this vital period where we prepare for Brexit, the Chancellor should recognise that he is in charge of the greatest economic office of state. He has the power to bring in the optimal Brexit policies that will spur growth. He is no mere spearhead of the Treasury’s continued campaign to frustrate Brexit, nor should he be bound by the deficient economic modelling with which he is presented. The evidence suggests that Britain’s economic future post Brexit is bright. What is now needed are all hands and minds at the pump – with a determined economic captain at the controls. – Professor Patrick Minford for Politeia Angus Dalgleish: Leaving EU will rescue our health service During the referendum campaign much was made of the notion that leaving the EU would be a disaster for the NHS. This included high profile letters from dozens of my Oncology colleagues who believed that medical research and hence cancer treatments would suffer if we took back our sovereignty. A perceived dependence on EU research funding drew similar outbursts from ‘remainian’ academics even though the EU funded only 3 per cent of all UK research….It was the absence of objective assessment of the facts and the forces that act on the NHS that was so amazing in my colleagues’ views.I have uncovered dozens of reasons why EU directives, rules and regulations have damaged the NHS but will focus on just three. – Professor Angus Dalgleish for the Daily Express Iain Martin: The SNP is getting found out, but Brexit necessitates a rethink of the UK The key weak spot is exports and the reality that Scotland is in a highly successful single market already that is much more important to its economy than the EU. That market is called the UK. The Scottish government’s own figures show that 64% of exports – more than £48bn – go to the rest of the UK. The EU is the smallest of Scotland’s export markets, behind the rest of the world. One SNP MP got into a mess this week in trying to claim that because England is still in the EU – for now – then the EU is Scotland’s biggest export market. Er… no. – Iain Martin for Reaction George Eaton: Why the Remainers will find it so hard to block Brexit It is hard to conceive of worse political circumstances for the Remainers. Pro-European Tories are a dying breed, Labour is led by an avowed eurosceptic and the europhile Liberal Democrats have just eight MPs. That the charge is being led by former prime ministers is a mark of the Remainers’ weakness, not their strength. Having lost the battle, they look like losing the war. – George Eaton for the New Statesman’s Staggers blog Joseph Hackett: We have nothing to fear from running our own trade policy The rest of the world’s interest in free trade with Britain should come as no surprise. As keen as we are to call ourselves a “small island”, we are historically a global trading nation. We are still the world’s 5th largest economy – a wealthy market of over 64 million consumers. We are the world’s 6th biggest importer and 9th biggest exporter. Theresa May has pledged to make our Corporation Tax rate the lowest in the G20. We rank 3rd in the world in the Global Innovation Index for 2016, and 7th in the Ease of Doing Business Index for 2017. – Joseph Hackett for CapX Brexit comment in brief Brexit must not be part of Theresa May’s plan. It must be her whole plan – Charles Moore for the Daily Telegraph (£) Is a second referendum a bad idea? Not if we ask the right question – Simon Jenkins for The Guardian Boris Johnson is a clown who has united the EU against Britain – Jean Quatremer for The Guardian Constantly bashing Boris Johnson will just hurt Britain – so let’s stop it right now – James Forsyth for The Sun Take advantage of Brexit uncertainty to initiate change – Marino Donati for Supply Management Magazine Why Leave figures on Brexit were correct all along – Stephen Pollard in the Daily Express The remains of Remain: the groups that have emerged from the In campaign – Mark Wallace for ConservativeHome Brexit news in brief ‘Overhaul visa system to make London a global innovation hub’, says president of top university – Evening Standard Labour’s Sir Keir Starmer vows to press for environmentally-friendly Brexit – Daily Mail Nigel Farage’s Brexit march on the Supreme Court is not happening – Huffington Post Momentum launches nationwide campaign to ‘Take Back Control’ of Brexit – The Independent The MEPs in the frame to replace Martin Schulz – Politico Erdoğan threatens to open borders to migrants – Politico And finally… Lindsay Lohan apologises to Kettering for reneging on her referendum night Christmas lights pledge Hollywood star Lindsay Lohan has recorded a video message to Kettering confirming she will not be switching-on the town’s Christmas lights. She was invited by MP Philip Hollobone after her “offensive” tweet about the town on EU referendum night… Ms Lohan emerged as an unlikely EU referendum pundit on results night with a series of social media posts in which she pleaded with Britain not to leave the European Union. She tweeted saying “Sorry, but #KETTERING where are you?”. In response, Conservative MP Mr Hollobone said that switching on the Christmas lights would “redeem her political reputation”. Ms Lohan replied: “Direct message me about your offer. Would be happy to light the Christmas tree in #Kettering.” – BBC