Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team September Brexit talks enter final day with disciplined silence from both sides hinting at progress… An uneasy peace has broken out between British and European Union Brexit negotiators with both sides vowing not to leak details of the highly sensitive fourth round of talks in Brussels. The pact of silence was described as “détente” after the bruising war of words waged by both sides during previous meetings… Maintaining radio silence until Thursday, the final day of the negotiations, is now seen as a key test of the newfound, guarded trust between the two sides and that talks have finally begun in earnest… The vow of silence has led to some seasoned Brussels-watchers speculating that Britain was preparing to make some concessions but the new discipline and seriousness has also raised hopes that some headway could be made on the issues of Ireland and citizens’ rights. – Telegraph (£) …as the EU reportedly considers bringing forward transition talks Even as both sides went into the fourth round of negotiations with fighting talk, European Union leaders are considering going some way to meet one of the U.K.’s demands. They are discussing bringing forward talks about the transition period that would follow Brexit, according to three people familiar with the situation who declined to be named. The concession, while minor, would break the deadlock and make it easier for the U.K. to discuss the contentious divorce bill. The U.K.’s goal of moving talks on to trade next month is probably still out of reach, according to the people, who declined to be named as the deliberations aren’t public. – Bloomberg EU leaders to avoid Brexit talks as they meet in Estonia tonight When European Union leaders meet in the Estonian capital on Thursday evening, they won’t discuss any giant leaps forward for the bloc, or what things will be like after the U.K. has left. Instead, the leaders will talk about when to start talking… “We should all be aware that Brexit remains one of the main tasks for us,” [European Council President Donald] Tusk wrote. “This will be the subject of our next meeting at 27 in October, on the basis of Article 50” — in other words, wait until May isn’t around… The Estonians, who hold the Council of the EU’s rotating presidency, planned an informal chat among leaders but that raised concerns that May could hijack the event to lobby for her vision of Brexit a month before EU leaders will decide if “sufficient progress” has been made in the Brexit talks to move on to a future relationship. “There were concerns that a freestyle, agenda-less meeting gives May a stage,” one EU diplomat who refused to be named said. – Politico Brexit Secretary David Davis looking at plans to set up an International Treaties Court staffed by British judges The proposed panel of judges would liaise with the European Court of Justice and crucially respect future rulings relating to EU citizens living in the UK – currently a testy Brexit negotiations sticking point… [The plans] are the brainchild of Martin Howe QC and barristers Francis Hoar and Dr Gunnar Beck. Last night the Department for Exiting the EU confirmed they had received their report from the pro-Brexit Lawyers for Britain group… And the powerful pro-Brexit European Research Group of Tory MPs urged the Government to implement the recommendations. Leader Suella Fernandes said: “The creation of an International Treaties Court in the UK would avoid the pitfalls of the ECJ’s integrationist tendencies, restore UK sovereignty, while through coordination with its ECJ counterpart allow certainty for those relying on UK and EU obligations.” – The Sun David Davis to ‘wrestle control from EU’ creating international court staffed by UK judges – Express Full Report: Adjudicating Treaty Rights in post-Brexit Britain – Lawyers for Britain > Martin Howe QC on BrexitCentral today: The UK needs a new court to restore legal supremacy and free us from ECJ oversight Theresa May threatens US with trade war over Bombardier row The US Department of Commerce decided Bombardier aircraft, [partially] built in Northern Ireland, should be subject to 219 per cent import duty after the American aviation giant Boeing complained that Bombardier had been given unfair state aid. The Government responded by warning that Boeing’s behaviour “could jeopardise” future Ministry of Defence contracts for its aircraft such as Apache helicopters. The Prime Minister has appealed directly to President Donald Trump to intervene in the dispute, which has dented her hopes of signing a post-Brexit free trade deal with the US. – Telegraph Theresa May threatens to blacklist Boeing after America puts over 4,000 UK jobs at risk – The Sun Trade row between Boeing and Bombardier threatens new British military contracts with US – The Times (£) US move against Bombardier risks reprisals from UK and Canada – FT (£) Boeing has power to turn off planes, say British military chiefs – The Times (£) A UK trade war with Trump over Bombardier would be suicidal – Ambrose Evans-Pritchard for the Telegraph (£) The Bombardier-Boeing trade feud is a lesson in the dangers of state subsidies – Sam Bowman for City A.M. Bombardier: Theresa May’s free-trade reality check – Charlie Cooper for Politico The US government’s approach to the Bombardier dispute augurs ill for UK-US trade – Times editorial (£) Punitive US import tariffs on Bombardier aircraft are unreasonable – FT editorial (£) Renewed confusion on Labour’s Brexit position as Corbyn ‘guarantees’ access to single market… Labour was in Brexit chaos again on Wednesday after Jeremy Corbyn guaranteed access to the single market and Tom Watson claimed the party has not ruled out a second referendum. In his keynote address to the party’s annual conference in Brighton, Mr Corbyn said Labour would “guarantee unimpeded access to the single market” after leaving the union following the transition period. But in a subsequent briefing aides of the leader appeared to play down the remarks, first claiming the promise applied only in the two years between leaving and a new deal, then suggesting Mr Corbyn has always backed continued membership of the market. – Telegraph Jeremy Corbyn’s deputy leader Tom Watson does not rule out second EU referendum – Express Sadiq Khan is Labour’s only remaining hope of surviving Brexit – Gina Miller for the Independent > READ on BrexitCentral: What Jeremy Corbyn said about Brexit in his Labour Conference speech …as Corbyn allies moot Brexit-accepting Caroline Flint for Labour deputy leadership Jeremy Corbyn’s allies are plotting to replace his deputy Tom Watson with Brexit backing former minister Caroline Flint, a senior Labour source has revealed. The leadership source told the Daily Express that Miss Flint was seen as a key figure in winning over Labour supporters who had backed Brexit in the party’s heartlands… Miss Flint was a Remainer who has since the vote campaigned for Labour to embrace Brexit and get behind the result and opposed attempts to try to force the UK to stay in the EU’s single market and customs union. – Express Boris Johnson calls for short transition period at launch of free trade think-tank… Boris Johnson has called for a swift end to any transition phase with Europe, in the latest in a series of provocative challenges to Downing Street’s Brexit strategy. Speaking at the Foreign Office launch of the privately financed Institute for Free Trade, the foreign secretary urged that the two-year implementation period announced by Theresa May last week be kept short so that Britain was free to strike new trade deals with other countries… Michael Gove and the international trade secretary, Liam Fox, were also present to endorse the new institute, which Fox said showed the moral imperative to lower trade barriers. – Guardian Boris Johnson urges Theresa May to keep to a short Brexit transition period so that British companies will get a trade boost – The Sun Boris Johnson ramps up calls for short Brexit transition period – PoliticsHome Mask slips as Tory schemers open Brexit think tank – James McGrory, Executive Director of Open Britain, for The Times (£) …with former Australian PM Tony Abbott set to advise the Institute of Free Trade Tony Abbott is to advise a new free trade think tank established by a leading Brexiteer and conservative British member of the European Parliament… Writing for the pro-Leave website BrexitCentral Mr Hannan said the former Australian prime minister would serve on the institute’s international advisory which is made up entirely of right-wing figures including Spain’s former prime minister José María Aznar. Mr Hannan described the former leaders as “statesmen who have liberalised their own economies”. – Sydney Morning Herald > LISTEN to IFT launch speeches: Daniel Hannan, Boris Johnson, Þór Þórðarson, Liam Fox > Daniel Hannan on BrexitCentral yesterday: We have a unique opportunity to write a new trade policy from scratch – which is why I’ve launched the Institute for Free Trade London Tory councils appeal to Brussels for ‘swift’ deal on rights of EU nationals The capital’s flagship Tory boroughs bypassed government today to directly challenge the European Union to guarantee the rights of 80,000 residents. In a joint letter to chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier, the three councils said they were “surprised and disappointed” that a deal on EU nationals living in London had not yet been reached. The leaders of Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea, and Wandsworth circumvented Brexit Secretary David Davis — in Brussels this week for the latest round of talks — to make their appeal. – Evening Standard EU nationals in Britain need urgent reassurance – Nickie Aiken, leader of Westminster City Council, for The Times (£) UK treatment of foreign nationals ‘could colour’ MEPs’ view on Brexit, says Guy Verhofstadt – Guardian European Medicines Agency warns of ‘permanent damage’ from relocation The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has warned that the damage caused by its relocation from London would at best take two years to fix and at worst lead to its complete breakdown and a major public health crisis for the continent. A survey by the EMA asked staff to give their thoughts on the 19 candidate cities that applied to host the health agency after Britain’s withdrawal from the EU in March 2019… The results revealed that, in the case of the eight least popular possible new locations, staff retention rates could be significantly lower than 30% and as low as 6% in the case of one of the unnamed cities. – Guardian Matthew Elliott: Macron is honest but wrong on his plans for EU integration Pursuing further EU integration to quell the populist uprising on the Continent is like trying to put out a fire using gasoline. The people who voted for far Right and far Left parties in the Netherlands, France and Germany this year weren’t voting for bailouts for poorer Southern European countries in the Eurozone, or for tax harmonisation, or for sharing out migrants across the EU. On the contrary, these policies would exacerbate tensions. The vision laid out by Macron on Tuesday – and President Juncker the other week in his “State of the Union” address – is not the right road for the EU. We must respect the right of their electorates to endorse such policies, but I doubt they’ll be vote-winners. – Matthew Elliott for the Telegraph (£) Macron seems determined to prove that Brexiteer fears about a federal Europe were right all along – Henry Newman for ConservativeHome Brian Monteith: Ask your minister – What did you do for Britain in the Brexit war? In Italy, Theresa May herself admitted that a transition period of “about two years” would be helpful in allowing the Home Office to get its house in order for new immigration procedures. This prompts the question just what exactly is the UK government doing in preparing for Brexit – and more crucially, what plans are being prepared for the real possibility that a deal is not reached before the end of March 2019? … While the negotiations are taking place, what is required by all those scrutinising the British government – be it the media or the various committees in the Houses of Parliament – is for each and every cabinet minister to reveal just how much work they have done in preparing for the scenarios of leaving with or without a deal, irrespective of a transition. – Brian Monteith for City A.M. Daniel Hannan: There’s far more agreement on the terms of Brexit than the pundits suggest There is, in truth, considerable consensus over the EU negotiations. Pundits are creatures of habit and, when they find themselves typing the words “Tory” and “Europe” in the same sentence, their muscle memory kicks in and their fingers automatically add the word “splits”. But look past all the clichés about rows and rifts and nuclear wars, and you’ll see a party which, in the space of a year, has moved from the referendum divisions to a remarkable degree of accord over how to proceed. – Daniel Hannan for ConservativeHome Arthur Scargill: Britons voted to stop sending any cash to Brussels Theresa May’s announcement that the Government is prepared to stay in the EU until 2021 is a betrayal on a par with Chamberlain’s sell-out to Hitler and a betrayal of the “will of the people”, who in 2016 voted to get out of the EU and back into the world. Britain is stuck for at least four years with free movement, the customs union, the single market and control by an unelected body in Brussels. The British people voted to leave the EU, not to continue paying £10 billion a year – Arthur Scargill, Socialist Labour Party Leader, letter in the Telegraph Brexit comment in brief The lady’s not for quitting: Damian Green interview on Theresa May for the Spectator It’s time to stand up to the patronising Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker and do a direct deal with countries which are being bullied by the EU – Rod Liddle for The Sun Brexit Tories opened the door to revolution. Corbynites walked through – Rafael Behr for the Guardian The German election could be good news for Brexit – Jack Tagholm-Child for The Commentator The danger is not that Germany will be overrun by the far right, but that it will turn inwards – Philip Stephens for the FT (£) Alternative für Deutschland’s success tells the tale of Germany’s forgotten East – William Cook for the Spectator Why Macron won’t get France working – Ferghane Azihari for CapX Brexit news in brief Theresa May’s top Brexit official Olly Robbins to lead new 20-strong government unit independent of DExEU – Politico (€) Wolfgang Schäuble to step down as German finance minister – FT (£) Schäuble’s shift to parliament marks end of an era – Politico Arrogant MEPs plan Brexit protest as David Davis love-bombs Brussels over EU divorce talks – The Sun EU chiefs agree to use Brexit bill to fund £12m of free inter-railing for gap year teens – Express Jean-Claude Juncker to meet one of UKIP’s most madcap MEPs for coffee – Telegraph (£)