Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Emmanuel Macron tells EU leaders to make a deal with Britain… President Macron is preparing to throw Theresa May a lifeline by pushing other EU leaders to agree a close relationship with Britain after Brexit as part of his vision for a united Europe. The French leader wants to use a summit in Austria next month to spell out a new structure for European alliances. It would be based on “concentric circles”, with the EU and the euro at its core and Britain in a second ring, diplomatic sources have told The Times. That would depend on an amicable Brexit, however. Mr Macron’s decision to promote his vision at Salzburg suggests he is softening opposition to the prime minister’s Chequers proposals. – The Times (£) French President Emmanuel Macron urges EU leaders to make a Brexit deal with Britain as Barnier promises ‘special’ treatment – The Sun France ‘to help’ forge EU deal with UK after Brexit – Sky News …as Michel Barnier says he will offer UK a unique trade deal The European Union’s chief Brexit negotiator said he will offer the UK a trade deal “such as there never has been” in comments which prompted a rise in the value of the pound. The EU has long insisted the UK would not be able to strike a bespoke deal, with Britain essentially being forced to choose between existing trading models, such as those used by Norway and Canada. But Michel Barnier told reporters in Berlin the EU was prepared to offer the UK a unique agreement which would mean an unprecedentedly close relationship with the bloc. – Telegraph (£) Brexit breakthrough sends pound soaring as EU chief says Britain will get a ‘special deal’ – The Sun Pound rises as EU hints at ‘ambitious’ Brexit deal – Sky News Theresa May seals first post-Brexit trade deal with Africa pact and £4bn investment pledge Theresa May announced that Britain’s first post-Brexit trade agreement would be with African nations as she committed the UK to providing an extra £4 billion of investment in the continent’s economies. On the first day of her three-day African tour, the prime minister said the government intended to carry over the EU’s economic partnership agreement with Mozambique and the Southern African Customs Union (SACU), which consists of South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho and the tiny kingdoms of Namibia and Swaziland. Speaking in Cape Town, Mrs May revealed how the UK plans to use its aid budget in the “national interest”. – The Times (£) How will UK trade with Africa post-Brexit? – BBC News > Theo Clarke on BrexitCentral: Theresa May is right to focus on post-Brexit trading opportunities in Africa No Brexit divorce bill without a trade deal, Dominic Raab tells peers… The UK will withhold part of its Brexit divorce bill if it leaves the EU without a deal, Dominic Raab has said. The Brexit secretary said it would be “peculiar” for the UK to part with the £40 billion financial settlement, which Theresa May agreed with the EU last year, if negotiations about a future relationship came to an acrimonious halt. Sterling’s value has risen amid optimism that the UK and EU are closer to striking a deal, while the effective deputy prime minister said that the only two Brexit options left were Mrs May’s Chequers plan or no deal. – The Times (£) …as he admits a deal may be delayed until after the October deadline… Dominic Raab today admitted that a Brexit deal could be delayed until after the October deadline – amid fears the UK could crash out without an agreement. The new Brexit Secretary insisted that ministers are ‘ambitious’ and still optimistic a deal can be done with Brussels. But he said that finalising the agreement could ‘creep beyond’ the EU summit on October 18 and 19, which has been the deadline for the talks. His remarks, made in front of the House of Lords select committee on the EU, is the first time a minister involved in talks has publicly admitted the deadline could slip. – Daily Mail …and criticises his predecessor David Davis After a welcome reprieve from parliamentary scrutiny over the summer, DExEU Secretary Dominic Raab was back in the hot seat today as he took questions from the House of Lords EU committee about the state of Brexit negotiations. While the tone of the questioning was mostly serious, and occasionally antagonistic, Raab couldn’t quite help lightening the mood when talking about his predecessor David Davis. Discussing the flexibility Britain and the EU had demonstrated in order to reach an agreement, Raab pointed out: ‘We’ve made proposals which clearly involve political compromises and pragmatism. That’s why you’re hearing from me, not my predecessor.’ Mr S isn’t quite sure if Raab thinks that Davis wasn’t pragmatic enough to make a deal, or that getting rid of him was Theresa May’s pragmatic decision. – Steerpike for The Spectator Dominic Raab denies Barnier talks ‘frustration’ – BBC News Raab says if EU punishes City of London, non-EU financial centres will benefit – Reuters Five things we learnt from Dominic Raab’s EU Committee appearance – Alastair Thomas for The Spectator > Watch on BrexitCentral’s YouTube Channel: Dominic Raab answers questions from the Lords EU Committee Britain’s car trade could benefit from no deal Brexit, says head of Aston Martin The head of Aston Martin has said Britain’s car trade would benefit from a “no deal” Brexit. Andy Palmer, CEO of the car giant, said any tariff barrier that came in would “even itself out” and Britain’s exports would get a boost if the pound fell in value. It comes as Aston Martin prepares to float for £5billion on the London Stock Exchange next month. Mr Palmer told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he wasn’t afraid of the UK leaving the European Union without a deal, and that his company is “impervious” to such changes. He said: “If a tariff barrier went in place it would even itself out, and we would probably benefit from a weaker pound. “The benefit of investing in Aston Martin is insulation from these macro-changes. We import and export cars everywhere – we know how to export and get across borders.” – Telegraph (£) Aston Martin boss vows Britain’s car trade will benefit from No Deal Brexit – The Sun French and British fishing boats clash in Channel Michael Gove is being urged to intervene in a violent “scallops war” between French and British fisherman. The cross-Channel clash during which British boats were attacked yesterday off Le Havre escalated today as Cornish crews accused their French rivals of stealing their crabbing gear. The government has contacted the French authorities to insist that the British scallop boats were fishing legally and has said it is monitoring vessels in the disputed area. The crews of French boats are alleged to have attacked British scallop boats with rocks, shackles and flares yesterday. The crews of French boats are alleged to have attacked British scallop boats with rocks, shackles and flares yesterday. A Conservative MP said she had received assurances from Mr Gove, the environment secretary, that “appropriate measures” are in place to protect British scallop boats after they were attacked with rocks, shackles and flares. – The Times (£) Battle of the Scallops sparks war of words between UK and France – The Sun Scallops row warnings ‘fell on deaf ears’, say UK fishermen, after French ‘hurl rocks and smoke bombs’ at boats – Telegraph (£) The scallops row is just the beginning – Brexit will trigger a full-blown fish war with the EU – Telegraph (£) The Cod Wars of the 1970s were a national humiliation – Britain must win the Scallop War – Daisy Dunn for the Telegraph (£) First applications from EU nationals for settled status The first applications from EU nationals wanting to stay in the UK after Brexit are being submitted. A group of university students and NHS workers in the north-west of England are taking part in a trial to test the system before it opens later this year. The three million or so EU residents in the UK have until the end of June 2021 to register for “settled status”. Ministers, who insist the process will be simple, say the pilot will allow for “necessary adjustments” to be made. The UK is due to leave the EU on 29 March 2019. – BBC News Ireland says progress on future relationship key to backstop Progress on the shape of the future relationship between the EU and the UK in the coming weeks is the key to securing agreement on a legally binding backstop, the Tánaiste Simon Coveney has said. Mr Coveney said that if the British government believed it was never going to have to use the backstop provision – because it would agree a close future trading relationship – then it was more likely to agree the backstop. The Minister for Foreign Affairs was speaking before departing for Berlin last night, where he will address an audience of German diplomats and business people today. The British government agreed on the principle of a backstop – guaranteeing no hard border in Ireland even if there is no agreement on a future relationship – last December but has since rejected a draft text from the EU that would have kept Northern Ireland inside the EU’s single market and customs union. – Irish Times Irish foreign minister urges UK to clarify its Brexit stance – Reuters Brussels claim May’s Brexit plan would save UK business billions The U.K.’s proposal to free itself from Brussels regulations on services would save British businesses billions of pounds a year, according to a briefing for EU27 diplomats by Michel Barnier’s negotiating team. The services proposal is a key plank of Theresa May’s Brexit plan that was agreed by ministers at her Chequers country residence last month and resulted in the resignations of her foreign and Brexit secretaries. Under the plan, the U.K. would agree on an “association agreement” with the EU including a “free-trade area” for goods, but it would no longer be bound by EU regulations on services that aim to create a level playing field between businesses in different countries. – Politico Sir James Dyson urges Government to be bold on Brexit to ‘supercharge’ our economy Top entrepreneur Sir James Dyson today urges the Government to be bold on Brexit — or squander a unique chance to “supercharge” the economy. The inventor exclusively told The Sun: “It would be unforgivable if the Government does not grab this opportunity with both hands. “The vast majority (90 per cent) of world trade is outside Europe. “It is sufficient to say that Dyson doesn’t have the time to wait for politicians to capitulate and compromise.” And the 71-year-old means business. He is turning a former World War Two airfield into a £200 million test centre for his battery-powered electric cars. The billionaire Brexit supporter told how he is investing in the UK’s industrial future, creating up to 2,000 new jobs with his £2.5billion electric car business. – The Sun Iain Duncan Smith & John Longworth: The 10 Brexit questions have already been answered… but Remainers need to start listening We are writing in response to the Telegraph‘s Europe Editor Peter Foster earlier this week, in particular, his peculiar assertion that no one has answered the key questions he poses on Brexit. In fact, they have been answered ad nauseam. Sadly, some people are just not listening. How much clout does a nation of 65 million people have in global trade? This question is immaterial. Firstly, being a niche player in a global market can produce major advantages of specialisation and focus without distorting markets. Secondly, markets demand a seller and a willing buyer, in which case size doesn’t matter. Thirdly, the UK can remove tariffs unilaterally and harvest the benefits without trade deals, in turn boosting the economy and reducing the cost of living. There are very good examples around the world of countries far smaller than the UK doing far better than members of the EU; Singapore, New Zealand, Australia and so on. – Iain Duncan Smith & John Longworth for the Telegraph (£) Nick Timothy: Chequers has proved intolerable to everyone, May must set her sights on a Canada-plus deal with the EU The Government must not send out the signal that any deal is better than no deal. when Brussels rejects Chequers, the choice facing Britain is not between Chequers Minus and no deal: ministers can revert to the more conventional trade agreement envisaged in David Davis’s abandoned white paper. This approach – unlike Chequers – is consistent with Theresa May’s original Lancaster House vision, and, subject to negotiations relating to mutual recognition of standards, consistent with the EU’s principles. The danger is that the PM, having expended so much political capital on Chequers, will feel unable to diverge from the course she has set. There is no reason, therefore, why a trade agreement cannot be agreed if the Government rejects further EU demands for concessions. – Nick Timothy for the Telegraph (£) The Chequers proposal would prevent the UK regaining an independent trade policy – Peter F. Allgeier for ConservativeHome Rod Liddle: The people vs Brexit: a very elite insurgency The People’s Vote and its sister campaigns are a convocation of those luvvies Bremner lampooned, plus some of the country’s most serially useless and reviled politicians. There’s that bloke from Star Trek and Bald-rick — there’s always Baldrick — and the political colossus Gary Lineker, along with loveable old Richard Branson, who’s donated cash and office space to a bunch of Blairite hangovers intent on stopping Brexit in its tracks. Then there’s Paddy Ashdown, who said shortly before the referendum result came through: ‘I will forgive no one who does not respect the sovereign voice of the British people once it has spoken. Whether it is a majority of 1 per cent or 20 per cent, when the British people have spoken, you do what they command. Either you believe in democracy or you don’t.’- Rod Liddle for The Spectator Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: Celebrate the coming Brexit deal, but mourn the lost country Let me be clear, I think Chequers is the worst of all worlds. It does not restore sovereign self-government. It turns this country into a dependent colonial adjunct for the first time since the Norman Conquest, subject to the EU’s legal and regulatory writ but without a Council veto or democratic consent in the European Parliament. It is a formula for future conflict and is almost certain to break down within five or ten years, forcing us to go through this agonising ordeal yet again. – Ambrose Evans-Pritchard for the Telegraph (£) Robert Lee: The BRINO “Coup” has Failed It is now obvious – I guess it was all along – that the Remain-supporting establishment always intended to dilute Brexit as much as possible. BRINO – Brexit in Name Only – was always the plan. Prospects for a Clean Brexit seemed doomed when Theresa May apparently secured full Cabinet agreement to the Chequers Plan –and the further concessions implied by it – that was the natural outcome of this process. However, that weekend turns out instead to have been the point when the BRINO coup overreached itself and began to unravel. I now believe that the “coup” has failed, and that a Clean Brexit – either through a Canada-style agreement or through a “No Deal” – is after all going to happen. The following are my reasons for this view: – Robert Lee for Briefings for Brexit Julian Jessop: The false assumptions behind Project Fear 2.0 The UK government has finally begun to publish briefings on the implications of “no deal” – and not a moment too soon. The public is being bombarded with warnings of potentially devastating impacts on the economy, their security and their welfare if the UK becomes a “third country” at 11pm on 29th March 2019, without the Withdrawal Agreement and framework for a future relationship anticipated in Article 50. Let’s be kind and not spend too long on the daftest headlines. We all have our favourites. Mine is that a “no-deal” Brexit means that the UK would run out of food by August 2019 (the 7th, to be precise). – Julian Jessop for CapX Katy Balls: Is there any point infiltrating the Tory party? Aside from allegations of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia within the main two parties, the other recurring story of the summer recess has been reports of an influx of Ukip-esque members to the Tory party. The rise in membership has led to fears in some quarters of a ‘blue Momentum-style’ takeover of the Conservative party that could harden the party’s Brexit position and tip the scale towards a Brexiteer in any future leadership contest.- Katy Balls for The Spectator Brexit in Brief Remainers yearn for a new centrist party, but it’ll come too late to stop Brexit – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) Italy’s anti-immigration rhetoric is paying off for the populists – Daniel R. DePetris for The Spectator ‘Blue Momentum’ fears are overblown, but the Tory grassroots still shouldn’t choose their leader – Tom Harris for the Telegraph (£) The Love That Dare Not Speak Its Name – Daniel Robinson for Briefings for Brexit Here’s why no-deal Brexit is nothing to fear and would allow Britain to finally thrive outside the EU – Natasha Clark for The Sun An agricultural resurgence is nearly upon us – John Redwood MP for CommentCentral UK hatches plan to avoid Donald Trump’s Iran sanctions so we can continue to buy oil from Middle East – The Sun Top Remainers back bid to overturn Brexit after we leave – The Sun Germany’s Maas says hard Brexit “not yet off the table” – Reuters Nursing union backs second Brexit referendum – Sky News Premier League stars fear they could lose millions thanks to Brexit – and hire finance hotshots to protect their wages – The Sun Bono plans to wave the EU flag at U2 gigs claiming being pro-Europe is ‘a radical act’ – The Sun Panasonic to move European HQ in London to Netherlands – Telegraph (£) EU’s Barnier offers Britain close ties but ‘no single market a la carte’ – Reuters Germany wants to avoid no-deal Brexit says Maas – Reuters Pro-EU Bank of England boss Mark Carney to give MPs gloomy analysis on ‘no deal’ Brexit to push them into voting for PM’s EU deal – The Sun Gina Miller rules out Lib Dem leadership bid – BBC News