.@theresa_may: #Brexit does not mean that the UK will ‘turn inwards’ or ‘walk away from our partners in the world’ pic.twitter.com/qSMEBGNe12 — BrexitCentral (@BrexitCentral) September 21, 2016 Theresa May tells UN that the UK will be a ‘dependable partner’ despite Brexit… The UK will be remain a “confident, strong and dependable partner internationally” despite voting to leave the European Union, the Prime Minister has told the United Nations… She said that when Britons backed Brexit, “they did not vote to turn inwards or walk away from any of our partners in the world”. – Sky News “The challenge for those of us in this room is to ensure that our governments and our global institutions remain responsive to the people that we serve,” she said. Since becoming PM, Theresa May and her aides have repeatedly stressed the Goverment needs to do more to help ‘strivers’ – arguing the Brexit vote proved how many felt forgotten in modern day Britain. – The Sun If there were any doubts Theresa May had learned the lessons of the Brexit vote she has put them to rest on the global stage. – The Sun Says …and reassures US firms she’ll strike a Brexit deal to meet their needs… The Prime Minister met top US firms in New York to reassure them that Britain will strike the “best possible” trade deal with the European Union… In an interview on US radio station National Public Radio, Mrs May said: “One of the purposes of my meeting with US investors, and that included US banks, was to hear from them what their concerns are and what their key issues are as we go forward for our negotiations. And I was able, I hope, to reassure them that I want to ensure the best possible deal for the UK in trade with the European Union, not just in goods but in services.” – Daily Express …as President Obama takes a rare sideswipe at the EU “In Europe, a well-intentioned Brussels often became too isolated from the normal push and pull of national politics. Too often, in capitals, decision-makers have forgotten that democracy needs to be driven by civic engagement from the bottom up, not governance by experts from the top down.” – Excerpt from President Obama’s speech to the UN yesterday, quoted in The Independent Maltese PM insists Brexit deal must be “inferior” to EU membership The EU leader preparing to chair Brexit negotiations has told Sky News the UK is “between a rock and a hard place” and will be offered an “inferior” trade deal. Joseph Muscat, the Prime Minister of Malta, told Sky News on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York that he had told Theresa May: “Most of my colleagues want a fair deal for both the UK and Europe, but it has to be a deal that is inferior to membership, so you can’t have the cake and eat it. I don’t see a situation where Britain will be better off at the end of the deal.” – Sky News Quit the EU single market and hold world trade talks, urges former Australian diplomat Dr Geoff Raby, who was Australia’s ambassador to the World Trade Organisation and to China, said British consumers would save money once free of the “protectionist” EU customs union. His comments came amid speculation about wrangles in Theresa May’s Cabinet over whether the UK should try to stay in the single market as part of its Brexit deal. – Daily Express Swiss talks raise hopes of deal on single market A policy of “locals first for jobs” and work permits could unlock a Brexit deal on free movement and access to the single market after the European Union hailed “constructive” talks with Switzerland yesterday. Switzerland, which is not an EU member, is seeking to keep access to the single market while restricting the number of European migrant workers after the country’s referendum vote against free movement in 2014. – The Times (£) Mr Juncker is hoping for a “Swiss-specific” arrangement for the Swiss, and seems willing to listen to them. Brexit must mean a Britain-specific deal for the British. – Times (£) editorial MigrationWatch: EU migration ‘could plunge to 30,000 without hurting economy’ EU migrant numbers could be slashed by 100,000 a year post-Brexit without damaging the economy, experts say. In a policy paper which will be seen by ministers, the think-tank MigrationWatch argues work permits should only be given to 30,000 highly skilled EU migrants a year. – Daily Mail West End gets Brexit boost from overseas shoppers as sales to tip over £9bn for the first time Overseas shoppers are flocking to the West End to spend their cash since the fall in the value of the pound – and the Brexit boost is set to tip sales for the district over £9bn this year. Jace Tyrrell, chief executive of the West End lobby group New West End Company, says London’s premiere shopping district has benefited hugely from Brexit this summer because half of the area’s shoppers are tourists. – City A.M. US firm ignores Brexit and sets up base in Berkshire A multibillion-dollar American healthcare company is to open its European headquarters in the UK in a vote of confidence for Britain’s status as an international trade centre. Alnylam Pharmaceuticals will plant its flag in Theresa May’s constituency in Maidenhead, Berkshire, employing more than 100 people to launch its new “gene-silencing” therapies across Europe. – The Times (£) B&Q owner Kingfisher sees no evidence of Brexit impact on demand as profits rise – Daily Mail UK firms still hiring despite Brexit – International Business Times Foreign visitors find London welcoming… even after Brexit – Evening Standard Sadiq Khan tells US tech firms that Brexit gives them nothing to worry about The British metropolis remains Europe’s hub for the technology sector, Khan said, citing a poll commissioned by London & Partners, the mayor’s economic promotional company. “London’s been open to people, to trade and to ideas for more than a thousand years, and that’s not going to change,” Khan said. – CNET.com Brussels launches first post-Brexit vote state aid probe into UK The European Commission has launched its first full competition investigation into the UK since the Brexit vote, demonstrating that it still intends to hold Britain to account for breaking EU rules. The subject of the probe is relatively obscure — whether a Portsmouth cargo handling company received illegal state support — but the action highlights the bigger legal and political questions that will arise as Britain negotiates its divorce with the union. – FT (£) Shipping Minister gives Telegraph hope for its Britannia campaign A recommissioned Royal Yacht Britannia could be an “important emblem” and “valuable vehicle” to promote British trade after the Brexit vote, the shipping minister has said. John Hayes told The Telegraph he is aware of calls that the new vessel would boost Britain’s ability to secure deals after leaving the EU and insisted the “door is not closed” on the idea. – The Telegraph James Skinner: Let’s reignite the benefits of free movement between the CANZUK nations Before the UK joined the European Economic Community in 1973, we shared our borders with Australia, New Zealand and Canada, and each citizen of these nations was free to live and work in the UK (and vice-versa)… We are four, proud, independent nations which share the same head of state, the same common law legal system, the same Western culture, the same respect for democracy and human rights, and even the same language – why should we pass on the political, social and economic opportunities presented by embracing free movement with each other? – James Skinner in City A.M. Philip Johnston: Nigel Farage needs to stop telling me why I voted for Brexit Nigel Farage said the British people “were clear in wanting a points-based immigration system, which is why so many went out and voted to Leave the European Union.” But referendums are not elections with manifestos and sets of particular promises attached. This one was an expression of a will to do one thing – leave the EU – in a way that is clearly in the nation’s interests. No one voted for the country to be harmed. Many of us who favoured Brexit were inspired, as Boris Johnson rightly observed, by a desire to see power and authority reside once again with the elected institutions of our own country. – Philip Johnston in The Telegraph Simon Jenkins castigates the Arts lobby and its counterproductive wailing for Remain… A sure way to alienate an already sceptical public is for a group of high-earning celebrities to wail that their taxpayer subsidies are at risk… Though I backed Remain I could see no purpose in exaggerating the consequences of Brexit – before the vote or after. So-called Project Fear was a marketing disaster. Like the luvvies’ letter it looked like the establishment defending its own. Offered the opportunity to give power and privilege a punch on the nose Britain’s voters gratefully accepted. As for the arts, I have more faith in the independent vitality of London’s culture than the luvvies or [departing V&A director Martin] Roth. If it really needs Brussels to prop it up, heaven help it. Mercifully it does not. – Simon Jenkins in the Evening Standard The UK art market can soar after Brexit – Anthony Browne in The Telegraph …while the FT’s Martin Wolf still won’t accept the referendum result I would like a government prepared to overturn the referendum. Nothing has changed my view that the UK is making a huge economic and strategic blunder. The country is going to be meaner and poorer. David Cameron will go down as one of the worst prime ministers in UK history. But the halfway houses between membership of the EU and hard Brexit are uninhabitable. So what now has to be done is to move to the miserable new dispensation as smoothly as possible. – Martin Wolf in the FT (£) Brexit comment in brief Outside the EU, the regions of Britain will get a fair share at last – Charlie Elphicke MP in the Yorkshire Post Guy Verhofstadt – not the devil, but an imp (and a European federalist) – Profile by Andrew Gimson on ConservativeHome If Labour MPs want to make ending free movement a Brexit red line, they’d better be ready to leave the single market – Atul Hatwal on Labour Uncut David Davis should be building bridges, not burning them – Labour MEP Annaliese Dodds on The Times (£) Red Box website Tackling the UK’s export malaise – Bob Bischof on Reaction Tim Farron bangs the anti-Brexit drum as he reaches for the centre ground – Tom Goodenough for The Spectator‘s Coffee House blog Theresa May is right to reject the global elite’s mania for open borders – Iain Martin on Reaction Our universities and schools will thrive after Brexit – Matthew Ellery on Huffington Post The SNP’s Brexit claims are bogus – Douglas Carswell MP’s blog Other Brexit news in brief EU’s Barnier builds Brexit negotiation team and plans European tour – EurActiv Fabians claim that Brexit voting was linked to lack of state subsidies – The Independent Firms call for infrastructure spend before the beginning of Brexit talks – City A.M. Manufacturers urge Brexit continuity by keeping EU rules for now – Bloomberg 5,500 UK-registered companies rely on “passports” to do business in other European countries – FT (£)