Sign up here to receive the daily news briefing in your inbox every morning with exclusive insight from the BrexitCentral team Hilary Benn’s Brexit Committee demands Norway-style deal with the EU… The Brexit committee of MPs wants Theresa May to consider keeping the UK in the European Economic Area (EEA) or join the European Free Trade Association (EFTA)… But the MPs’ proposal is likely to be rejected by the Government, since Brexit Secretary David Davis has previously ruled out both options, calling them “in many ways, the worst of all outcomes”. The EEA/EFTA recommendation comes in the latest controversial report by the 21-member Brexit committee of MPs, chaired by the former Labour Cabinet minister Hilary Benn. And for the second time in less than three weeks, Mr Benn has faced a mutiny by Brexit-supporting MPs on his committee, led by Conservative backbencher Jacob Rees-Mogg… Mr Rees-Mogg declared: “The committee’s report is another effort by Remainers to reverse the result. The High Priests of Remain on the select committee voted to thwart Brexit by stealth. This serves no useful purpose as select committees’ reports are only influential if they are unanimous, dividing on Leave-Remain lines simply re-fights the referendum.” – Sky News MPs urge free trade area after Brexit – but committee is split – BBC News Anger as Remainer MPs insist that Britain should stay permanently shackled to the EU even after Brexit – Daily Mail Remainer MPs’ report is shocking attempt to reverse EU exit, blasts Rees-Mogg – Express Remainer MPs set out 15 key Brexit tests – FT (£) Jacob Rees-Mogg to host fortnightly radio phone-in on LBC – Guardian …as Merkel ally claims Norwegian MPs have told Brussels: ‘We don’t want Brexit Britain to have better deal with EU than us’ Elmar Brok, a senior German MEP, said Norwegian MPs have warned him that Brussels must not “give the same treatment or better than we have” to the UK if it does not meet the same obligations, such as following EU rules… Norway is not an EU member state but pays millions into the European budget each year and follows EU regulations – without having a say in their drafting – in exchange for market access. A Norwegian government spokesman strongly denied the suggestion that it would oppose a UK-EU deal that was superior to Norway’s arrangements. “We have repeatedly denied this as falsehood,” they said. “On the contrary: It is of direct interest to Norway that the EU and the UK succeed in negotiating an orderly UK withdrawal from the EU and a framework for their future relationship.” The spokesman added that Norwegian MPs’ views, as expressed in the meeting with Mr Brok, did not reflect government policy. – Telegraph (£) France secretly lobbies ECB to instruct banks to prepare for ‘no deal’ in attempt to poach business from UK French officials have lobbied the EU into declaring that banks should prepare for a no deal Brexit. City sources said that French lobbyists had influenced the European Central Bank, saying they should implement so-called ‘hard Brexit plans’ now. Bankers and politicians in France have made no secret of their wish to steal our top financial services trade after we leave the EU… One senior city source told the paper that there was widespread irritation at a “co-ordinated lobbying campaign” by France to try and damage London. They said: “Their first priority is to repatriate 30 years’ worth of losses in wholesale banking that migrated from Paris to London after the Big Bang. They are going about it in an extraordinarily integrated manner. From politicians, to regulators, to the French civil servants operating in the Commission to their representatives on trade bodies are doing everything they can to advance this agenda.” – The Sun Theresa May to visit Denmark and Sweden The U.K. prime minister will hold talks with her Danish and Swedish counterparts on Monday during a one-day Scandinavian trip. A spokesman for Theresa May said she would meet Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven to discuss progress toward a Brexit deal. He told reporters that the talks would be on a “range of issues,” including the threat Russia poses to international security, bilateral cooperation in areas such as security and defence, and trade and investment. – Politico UK factories sustain growth after entering ‘softer’ phase IHS Markit said its monthly Purchasing Managers Index was at 55.1, up from 55 in February and better than economists had forecast. The figure is also encouraging given the disruption from the “Beast from the East” storm during the month… IHS Markit said the average PMI reading in the first quarter was the weakest in a year and is consistent with manufacturing growth of about 0.5 percent… “Manufacturing has entered a softer growth phase,” said Rob Dobson, director at IHS Markit. “They key question is whether growth can now be sustained, albeit at a lower level, in the coming months. On that front the news is generally positive.” – Bloomberg UK pledges to meet tough EU recycling targets The UK is set to aim to meet the EU’s tough new recycling targets which expect member states to recycle 65 per cent of household waste by 2030. This is up from its current aim of 50 per cent by 2020 – and significantly higher than the UK’s current recycling rate. It was initially unclear whether the UK would be forced to adhere to these targets given its imminent exit from the EU, but it now appears that the Government is planning to support the package, with ministers pledging to support the new targets. – Telegraph (£) Asa Bennett: Have Remainers forgotten, as they pine for David Miliband, how useless he was in the referendum? No matter how hard Remainers try, the British people remain unconvinced by the idea of having a second referendum – their preferred method to derail Britain’s departure from the European Union. The latest poll by ComRes found that 65 per cent of those surveyed felt that “the result of the 2016 Referendum should be respected and the country needs to move on”. The strength of that view may seem decisive, but it hasn’t stopped Chuka Umunna from bringing together several pro-EU groups behind the aim of getting for another vote on Brexit… David Miliband has come up yet again. Rachel Sylvester suggests in today’s Times that the former Foreign Secretary could be the man to take on the “Brexit bullies”. “David is still attracted to Britain,” a ‘friend’ of his tells her. But would Britain be attracted to David? …If the Remain campaign had confidence in Miliband senior, he would have been sent around the country – like Vote Leave did with Boris Johnson – to woo voters… Instead, he flew in to make his lofty thoughts known to the electorate before zipping back to New York. – Asa Bennett for the Telegraph (£) Julian Harris: A truly global Britain would not meddle with the market A Downing Street spokesperson insisted yesterday that it is “standard process” to wait an extra fortnight until it reveals which company will make Britain’s post-Brexit blue passports, following a highly politicised objection from London-listed De La Rue… In this newspaper’s view, there is absolutely no reason to favour a British company when it comes to the production of passports. Moreover, there seems nothing wrong with one British company, Melrose, taking over another, GKN. While politicians grapple to find any aspect of the deal that could fall under “national security” concerns, the objections echoing around Westminster sound like nothing more than jingoism or managerialist socialism… If May and her colleagues truly want to deliver a “global Britain”, they must resist the temptation to take a heavy-handed approach for the sake of short-term political gain. – Julian Harris for City A.M. Final decision on post-Brexit passport contract is delayed – Guardian British firm De La Rue given two weeks to challenge decision to award contract to make iconic blue passports to Franco-Dutch company – The Sun Firm gets more time to appeal UK passport decision – Politico Anna Isaac: Whitehall ‘chaos’ puts the UK’s Brexit trade strategy in doubt Developing a new trade strategy and implementing it in such a short period will demand close collaboration across government. The work of the two Brexit departments, international trade (DIT) and exiting the EU (Dexeu), will determine the future of trade with the EU. The terms of that deal may well decide the ease with which other, non-EU deals can be struck. However, several independent sources sum up the relationship between the two departments as “a wall”. Major work is also required from the departments for business, energy and industrial strategy (BEIS), and environment, food and rural affairs (Defra). Relations between those and DIT and Dexeu are little better… Dexeu is not well liked by other departments within Whitehall, it seems. “There’s a sense that Dexeu’s really busy and important.”… This infighting is attributed to one cause: Cabinet divisions which are feeding into and exacerbating departmental silos. It was Defra which leaked concerns about chlorinated chicken which have plagued every interview Trade Secretary Liam Fox has given, immediately before meetings with US trade counterparts, the Daily Telegraph understands. – Anna Isaac for the Telegraph Simon Clarke: A greener City of London will outpace Paris and Frankfurt after Brexit The UK is a green leader, but we’re in danger of being caught by the likes of Paris and Frankfurt, who recognise that the most capital-intensive transition in human history will benefit the owners and organisers of capital. Earlier this year, the EU published a new green finance plan to support the bloc’s climate and sustainable development agenda. Now Brussels may argue it’s a leader – but as with the UK’s emissions, which are falling faster than any other G7 country, we can do so much better. The Government has an opportunity to ‘green’ finance globally in a way that no other government can. London is the most international financial centre on the planet: what happens in the City resonates across the globe and sets standards for others to follow. – Simon Clarke MP for ConservativeHome Comment in Brief There are many reshoring reasons to believe in Brexit – Brian Monteith for City A.M. Can labour scarcity drive productivity? – Ian Stewart for Reaction Emmanuel Macron might just have it in him to face down France’s trade unions – Times leader (£) News in Brief Barnier accused of delaying final Brexit deal to stay in the limelight and ‘get new top job’ – Express EasyJet boss: No, planes won’t be grounded after Brexit – Guido Fawkes Sir Vince Cable hails Lib Dems as ‘secret phenomenon in British politics’ – Express Brexit will be ‘disastrous’ for disadvantaged groups unless ministers takes urgent action, Work and Pensions Committee claims – Independent US moves to bolster European defences against the Kremlin – The Times (£) Macron defiant as strikes grip France – The Times (£)