Brexit live: Osborne tries to calm markets as Labour coup continues

signordal

9.08am BST

Could international allegiances between cities be an answer to the current chaos

Following the referendum result, London’s mayor Sadiq Khan and Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo this morning issued a joint pledge for the two cities to work closer together as a counterweight to nationalism. They said Paris and London are part of “just a handful of truly global cities” and argued that cities “can act as a powerful counterweight to the lethargy of nation states and to the influence of industrial lobbies.”

9.07am BST

The Labour party’s leaders in the House of Lords are set to refuse to attend meetings of Jeremy Corbyn’s shadow cabinet, the Press Association reports.

Baroness Smith of Basildon, the Labour leader in the Lords, and Lord Bassam, the chief whip, are both in post because of elections within the ranks of the party’s peers – rather than being appointed by Corbyn.

9.04am BST

The Scottish secretary, David Mundell, on BBC Radio Scotland’s GMS, repeatedly sidestepped the question about the transfer of powers from Westminster to Holyrood necessary to hold a second independence referendum.

I believe that the arguments for Scotland being part of the UK are as compelling now as in 2014.

9.01am BST

The Welsh government’s cabinet is meeting this morning to discuss the implications of the EU referendum vote for Wales.

Ahead of the meeting, the first minister and Labour leader in Wales, Carwyn Jones, said it was one of the most important since devolution. He said:

We will look at an initial evaluation of the potential consequences of this result for Wales, and agree how we will take the priorities forward in the national interest.

On Friday, I set out my priorities for action, including even closer working with Welsh business to protect jobs, renewed intergovernmental engagement and a commitment to protect and maintain EU funding for Wales for as long as possible.

8.57am BST

Tom Watson, the Labour deputy leader, is due to meet Jeremy Corbyn for talks later today. Watson hinted yesterday that he will tell Corbyn it is time to go, but Corbyn’s allies are saying that the leader will say he is carrying on. This is from Sky’s Tamara Cohen.

Corbyn source: Jeremy Corbyn will tell Tom Watson he’s appointed a new shadow cabinet and will continue to appoint them throughout the day

8.55am BST

Labour MP Jess Phillips has resigned as a parliamentary private secretary to the shadow education team.

Seems slightly highfalutin to resign as I was just the PPS in the Education Team but it was Lucy who asked me, she is gone. So am I.

8.52am BST

Good morning. I’m Andrew Sparrow, taking over from Claire and Matthew.

Lord Heseltine, the former Conservative deputy prime minister, is on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme now. He says that before the referendum, Nigel Farage, the Ukip leader, said a close result could justify a second referendum. Farage was talking about a narrow remain win, but Heseltine says he thinks the same argument applies in the light of the narrow leave win. He says he will be signing the petition for a second referendum.

8.44am BST

Labour continues to haemorrhage frontbench spokesmen and women.

Yvonne Fovargue, the Shadow Business Minister, has resigned.
Steve Reed, Trickett’s deputy at DCLG, has gone too.

8.37am BST

We’re struggling to keep up with the resignations from the junior ranks of Labour’s team. At least two more parliamentary private secretaries resigned as Corbyn announced a new shadow cabinet.

Neil Coyle resigns as Labour PPS on Sky News https://t.co/5xUCH7iIVh

Resignation of Labour justice PPS Chris Matheson MP significant: On the left of the party and former Unite official.

8.34am BST

It looks like Osborne has managed to calm the markets, a bit. The FTSE 100 is down just 20 points right now (-0.37%).

There’s more here on our business live blog.

8.32am BST

Jeremy Corbyn has replaced 10 of the shadow ministers who resigned (or were sacked in Hilary Benn’s case).

8.25am BST

Back to Osborne. Here’s the full text of his response to questions about whether there will an emergency Brexit budget as he had threatened.

There will have to be action to deal with the impact on the public finances, but of course it is perfectly sensible to wait until we have a new prime minister. Of course, the economy is going to adjust, and there will be an impact on the public finances, that’s what I said before the referendum, I don’t resile from anything I said before the referendum. And I said there would have to be action, actually as it happens in the autumn, to address that. I think it is perfectly sensible to wait until we have new prime minister before we address that.

8.12am BST

The shadow housing housing minister, Roberta Blackman-Woods, is threatening to resign if Corbyn doesn’t step down.

“It is time for another leadership election. It is time for him to go”, she told BBC Newcastle.

3/3 The City of Durham MP added that she will resign from the frontbench today if Mr Corbyn does not step down as leader.

8.08am BST

Ian Murray, until yesterday the shadow Scottish secretary, has been explaining his resignation from Jeremy Corbyn’s cabinet on BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme.

8.06am BST

Another few minutes goes by and Corbyn is hit by another resignation in his junior ranks. This time it’s Stephen Kinnock as parliamentary private secretary to Angela Eagle.

It is with regret that this morning I have resigned as a PPS http://pic.twitter.com/0KFG1bhRaD

7.57am BST

There have further resignations in the junior levels of Labour’s frontbench team.

Toby Perkins has resigned as shadow armed forces minister, saying that the Labour party “needs a change at the top”.

#Breaking Toby Perkins resigns as shadow armed forces minister, saying Labour “needs a change at the top” http://pic.twitter.com/D7LBys35pX

7.53am BST

Osborne closed his statement by signalling that he intends to play an “active part” in the debate about Britain’s role in Europe after the referendum. He also suggested he’ll make a statement on whether he plans to run for PM in the coming days.

He said:

The third and final challenge I spoke of, was that of ensuring, that Britain was able to agree a long-term economic relationship with the rest of the Europe, that provided the best possible terms of trade in goods and services. Together my colleagues in the government in the Conservative party and in parliament, will have to determine what those terms should be, and will have to negotiate with our European friends and allies to agree them. I intend to play an active part in that debate, for I want this great trading nation of ours to put in place the strongest possible economic links with our European neighbours …

I do not want Britain to turn its back on Europe or on the rest of the world. We must bring unity of spirit and purpose and condemn hatred and division wherever we see it. Britain is an open and tolerant country and I will fight with everything have to keep it so. Today I am completely focused on the task in hand as chancellor of the exchequer to bring stability and reassurance. There have been questions about the future of the Conservative party and I will address my role within that in the coming days. The British people have given us their instructions, there is much to do to make it work. We start from a position of hard-won strength, and whatever the undoubted challenges my colleagues and I are determined to do the best for Britain.

7.40am BST

The general message from Osborne’s statement was that he warned there would be problems, but by playing for time we can cope.

As a result of Thursday’s decision, some firms are continuing to pause their decision to invest or to hire people. As I said before the referendum this will have an impact on the economy and the public finances, and there will need to be action to address that. Given the delay in triggering article 50 and the prime minister’s decision to hand over to a successor, it is sensible, that decisions on what that action should consist of, wait for the OBR [Office for Budget Responsibility] to assess the economy in the autumn, and for the new prime minister to be in place. But no one should doubt our resolve to maintain the fiscal stability we have delivered for this country. The British economy is fundamentally strong, we are highly competitive and we are open for business.

7.36am BST

The pound has recovered some of its early losses following Osborne’s statement, but is still down against the US dollar. It is now trading around $1.345, a fall of 1.7% this morning.

Sterling had fallen to $1.339 before the chancellor spoke, down from $1.36 on Friday night.

7.30am BST

Here’s some instant reaction to Osborne’s statement:

Shorter Osborne: look I said this was going to hurt, I was right. Financial system is sound but this is still going to hurt.

Osborne’s upbeat 7am statement one of his better performances: first officer arrives on bridge of SS Titanic while Boris pleads with iceberg

My translation of Osborne’s statement: “I’m off to be Foreign Secretary. One of my colleagues who backed Leave can have my job. Good luck.”

7.27am BST

Osborne: the fundamentals are strong, we have dealt with the immediate impact because of the contingency plan. Britain is open for business. And with that he’s back off to work.

7.25am BST

Osborne: I said there would have to be action to adjust, in the autumn as it happens.

Q: Are we at the start of a recession? I made predictions and warnings, but all will require adjustment. I will make very hard to mitigate the impact.

7.22am BST

Q: An emergency budget?

I’ve got an important job to do. I respect the decision of the referendum. The result will have an impact on public finances, but we will have to wait until we have a new prime minister.

7.20am BST

Third challenge:

Long-term trading relationship with European neighbours: I am completely focused on bring stability and certainty. We start from a position of hard-won strength.

7.19am BST

Second challenge:

Uncertainty: we should only trigger article 50 when a plan is in place. Some firms are pausing their decisions to invest and hire people. The delay in triggering article 50 will help.

7.17am BST

Osborne said there are three challenges:

Volatility: contingency plans have been put in place. “Swap lines” have been put in place. Mark Carney’s statement on Friday was part of the plan. The governor and I have been in regular touch or the weekend.

7.14am BST

Thank goodness we fixed the roof, while we could, Osborne said. Leaving the EU was not the outcome that I wanted or campaigned for, but now that democracy has spoken we must act on that result. I will fully respect that result.

The economy will have to adjust.

7.13am BST

“Britain is ready to confront whatever the future holds for us,” Osborne insists.

7.05am BST

The chancellor is about to stand up at the Treasury in London in his attempt to reassure the markets.

7.04am BST

Japan’s stock market put on a show of resilience, writes Justin McCurry from Tokyo:

The Nikkei 225 rose more than 2% by early afternoon as prime minister Shinzo Abe held an emergency meeting early on Monday and instructed the Bank of Japan to do all it could to stabilise financial markets.

6.45am BST

You can follow George Osborne’s speech – due to start in about 15 minutes’ time – here, of course, but also keep an eye on tweets from our political editor, Heather Stewart, who’s at the Treasury this morning:

On my way to Treasury to hear reassuring words from George Osborne, the man who warned us Brexit would unleash economic catastrophe.

6.27am BST

Happy Monday and with the aftermath of last week’s vote to leave the EU showing no signs of tiring, welcome to another day of Brexit liveblogging.

The morning briefing rounds up what you need to know to start the day, before the live blog takes you through it all happening, along with all the extras we didn’t expect. Do come and chat in the comments below or find me on Twitter @Claire_Phipps.

The chancellor will make a statement to provide reassurance about financial and economic stability in light of the referendum result and the actions that he and the rest of the government will be taking to protect the national interest over the coming period.

A survey by the Institute of Directors (IoD), which found that the majority of businesses believed Brexit was bad for them, comes amid fears that investors will wipe billions more pounds off share values on Monday morning, and signs that the pound, which hit a 30-year low on Friday, was coming under further pressure from trading in Asia. Sterling was down more than 1% as the Asian markets opened late on Sunday.

The IoD said a quarter of the members polled in a survey were putting hiring plans on hold, while 5% said they were set to make workers redundant. Nearly two-thirds of those polled said the outcome of the referendum was negative for their business. One in five respondents, out of a poll of more than 1,000 business leaders, were considering moving some of their operations outside of the UK.

No he hasn’t made any decisions at all – he has been totally focused over the last 72 hours on talking to counterparts and investors across the world to try to ensure a period of stability.

They are our neighbours, brothers and sisters who did what they passionately believe was right … We who are part of this narrow majority must do everything we can to reassure the remainers. We must reach out, we must heal, we must build bridges – because it is clear that some have feelings of dismay, and of loss, and confusion.

The nation needs an effective opposition, particularly as the current leadership of the country is so lamentable. It’s very clear to me that we are heading for an early general election and the Labour party must be ready to form a government. There’s much work to do.

It was clear last summer that Jeremy was only ever partially interested in keeping Britain in Europe and an honourable leader would bear the responsibility for the failure to persuade Labour voters to vote remain.

I was elected by hundreds of thousands of Labour party members and supporters with an overwhelming mandate for a different kind of politics.

I regret there have been resignations today from my shadow cabinet. But I am not going to betray the trust of those who voted for me – or the millions of supporters across the country who need Labour to represent them. Those who want to change Labour’s leadership will have to stand in a democratic election, in which I will be a candidate.

I never said that during the course of the election … What we actually said was a significant amount of it would go to the NHS. It’s essentially down to the government, but I believe that is what was pledged and that’s what should happen. There was talk about it going to the NHS, but there are other bits and pieces like agriculture, which is part of the process. That is the divide up. It was never the total.

Mr Cameron has said nothing since Friday morning. George Osborne, the chancellor of the exchequer, has been silent … The prime minister’s loyalist allies in Westminster and in the media are largely mute.

Apart from ashen-faced, mumbled statements from the Vote Leave headquarters on Friday, Boris Johnson and Michael Gove have also ducked the limelight … Neither seems to have the foggiest as to what should happen next. Today Mr Gove’s wife committed to Facebook the hope that ‘clever people’ might offer to ‘lend their advice and expertise’. And Mr Johnson’s sister, Rachel, tweeted: ‘Everyone keeps saying “we are where we are” but nobody seems to have the slightest clue where that is.’

Could the UK negotiate ‘associate status’, outside the EU but with devolved powers for Scotland to maintain free movement and other EU benefits? … The ‘associate’ option, which would be decried as a sell out by hardline Brexiters, would see the future prime minister try to keep Britain in the EU single market, accepting large tracts of EU law, but with autonomy over agriculture, fishing and trade deals …

[Nicola] Sturgeon is key to making this happen. If she can go back to Edinburgh claiming victory – protecting Scotland’s access to the single market and getting back fishing rights – the UK could be saved. But the UK as a whole would lose its seat at the EU table and be firmly more Out than In. It would be powerless, but sovereign. It is a hard sell in the long term.

I don’t agree that his time as leader has been a disaster – leave would have won the referendum regardless. It would always have turned the debate into a conversation about immigration and hammered out its racist cant, whoever opposed it. A more centrist Labour leader would have made more concessions – offered bogus and unworkable migrant caps – but the more strident voice would still have won.

Corbyn has been a one-man Occupy movement, squatting in the office of Labour leader on behalf of the people (of whom I was one) who felt the party’s high command was lifeless and intellectually spent. The point has been made, and the apparatus now has to be put to better use.

“It sounds like I’m making that up” – @FaisalIslam told the Leave campaign did not have a post #Brexit plan https://t.co/VY6ATlAowP

Continue reading…

Politics blog | The Guardian http://ift.tt/293o03v

Leave a comment