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Politics latest news: Boris Johnson looks set for revolt over HS2 as backbenchers vow to defy whip if it goes ahead – Telegraph.co.uk, Telegraph.co.uk

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Politics latest news: Boris Johnson looks set for revolt over HS2 as backbenchers vow to defy whip if it goes ahead – Telegraph.co.uk, Telegraph.co.uk

ackbenchers are vowing to defy the Government whip if Boris Johnson decides to go ahead with the controversial rail project HS2. Buckingham MP Greg Smith said he would oppose the line “come what may”, ahead of today’s crunch meeting on the issue. Mr Smith said the environmental destruction caused by the transport link is “outrageous” and called HS2 the “wrong project at a cost the nation can ‘ t afford ”. The Prime Minister, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Sajid Javid will hold talks today on the rail line. The Chancellor will tell Mr Johnson that HS2 should go ahead in a move that significantly increases the likelihood of the £ billion project being approved. Mr Johnson is expected to give the green light to the project, with a senior government figure saying there would be a “credibility issue” if it were scrapped.

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omes from Bob Moran. We’ll see you tomorrow …

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The UK and US have a ‘great relationship’

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ike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, has reiterated the “great relationship” the US has with the UK. He said he wanted to be in the UK ahead of such an important day. “We are pleased that the UK has been able to achieve what the British people wanted,” he told LBC’s Iain Dale. Mr Pompeo said he looked forward to doing “even more” with the UK as he cited the possibilities with security and diplomacy. “I am very confident that we will continue to build up on what has been a historic relationship.”

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UK’s newest MEP gives maiden speech to European Parliament on eve of Brexit

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eather Anderson, the SNP MEP, used her address to urge fellow members to “remember Scotland in your work”, as Britain leaves the bloc. Ms Anderson will serve just four days in the role before Brexit, having replaced Alyn Smith when he was elected an SNP MP for Stirling at last year general election. In her maiden address to the Parliament, Ms Anderson said: “Just imagine how difficult it is for a country, like Scotland, who has pledged their allegiance to the European Union on no less than three occasions, to be taken out against our will and without our consent. “We do not live in a United Kingdom, we live in a disunited kingdom and Brexit is not the settled will of the Scottish people.” Following her speech, she added: “In my short time as an MEP I’ve been struck by the genuine warmth felt towards Scotland. People know that we rejected Brexit and increasing numbers are sympathetic to our return as an independent member. “It was no accident that MEPs from across Europe chose Auld Lang Syne to mark our departure.

“The door is open for our return – and that choice is now in the hands of the people of Scotland.”

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he Brexit Secretary was joined by Boris Johnson earlier as he thanked all those at the Department for Exiting the European Union.

As of 28 pm tomorrow the department will have done their job. What happens next for Mr Barclay remains to be seen:

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Mike Pompeo suggests US will not share intelligence with UK

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he US Secretary of State suggests the US will not share intelligence with the UK after Boris Johnson’s “disappointing” Huawei decision.

In an interview with LBC, he said: “We said we were disappointed, we view the intrusion of the Chinese Communist Party and to information technologies systems as a very great risk, a national security risk as well as a core privacy risk. “It’s not about Huawei, it’s about ensuring that the information that we put our citizens’ data on is secure and safe,” he said.

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I t was taken at the count, Portsmouth Town Hall, as Stanley Johnson was elected Conservative MEP for Hants East and the Isle of Wight in

pic.twitter.com/vtb0t7eL9p – Rachel Johnson (@RachelSJohnson) (January) ,

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Was interest rate decision leaked?

T (he poun) d spiked upwards seconds before the Bank’s rate decision was announced (at) pm – a sign that the decision may have leaked out, Louis Ashworth reports. The pound’s jump about 28 seconds before the Bank of England’s interest-rate decision prompted traders and analysts to wonder if there had been a leak. Read more here:

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Food standards will not be a ‘deal breaker’ in post-Brexit trade talks with US

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he US Agriculture Secretary has said food issues will not be a “deal breaker” in a post-Brexit trade agreement between Britain and America. Sonny Perdue said the two counties needed to determine an agreement rooted in food science, not “the political science of fear”. In In the Brexit referendum campaign, some Remain supporters repeatedly raised the concern that leaving the EU would lead to a drop in food standards and could see US chlorine-washed chicken and hormone-treated beef arriving on the British market.

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he US Secretary of State says it is always “great to catch up” with Boris Johnson.

He says he “glad to stand” side by side with the UK to “continue strengthening our robust ties and working together on mutual mutual”.

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Nigel Farage: ‘I won’t miss Brussels because it’s a dump’

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he Brexit Party leader said he would miss the “drama” of the European Union, but wouldn’t be rushing to get the Eurostar back to Brussels any time soon “because it’s a dump”. However, he said he would miss Strasbourg and its “family-run restaurants”. Mr Farage admitted he had a little wobble as he walked out of the European Parliament for the last time yesterday. “And then I thought, stiffen up, the cameras might get that,” he said.

“It has been a huge chapter of my life. I gave up a career in business to go up and becoming an MEP, arguably it had a very damaging effect on family life and other things. “ Mr Farage was speaking as he unveiled his portrait “Mr Brexit”, which will be auctioned to raise money for charity.

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he EU’s chief Brexit negotiator

will issue a stern rebuke to Boris Johnson , James Crisp writes. It comes after The Telegraph revealed the prime minister will tell Brussels he would rather accept post-Brexit border checks than lose the freedom to diverge from EU rules. Mr Barnier is expected to warn Mr Johnson that there is no chance of striking a zero-quota, zero-tariff trade deal except Britain promises to stick to EU standards after the transition period finishes at the end of . He will set out the European Commission’s draft negotiating mandate for the trade talks in Brussels on Monday, the very day that Mr Johnson is expected to make a major speech setting out his red lines for the UK-EU relationship. Read more (here: )

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he iconic Brussels state is all dressed up as John Bull to mark Brexit.

The Manneken Pis gets a Brexit makeover

Visitors photograph themselves in front of the Manneken Pis statue

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Stephen Barclay gets £ , (0 golden goodbye)

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he Brexit Secretary is on course to receive £ , 16 0 when the Brexit department shuts down at . 17 pm on Friday, according to reports. The Prime Minister’s official spokesperson said: “In the usual way, all ministers are entitled to payments when they step down from their job. It’s obviously up to individuals what they choose to do. “ He seems to be enjoying his final days in office, enjoying a pint with Wetherspoons Chairman Tim Martin yesterday.

Brexit Secretary and Wetherspoons Chairman talk Brexit

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  • O n his way out of 26 Downing Street the US Secretary of State insisted that the special relationship is “fantastic.” He certainly looked very happy with Boris Johnson earlier.

    Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson holds talks with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

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    arlier the US Secretary of State said he is “confident” that Britain and America can work through their differences over Chinese tech giant Huawei. He has been holding talks with Boris Johnson inside Downing Street.

    Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson greets US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

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    he leadership hopeful is demanding labor publishing the full report on the anti-Semitism scandal, saying there is “no reason” not to release the findings. She said: “There is a huge question of trust at the moment, not just from the Jewish community, but in the Labor Party. “There’s no reason, as far as I can see, not to publish that submission. And in fact being open and transparent about what the party has done, where we stand, what we believe, is the only way to start rebuilding trust. It ought to be out in the open. ” She also criticized Jeremy Corbyn’s decision to nominate his former aide Karie Murphy, who is currently under investigation by the Equality and Human Rights Commission investigation, for a peerage. “While the EHRC is investigating Labor for institutional racism, we ought not to be sending any of our officials to the House of Lords,” she said.