NEW: First Minister of Scotland @NicolaSturgeon tells me at SNP conference “it would be my position “that Northern Ireland backstop on single market being negotiated right now should also apply to Scotland The First Minister tells me she is “not going to stand in the way of NI having a solution to its issues” but that a NIO-only backstop raises “profound concerns on my part” for the competitiveness of Scotland and losing investment to Northern Ireland

The border checks acknowledged by @simoncoveney to @SophyRidgeSky are east-west GB->N Ireland ones on food/farm produce, not North-South ones. not sure how much further that gets us, when senior DUP sources have said they would not accept any increase in what is checked... salient fact here: offer indicated by PM amid her demand for “respect” after Salzburg was such extra NI checks/ regulatory alignment with Ireland could only be contemplated if approved for NI by Stormont - as of last week had been rejected by EU/IE, & DUP said wd veto there

Ministers are well aware of this case, I’ve been told that its significance may be being underplayed, I had been told that the Government would seek to appeal the Court of Session’s reference to the ECJ, but apparently didn’t, or haven’t at the most appropriate opp this week...

https://twitter.com/EUCourtPress/status/1047736350655569920

This is the actual reference from Scotland’s highest court directly to the European Court of Justice asking for a clarification on whether EU Law (ie Article 50) allows for unilateral revocation dropbox.com/s/3sq5dvjh8ruc… via one of the petitioners @JolyonMaugham

Johnson calls the PM’s Chequers proposals
“Not pragmatic not a compromise.. this is not democracy, not what we voted for... it is a constitutional outrage” to cheers... Says to fudge it now and fix it later “is a total fantasy”

PM: “I do believe in Brexit” but says she believes in delivering a Brexit that respects the referendum and protects jobs PM’s key defence of Chequers is that the EU havent bothered to tell her what their objections to it are...

Live on @skynews right now exclusive live half hour interview from the UN... @KayBurley interviews the Foreign Secretary @Jeremy_Hunt now “No possibility of war” with Russia says Foreign Secretary but he did have a frank meeting with Lavrov here at the UN

Post Salzburg big barrier to deal is sorting Irish backstop before/at Oct EU summit in order to confirm Nov. Our @RaynerSkyNews traveling with PM asked her repeatedly about whether see UK plan before Oct, and if involves regulatory border in Irish Sea NB this was yesterday - but PM did not take opportunity to confirm there would be a detailed Irish backstop plan before October, nor elaborate on her Downing st statement hint of a Stormont-approved Irish Sea regulatory check system... quotes...

At 1700 on Sky News - my interview with Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn on Starmer, whether Brexit will happen next March, whether he’s releasing his inner Blairite... NEW: Corbyn accepts Starmer on Remain option in @Skynews interview ... doesn’t dispute that Brexit might not happen in March 2019, though only after Deal falling and GE push

Standing ovation for Starmer after he tells Labour conference that if the PMs deal fails and she refuses a General Election: “options must include campaigning for a Public Vote and nobody is ruling out Remain as an option”.

Feels like a significant moment in UK politics/ Brexit That last half of the sentence was not in the advanced text, though he did say same in interview with Sky News Sunrise this morning...

the numbers below commissioned by ex Conservative funder pondering backing a new Brexit party appear on first notice to be concerning for the potential Tory rebels re attitude to Customs Union among Conservative voters... but... rather interestingly in the tables...

https://twitter.com/Andrew_ComRes/status/1043845226463469568

In these 11 Cons constituencies Comres polled 4110 voters

1942 (47%) votes Remain, 1784 (43%) Leave, 283 (7%) DNV
Or 52:48 Remain excl DNV

But “Referendum Voting Intention” now among the same voters in these seats
2195 (53%) Remain. 1692 (41%) Leave. 73 DK (2%)
Or 56:44 Remain

SKY sources: BMW to shut its Mini factory for a month immediately after Brexit - No Deal contingency /1 Unions have negotiated a week on full pay and three weeks on “banked pay” for the post Brexit-day shutdown which is being attributed to disruption “in the event of a No Deal Brexit”

Sky sources: Governor Carney briefed Cabinet on three different scenarios “worst case” saw No Deal recession, renewed sterling slump and house prices falling by a third ... Source 1: “not a prediction a worst case scenario” and although it “seemed quite high” was received respectfully by ministers

NEW/ Exclusive:
Sky News obtains Government letter to EU27 member states acknowledging No Deal risks to travel continuity, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling seeking side deals on aviation and roads news.sky.com/story/revealed… /1 Grayling letter asks individual EU member states Transport ministers for bilateral agreements to authorise air carriers “in the interests of public safety”

NEW:
Jaguar Land Rover boss Ralph Speth, at the same event as the PM tells Sky News that no Deal Brexit could hit its profits by £1.2bn... said he is “very very concerned” by the prospect of cross channel blockages on supply chains “stopping the production lines” Indeed speaking from the same lectern just before the PM the Jaguar Land Rover boss Speth:
“Brexit is due to happen on march 29th next year. Currently I do not even know if any of our manufacturing facilities in the uk will be able to function on the 30th...”/2

Barnier transcript out - Chequers trade proposal “not workable” he told MPs on Monday [not dead or dead in the water as previously suggested], “just not true” though that he “rejected White Paper outright” Deal has to be done by November Barnier told MPs, but “I am very concerned about Ireland” - says regulatory checks in Irish Sea can be done while respecting UK constitutional order and indeed are “already carried out” - he’s talking about cows

The Civil Contingencies Secretariat - the Government’s emergency planning department created in 2001 for floods/ terror/ foot & mouth - has been invoked for No Deal planning “Operation Yellowhammer” acc to document snapped by Steve Back @PoliticalPics /2 The Civil Contingencies Secratariat held a two day meeting last week to discuss plans/ assumptions - and then there was a further meeting this week on how to mitigate impacts of No Deal Brexit

Stephen Kinnock says that Barnier told him and the Brexit committee re Chequers “Les propositions sont mort” - the proposals are dead...

Transcript coming soon from that meeting. I suppose [French GCSE 1992] it would be “sont morts”?

Raab: “our approach acknowledges there are some risks in a No Deal scenario” but can mitigate them, and there are opportunities Starmer: “impossible to see the Chequers Deal commanding a majority” when vote is likely...

letter from Health Secretary /Government telling pharmaceutical companies to stockpile “six weeks supply of medicines” for Brexit Day in seven months’ time as No Deal contingency... arrangements for air freighting medical isotopes also being made.... @pkelso “Local stockpiling is not necessary” writes in bold the health secretary Matt Hancock, warning that doctors, hospitals and pharmacists that do so will be investigated...

the biggie: basically businesses that import and export from EU advised to buy software, invest in warehousing, customs processing, renegotiate commercial contracts & “consider their role in EU supply chains” when WTO most favoured nation tariffs apply gov.uk/government/pub… This is the Government officially advising businesses that World Trade Organisation tariffs “would apply” on trade with biggest trade partner - and rules of origin too and that they should consider the “impact” on their role in EU supply chains..

Raab announces that UK will waive checks on imports of medicines from EU if there’s a No Deal, but can’t guarantee EU will reciprocate... second biggest U.K. drug maker Astra Zeneca has already spent £30m duplicating its Manchester facility in Sweden for purposes of EU export Essentially under this proposal all pharma imports into U.K. will be subject to EU rules only, with no U.K. say on changes, certification etc - in return Government hopes EU reciprocates, but can’t guarantee, certainly won’t if UK diverges from EU rules over which has no say