Farage Seeks Brexit Election Pact with Tories

It's a big 'no' to a non-aggression pact with the Brexit party from Boris Johnson, who has dismissed any idea of an election alliance with the Brexit Party.

That's after Nigel Farage offered him an ultimatum: scrap your EU withdrawal deal and team up with us - or the Brexit party will fight the Conservatives in every seat.

But now the Tories have explicitly ruled that out.

Could the Leave vote be split?

Brexit: Tearing the Tories Apart?

Ken Clarke and Iain Duncan Smith, two of the most senior, long standing members of the Tory Party, discuss the state of the Conservatives.

Clarke had the whip withdrawn in September after he voted against the government.

A passionate opponent of Brexit and a life-long Europhile Clarke discusses how Brexit and Europe is eating away at his party with his long-standing colleague and former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith - a vocal proponent of leaving the EU.

'Good Riddance': New Yorkers on Trump's Declaration He's a Floridian

THE GUARDIAN: President’s decision to change his residency, thereby avoiding New York state and city taxes, was met with approval, scorn and indifference

Donald Trump’s decision to declare himself a resident of Florida instead of his native New York, thereby avoiding New York’s high rates of state and city taxes, was greeted by the public in the Big Apple with opinions ranging from anarchy-tinged approval to envy, scorn and indifference.

“Why should I care?” offered New Yorker Mike Mitchell, a construction engineer, as he walked the sunny streets of lower Manhattan in a chilly breeze, a stone’s throw from the Statue of Liberty on Friday morning. » | Edward Helmore in New York | Friday, November 1, 2019

Rationing In Britain

An American commentator looks at the effects of rationing on the people of England in 1944. The film presents a 'typical' family of 4 (housewife, engine-driver husband, factory-working daughter, schoolboy son) to illustrate the basic rationing system, the workings of 'point' systems and other restrictions, and the difficulties the average family faced when eating 'on the ration'.

Trump Criticises Corbyn as Labour Launches Election Campaign | Brexit

Far from staying out of other countries' politics, President Trump weighed into the UK's 2019 election campaign today declaring that Jeremy Corbyn would be 'so bad' for the country - and urging Nigel Farage and Boris Johnson to get together as an 'unstoppable force'.

But he also criticised Mr Johnson's Brexit deal, suggesting the US couldn't make a trade agreement with the UK. All this on the very day Britain was supposed to be coming out of the EU.

Farah Pahlavi - Das Leben einer Kaiserin (2015)

Neuwahl im Dezember: Großbritannien ist nicht zu beneiden

Drei Premierminister in drei Jahren, der Brexit spaltet Land und Parlament. F.A.Z.-Ressortleiter Außenpolitik Klaus-Dieter Frankenberger hofft auf Klarheit nach den Neuwahlen – und schätzt den Streit um den Wahltermin im Dezember nicht als banal ein. © F.A.Z.

Tactical Voting Could Deliver Remain Victory in Election – Study

THE GUARDIAN: Conservatives could be denied majority if one in three remain supporters switch votes

Tactical voting could swing a victory for pro-remain parties in the December election, new research suggests.

Boris Johnson would fail to get a majority if one in three pro-remain voters in England and Wales switched their vote, the campaign group Best for Britain said.

In this scenario, the Conservatives would win 309 seats, Labour 233, the Liberal Democrats 34, Plaid Cymru four and the Greens one. When the Scottish National party, Democratic Unionist party and the Commons Speaker are factored in, this would give pro-remain parties a majority of four.

Best for Britain has launched GetVoting.org to give tactical voting advice based on postcode. Naomi Smith, the organisation’s chief executive, said: “If we vote tactically we can stop a Boris Johnson majority and return a parliament that much more accurately reflects the state of the country’s views on the issue of Europe, which is now a majority pro-European country and we need a majority pro-European parliament. » | Kate Proctor | Wednesday, October 30, 2019

Tactical voting: GetVoting.org »

Michel Barnier Tells UK: Ignore EU Regulatory Standards at Your Peril

THE GUARDIAN: Brexit negotiator links free-trade deal to workers’ rights and environmental protection

British companies risk trade barriers to the European Union if a future government seeks to abandon EU standards on workers’ rights and environmental protection, Michel Barnier has signalled.

In an interview with the Guardian and seven other European newspapers, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said any British government would face a “proportional” response if it sought to roll back core social, environmental and consumer standards.

The EU and UK have agreed to negotiate a free-trade agreement as part of Boris Johnson’s revamped Brexit deal, but Barnier stressed that tariff and quota-free access to the EU were linked to maintaining regulatory standards. “Access to our markets will be proportional to the commitments taken to the common rules,” he said. “The agreement we are ready to discuss is zero tariffs, zero quotas, zero dumping.” » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Tuesday, October 29, 2019

Liban : Saad Hariri, le premier ministre du Liban, annonce sa démission au treizième jour de la contestation

LE MONDE: Cette décision n’implique pas des élections anticipées. Le président de la République peut désigner une autre personnalité sunnite pour constituer un nouveau gouvernement.

Le premier ministre libanais, Saad Hariri, a annoncé mardi 29 octobre qu’il allait présenter la démission de son gouvernement, au 13e jour d’un soulèvement populaire marqué par de nouveaux heurts dans les rues de Beyrouth.

Son intervention a été accueillie par les vivats de la foule qui l’écoutait en direct dans plusieurs lieux de rassemblement, avant que ne retentisse l’hymne national – An-nasid al-wataniyy al-lubnani – repris à pleins poumons par les manifestants. Des feux d’artifice ont été aussitôt tirés dans Beyrouth tandis que des voitures sillonnaient la ville klaxons hurlants en signe de victoire. » | Le Monde avec AFP | mardi 29. Octobre 2019

Boris Johnson Fails in Third Attempt to Call Early General Election

THE GUARDIAN: Prime minister falls short of two-thirds parliamentary majority required to call snap poll

Boris Johnson has lost his third bid for a general election, after Labour abstained and he failed to reach the two-thirds majority of MPs he needed for a poll. The result was 299 votes for and 70 against.

The prime minister is now expected to back a Liberal Democrat plan to change the law in order to secure an early election, although the parties do not yet agree on a date.

The Lib Dems want a date of 9 December, while students are still at university, but the Tories favour 12 December, after some have broken up for Christmas. » | Rowena Mason, Deputy political editor | Monday, October 28, 2019

Early Facebook Investor: We Need to Hold Big Tech Accountable for Creating “Toxic Digital Spills”

Early Facebook investor Roger McNamee talks about big tech companies are amplifying hate speech and disinformation. He also talks more about his book, “Zucked: Waking Up to the Facebook Catastrophe.”

James Comey Jokes He Will Move to New Zealand If Trump Is Re-elected

The former FBI director James Comey joked he would move to New Zealand if Donald Trump was re-elected in 2020. Comey worked for the Obama administration, caused a storm over Hillary Clinton's emails in 2016 and was fired by Trump in May 2017. He also said US leaders 'can't be people who lie all the time'

An Interview with HIM Empress Farah Pahlavi of Iran by ¡HOLA! TV

¡HOLA! TV Interview: Rodolfo Vera Calderón | Executive production: Adolfo Álvarez

Analysis – US Targeted ISIL Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: US Officials

The United States has carried out an operation targeting Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL or ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, have told news agencies. A US official told The Associated Press that the ISIL leader was targeted in Syria's Idlib province. Another US official confirmed to Reuters news agency that the operation took place but did not disclose details and did not say whether it was successful. Newsweek, citing a US Army official briefed on the result of the operation, said al-Baghdadi was killed in the raid. Al Jazeera's Natasha Ghoneim reports Al Jazeera's Zaina Khodr reports from Beirut Marwan Kablan is director of policy analysis at the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies joins Al Jazeera from Doha.

Brexit Referendum Should Never Have Been Called, Say Majority of Voters

THE GUARDIAN: Poll shows growing hindsight regret on leaving EU … but a 16% Tory lead in a general election

Twice as many people now think it would have been better never to have held a referendum on Brexit than believe it was a good idea, according to the latest Opinium poll for the Observer.

Asked to consider the difficulties the government has had in reaching an agreement, 57% of UK adults surveyed said that they believed it would have been better not to have had a public vote in June 2016.

This compares with 29% of voters who believe it was right to hold the referendum on whether the UK should stay in or leave the EU. » | Toby Helm | Saturday, October 26, 2019

THE OBSERVER: Number of Britons leaving for Europe hits a 10-year high »

Brexit: Can Westminster Seal a Deal? | To the Point

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the House of Commons have tried all the tricks in fighting for their interests in the Brexit battle. But who wants what? Our guests: Vendeline v. Bredow (Economist), Derek Scally (Irish Times), Jon Worth (Blogger)

Klimawandel-Debatte: Esst ruhig Fleisch!

FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Fleisch ist in Verruf geraten, das Schnitzel nur noch mit Schuld zu verzehren. Dabei macht Fleischverzicht weder gesund noch rettet er das Klima. Der große Fleischreport.

Löschen Sie alles, was Sie in den letzten Jahren über rotes Fleisch gehört haben. Es ist nicht ungesund, und sein Beitrag zum Klimawandel ist geringer als propagiert. Eine jahrzehntelange Kampagne hat das Nahrungsmittel in Verruf gebracht und Menschen zu fleischarmen Diäten gedrängt, die ihrer Gesundheit schaden und den Klimawandel nicht stoppen können. Schlecht fundierte Forschung, kommerzielle Interessen und religiös-ideologische Vorstellungen prägen das Narrativ einer überlegenen fleischfreien Ernährung. Genauer Überprüfung hält dieses nicht stand. » [€] | von Winand von Petersdorff | Freitag, 25. Oktober 2019

The Guardian View on Boris Johnson’s Election Demand: MPs Should Call His Bluff

THE GUARDIAN: There is no good reason to commit to an early general election when parliament has not yet considered the withdrawal agreement bill in detail. First things first

Boris Johnson is the playground bully of British politics. He acts as if he is prime minister with a majority in parliament when in fact he has no majority. Because he cannot govern in that way with parliament, he has tried instead to govern against parliament. The delusion that he can do as he pleases led him to try to prorogue parliament this autumn – a bluff that was called by the supreme court. It then led him to concoct a fantasy legislative agenda by commissioning a Queen’s speech, though none of its measures will ever become law. Now he is trying to make his Brexit withdrawal bill conditional on the Commons agreeing to a general election in December. This proposal, like all the others before it, is merely another bluff, and parliament should duly call it. » | Editorial | Thursday, October 24, 2019

Most Voters Believe Violence against MPs 'Is Price Worth Paying' over Brexit

THE GUARDIAN: Research finds majority of both leave and remain voters feel violence worth it to get outcome they support

A majority of voters in England, Wales and Scotland believe that the possibility of some level of violence against MPs is a “price worth paying” in order to get their way on Brexit, an academic survey has found.

The poll from Cardiff University and the University of Edinburgh asked respondents what they would be prepared to see happen in order to leave or remain within the European Union.

Most leave voters who took part in the Future of England study thought violence towards MPs was a “price worth paying” for Brexit to be delivered – 71% in England, 60% in Scotland and 70% in Wales.

The majority of remain voters felt that potential violence was worth it if it meant we would stay in the EU – 58% in England, 53% in Scotland and 56% in Wales. » | Amy Walker | Thursday, October 24, 2019