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U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson introduced legislation for leaving the European Union as he seeks to press on with his commitment to quit the bloc on Jan. 31. Politicians will hold their first vote on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill on Friday.
Johnson said his agenda for government — outlined earlier in the Queen’s Speech — could herald “a new golden age” for the U.K.. His program focused on delivering Brexit and enacted domestic legislation to cement promises during the campaign for last week’s election, including funding for the NHS, policing and tougher sentences for criminals.
Key Developments:
Boris Johnson’s government publishes legislative agenda after Dec. 12 election victoryHouse of Commons votes to sit on Friday to vote on Withdrawal Agreement BillGovernment plans to close Brexit department on Jan. 31U.K. to Crack Down on Russian, North Korean Spies and SaboteursMust read: Johnson Announces His ‘Radical’ Agenda for U.K. After Brexit
Johnson Rallies U.K. to Renew Itself (3:50 p.m.)
Johnson ended his address to Parliament with a flourish, calling on politicians to renew trust with the public. “I say to the people of this country: we owe you,” he said. “We know it. And we will deliver.”
“As we engage full-tilt now in this mission of change, I am filled with invincible confidence in the ability of this nation, our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, to renew itself in this generation as we have done so many times in the past.”
He called for an end to parliamentary deadlock, saying the “the time has come for change, the time has come for action, and it is action the British people will get.”
Johnson Suggests He’d Back N. Ireland Bridge (3:40 p.m.)
Boris Johnson suggested he’d back building a bridge between Northern Ireland and Scotland, telling the House of Commons to “watch this space.”
Johnson – known for his taste for big infrastructure projects — was asked about the prospect by Democratic Unionist Party MP Ian Paisley.
“As for his desire for a bridge to connect the two biggest isles in the British isles, all I can say is it is a very interesting idea,” the premier said. “I advise him to watch this space and indeed watch that space between those islands, because what he has said — it has not fallen on deaf ears.”
Johnson Says ‘Golden Age’ in Reach (3:35 p.m.)
Boris Johnson promised his government will spark the “biggest transformation of our infrastructure since the Victorian age,” reach trade deals around the world and create jobs nationwide.
The premier is seeking Parliamentary approval for the legislative program his government will pursue, as outlined by Queen Elizabeth II earlier in the day. He said the U.K. would embrace a “new age” of electric cars and planes and said British scientists will use “new gene therapies to cure the hitherto incurable.”
“This is not a program for one year or one Parliament, it is a blueprint for the future of Britain: Just imagine where this country could be in 10 years time,” he said. “I do not think it vainglorious or implausible to say that a new golden age for this United Kingdom is within reach.”
New Powers for Courts Over EU Law (3:30 p.m.)
The new version of the Withdrawal Bill will empower lower courts to overturn rulings of the European Court of Justice. In previous versions, that power had been reserved for the Supreme Court.
The move may make it easier for British judges to roll back EU rulings on subjects from employment discrimination to the environment after Brexit.
Johnson: People Want Country to Move On (3:25 p.m.)
Boris Johnson opened his address on the Queen’s Speech by calling on lawmakers to honor their promises to the electorate, first by getting Brexit done and then by passing his party’s legislative agenda.
“This is the moment to repay the trust of the people who sent us here,” he said. “If there’s one resounding lesson of this election campaign, one lesson I heard in every corner of these islands, it’s not just that the British people want to get Brexit done — though they do. They want to move politics on and move the country on, building hospitals, renewing our schools, modernizing our infrastructure, making our street safer, our environment cleaner, our union stronger.”
He said his “people’s government” will unite the nation, first by enshrining in law additional NHS funding.
Corbyn Slams Johnson Over No Deal Threat (3:20 p.m.)
Jeremy Corbyn slammed Boris Johnson for seeking to ban any extension of the Brexit transition period beyond the end of 2020, saying it would damage the economy.
“He has now deliberately resurrected the threat of no deal at the end of next year, which would decimate industry and destroy people’s jobs,” Corbyn told the House of Commons. “That threat is now written into the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.”
Corbyn also resurrected key arguments from the campaign trail for the Dec. 12 election, in which Labour posted its worst performance since 1935, accusing the premier of seeking to “sell out” the National Health Service and put at risk protections for the environment, food and workers in a “toxic deal with Donald Trump.”
“We do not want our NHS given over to U.S. corporations and we don’t want expensive medicines with extended patents and we don’t want food like chlorinated chicken on our dinner tables either,” Corbyn said. “We know the prime minister’s deal won’t put Brexit to bed, it’ll just be the beginning of years of more drawn out negotiations.”
Corbyn: Johnson Mimicking Labour Policies (3:15 p.m.)
Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn said the Queen’s Speech was heavily influenced by his own party’s policy agenda, showing the impact he had made on the political debate — even though his party lost the election.
“In this Queen’s Speech, this government has tried to mimic some of the priorities and, interestingly, much of the language of Labour polices, but without the substance,” he told the House of Commons. “On austerity, on investment, on regional inequality, on the National Health Service, we can see how we forced the terrain to shift. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, even if it’s very pale imitation.”
He called on the Conservatives to fund the NHS “properly” — rather than the “gimmick” of enshrining its funding package into law.
Workers’ Rights Removed From Brexit Bill (3.10 p.m)
A section on protecting workers’ rights that had been included in the October version of the Withdrawal Bill — in part as a concession to encourage Labour MPs to back the legislation — is not in the new bill (see 3p.m.).
Instead, Boris Johnson’s government has promised a separate Employment Bill that it says will protect and improve rights after Brexit. It was included in the Queen’s Speech earlier Thursday and includes a plan to strike “the right balance between the flexibility that the economy needs and the security that workers deserve.”
New Brexit Bill: The Key Differences (3 p.m.)
At first glance, here are the key differences between the new European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill and the one Boris Johnson put before Parliament in October:
Deleted:
Clause 30 on MPs having a veto over extending the implementation periodClause 31 on Parliament’s oversight in negotiations for future relationshipClause 34 and Schedule 4 on the protection of workers’ rights
Added:
Clause 33 banning Ministers from agreeing to an extension of the transition periodClause 35 banning the use of written procedure by the Joint Committee to adopt decisions between meetingsClause 37 on arrangements with EU about unaccompanied children seeking asylum
Brexit Bill Has First Reading (2:50 p.m.)
Boris Johnson’s Withdrawal Agreement Bill, intended to deliver on his pledge to leave the European Union on Jan. 31, was presented to Parliament and had its first reading before members of the House of Commons debate and vote on it on Friday.
The bill includes a clause to ban ministers from delaying the transition period beyond the end of December 2020: “A minister of the Crown may not agree in the Joint Committee to an extension of the implementation period.”
The Joint Committee refers to a panel of representatives of the EU and of the U.K. which is responsible for implementing the withdrawal agreement.
Queen’s Speech Unveils Johnson’s Plan for Government (Earlier)
Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out his agenda for government in what he described as the “most radical” program of law-making in a generation after last week’s “seismic” election victory.
Leading on his commitment to leave the European Union on Jan. 31, the legislative program, delivered by tradition in a speech to Parliament by Queen Elizabeth II, also includes campaign promises on spending on the National Health Service, infrastructure development and a review of the relationship between government and the courts.
British business leaders generally welcomed the Queen’s Speech, though stressed more details were needed in the months ahead. “The Government’s legislative plans will give businesses some encouragement that Westminster is finally starting to think about growth and investment again, but the real test will be in the detail that follows,” said Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce.
Sturgeon Demands Legally-Binding Referendum (Earlier)
Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon vowed to hold a legal and internationally recognized referendum on independence as she stepped up calls for the British government to allow her to do so in the wake of Brexit. Her Scottish National Party won 48 of Scotland’s 59 districts in the U.K. election last week on a manifesto demanding another referendum on the issue in 2020.
“The election last week put beyond any reasonable argument our mandate to offer people in Scotland that choice,” Sturgeon said in a speech in Edinburgh. “The Scottish Government believes that right should be exercised free from the threat of legal challenge.”
U.K. Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove rejected the Scottish Parliament’s calls for another referendum, telling the BBC the SNP should respect the result of the 2014 vote. “I think the whole of this general election shows that if you have politicians who don’t respect referendum results, the public don’t like that,” he said.
Earlier:
Johnson Announces His ‘Radical’ Agenda for U.K. After Brexit
–With assistance from Jessica Shankleman.
To contact the reporters on this story: Greg Ritchie in London at [email protected];Alex Morales in London at [email protected]
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Tim Ross at [email protected], Thomas Penny, Stuart Biggs
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