Brexit news : Budget cancelled as Boris Johnson warned UK faces ‘winter of discontent’

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Ian Blackford tells Boris Johnson workers don't want a hug from him

Rishi Sunak has cancelled his upcoming budget after a surge in new coronavirus cases forced the government to bring in fresh restrictions likely lasting six months, placing the chancellor under intense pressure to provide financial help to affected businesses and individuals.

As Mr Sunak prepares to lay out new support on Thursday, Boris Johnson has been accused of leading the UK into “another winter of discontent” amid fears of mass unemployment and a failing coronavirus testing system.

It came as Michael Gove revealed that police will patrol the Kent border to turn away lorries without an “access permit” in a bid to ease Brexit border chaos. The Cabinet minister confirmed a leaked letter that said the government predicted a no-deal worst case scenario of 7,000-truck-long queues with up to two days of delays.

This live blog is no longer being updated. Read our coverage as it happened below:

Key Points

• 7,000-truck-long queues in Kent predicted in Brexit worst case scenario
• Boris Johnson wins over Tory rebels on Brexit agreement-breaking powers
• ‘Safe operation’ of Channel Tunnel in doubt from January, MPs warn
• Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer clash over coronavirus and more during PMQs
• Police to stop lorries without permits entering Kent in new ‘internal border’
• Rishi Sunak cancels budget to unveil new support measures on Thursday

[23 September 2020 13:20 · Kate Ng]

Unemployment could breed extremism, MPs warned

MPs have been warned that the looming financial crisis and “huge unemployment rates” brought on by the coronavirus pandemic will be “very conducive” to breeding extremism.

Sara Khan, who leads the Commission for Countering Extremism, said councils are having to make “massive cuts” coupled with “soaring” hate crime and growing violence is a “climate” which extremists could exploit.

Speaking to the Commons Home Affairs Committee on Wednesday, she said: “If we see what’s coming down the pipeline now as a country, we know there are going to be huge unemployment rates, we know that local authorities are going to have to make massive cuts because they are going to be experiencing financial black holes, we are seeing increasing rates of violence, soaring hate crime rates - that condition and that kind of climate is going to be very conducive for extremists and for extremism.

“And from what we’ve seen throughout history is that type of climate will be very conducive and extremists will seek to exploit that. And the question we have to ask ourselves is, ‘do we have the resource and the strategy to be able to deal with that?’, because we know that is coming down the pipeline.”

She reiterated calls for the government to urgently commit to tackling extremism, adding that the country’s current policy is “weak”, “disjointed”, and “behind the curve”.

Her warnings come after a report in July by the Commission that concluded extremists had “fully exploited” the pandemic to “breed hate” through “dangerous conspiracy theories”.

[23 September 2020 13:40 · Kate Ng]

Chancellor under pressure for new financial support for businesses

Pressure is mounting on Rishi Sunak to announce new financial support for businesses after Boris Johnson announced fresh coronavirus restrictions that could continue for another six months.

The chancellor’s cabinet colleague Dominic Raab confirmed that new measures are likely to be unveiled soon “to keep the economy going and salvage jobs”, reports our Political Editor Andrew Woodcock.

[23 September 2020 14:00 · Kate Ng]

Boris Johnson accused of leading UK into ‘another winter of discontent’

The prime minister was today accused of leading the UK into “another winter of discontent” amid fears of mass unemployment and a failing coronavirus testing system.

Boris Johnson faced questioning in the House of Commons and was pressed on new financial support measures for businesses, as well as an extension of the furlough scheme, reports our Political Editor Andrew Woodcock.

[23 September 2020 14:10 · Andy Gregory]

‘Things will change’ for firms dealing with EU regardless of trade deal, Michael Gove says

Tory minister minister Michael Gove has insisted the government is “committed” to negotiating a new free trade agreement with the EU before the end of the year, but insisted “things will change” for businesses and individuals as they trade with and travel to the bloc, regardless the outcome of the talks.

“It is important that we as parliamentarians all understand that and that we all take action to prepare,” he told the Commons

“Whether we secure a good FTA before January or not, whether we get a Canada-style deal or exit on Australian terms, we will have left the single market and customs union - and that fact means adjustments for businesses trading with the EU, changes for citizens travelling to the EU and new responsibilities for government in both scenarios.”

Talks have been progressing with difficulty in recent weeks, with the government’s brazen Internal Market Bill serving to further raise hackles in Brussels, prompting threats of a no-deal ultimatum if the bill is passed into law.

Mr Gove conceded that in a reasonable worst-case scenario queues of 7,000 trucks could appear at the Channel, confirming the contents of a leaked government letter.

[23 September 2020 14:20 · Kate Ng]

Boris Johnson admits failure to replace Grenfell-style cladding is disgraceful

The failure to replace dangerous unsafe cladding on high-rise building, such as the cladding on Grenfell Tower, three years after the tragedy is ‘disgraceful’, Boris Johnson has admitted.

He was asked during PMQs what steps the government was taking to replace the dangerous cladding, following a series of delays and criticism by watchdogs, reports our Policy Correspondent Jon Stone.

Get the full story here:

[23 September 2020 14:35 · Andy Gregory]

Housing minister defends end of evictions ban

Housing minister Christopher Pincher has defended the government’s decision to end the evictions ban this week, saying it was “vital to the long-term health of the private-rented sector” that landlords are “able to access justice”.

Mr Pincher said not doing so could push responsible landlords to Airbnb, thus diminishing the amount of available housing in the UK.

The judiciary will “look to prioritise the most serious cases, including anti-social behaviour, fraud and egregious rent arrears”, he said, adding: “To help keep people in their homes over the winter, we've changed the law, increasing notice periods to six months, in all but the most serious cases.”

But campaign group Generation Rent has warned that up to 55,000 households handed eviction notices between March and August will not be protected by this amendment.

The minister added that all measures would be kept under constant review and that the government is prepared to take fresh action to protect renters and landlords alike.

[23 September 2020 15:00 · Kate Ng]

Police to stop lorries without permits entering Kent in new ‘internal border’

Police will patrol the Kent border to turn away lorries without an “access permit” in a bid to ease Brexit border chaos, Michael Gove has revealed.

The Cabinet minister said officers will use automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras and “other means” to block drivers, reports Rob Merrick.

[23 September 2020 15:10 · Kate Ng]

Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance involved in process of drawing up new restrictions, says Downing Street

Downing Street has insisted that England’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance had been involved throughout the process of drawing up the latest coronavirus restrictions.

It comes after a report by The Times suggested Mr Whitty warned the package did not go far enough and England is likely to follow in Scotland’s footsteps in banning visiting between households.

Boris Johnson’s official spokesperson said he has seen “no remarks on that”, adding: “The PM has worked with Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance throughout the process of pulling this package together and it is agreed that, taken as a whole, the package will play a significant role in bringing down the rate of infection.”

[23 September 2020 15:20 · Kate Ng]

Internal emails reveal ‘herd immunity’ messaging chaos in government

Newly released emails have revealed anger and alarm among the UK’s top scientists over the government’s exploration of “herd immunity” when dealing with the initial outbreak of coronavirus earlier this year.

Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific advisor, even asked for help in trying to “calm down” leading academics after he expressed his apparent support for the idea in public.

Adam Forrest reports on the contents of the emails here:

[23 September 2020 15:40 · Kate Ng]

No-deal Brexit ‘very clearly a risk’ for UK security and counter-terrorism operations, police chief warns

Assistant Metropolitan Police commissioner Neil Basu, the head of counter-terrorism policing, has told MPs that crashing out of the EU is “very clearly a risk” to security and counter-terror efforts in the UK.

alternative arrangements are being put in place so officers can still access information and databases they need to track criminals, but they will be "slower and clunkier" and this will affect terrorism investigations, Mr Basu said.“I can't tell you that crashing out with no deal and no security deal isn't a risk,” he told MPs on the Commons Home Affairs Committee.

"It very clearly is a risk. We would not be as safe as we are today.

“I can't tell you that crashing out with no deal and no security deal isn't a risk,” he told MPs on the Commons Home Affairs Committee. “It very clearly is a risk. We would not be as safe as we are today.”

Access to passenger name records and use of the European Arrest Warrant "couldn't be more important" for police, he said.