UK says Northern Ireland can not be in separate customs territory post-Brexit

Staff reporter(wp/reuters):
Britain cannot accept Northern Ireland being in a separate customs territory from the rest of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokesman said on Tuesday.

Brexit talks have stalled over a disagreement on the so-called Northern Irish backstop, an insurance policy to ensure there will be no return to a hard border on the island of Ireland if a future trading relationship is not agreed in time.

Reuters reported on Monday the EU could look to “anchor” a reference in the legally binding Withdrawal Agreement to Britain’s proposal to keep the whole of the United Kingdom in a customs partnership with the EU.

Asked whether Britain would be prepared to accept the Northern Ireland backstop if there were a link to a future treaty agreement on a UK-wide arrangement, the spokesman said: “Any circumstance in which Northern Ireland could be in a separate customs territory to the UK is unacceptable.”

Three MPs quit from John Bercow's 'inclusion' committee

Political reporter(wp/es):

Three Tory MPs have stepped down from a committee set up by under-fire speaker John Bercow to improve 'inclusion' in Westmisnter.

The Speaker's Office said Will Quince, Mims Davies and Anne Milton had resigned from the Commons Reference Group on Representation and Inclusion, which is responsible for investigating complaints.

The three quit saying he is not the right person to resolve the "numerous and serious issues" around bullying in parliament.

Mr Bercow is himself at the centre of numerous allegations of bullying by Commons staff - all of which he denies.

Mr Quince said he did not believe Mr Bercow was the right person to handle the "numerous and serious issues" which had been raised about the conduct of some MPs and Commons staff.

However, in the light of the Dame Laura Cox report, sadly I cannot in good conscience remain as a member of the group while John Bercow is chair," he said.

"As much as I personally like John, I have reluctantly reached the conclusion that he is not the right person to resolve the numerous and serious issues."

Ms Davies said: "I felt that remaining on this (committee) currently did not sit right following Dame Laura Cox's report, and as this committee is chaired by the Speaker, I sadly felt in a difficult position. I did not take this decision lightly."

In a statement, a spokeswoman for the Speaker's Office said Mr Bercow had accepted their resignations "with regret" and paid tribute to them as "stellar members" of the group.

She said the Speaker would consider the group's future after the House of Commons Commission has met on Wednesday to consider Dame Laura's report.

A damning report by Dame Laura Cox QC highlighted a Westminster culture which allowed the bullying and sexual harassment of staff to flourish.

The former High Court judge questioned whether the issue could be tackled successfully under the present Commons leadership - leading to calls for Mr Bercow to stand down.

Dame Laura was appointed to head an investigation after BBC Two's Newsnight highlighted claims of bullying of Commons staff by MPs and other staff, including Mr Bercow.

Teenager murdered in suspected gang 'hit' in Greenwich East London

Crime reporter,London(wp/es):

A teenage boy was stabbed to death on a doorstep by two knife-wielding thugs who sped away on a moped.

The 18-year-old died after being stabbed in the back in a suspected gang-linked “hit”.

Officers were called to a disturbance in Armitage Street in Greenwich at 9.25pm last night and found the teenager collapsed outside a housing block . Local residents and paramedics fought to save his life but he was pronounced dead at the scene just after 10pm.

The incident is the 20th teenage murder inquiry begun in London this year, while more than 110 people have been murdered in total in the capital in 2018. 

Witnesses reported a commotion outside a block of flats just before 9.30pm. One witness said: “There were two guys on a scooter. The stabbed boy was on the ground. They sped off. It was all very quick and it was clearly a hit.

“We tried to talk to the guy on the ground but he had gone. We tried to get him back, to reach him, but there’s nothing we could do. I couldn’t see any blood, but apparently he was stabbed in the back. It was dark and I couldn’t see the faces of the guys on the scooter. I didn’t recognise the victim.”

Another witness said: “There was a massive commotion and a bike revving. We looked out and the boy was lying on the ground. We checked for a pulse but he was dead. We were in total shock.”

A crime scene tent remained in place today outside the front door of a flat, with bloody clothing strewn inside. Police cordons also surrounded the street as forensic experts searched the scene for clues. 

The killing took place half a mile from the Greenwich Maritime Museum.

Locals said there had been a flurry of gang-related activity in recent months. One said: “There have been a lot of boys on scooters and a tense atmosphere. We just keep our head down.”

Two other teenagers were also hurt in knife attacks in London last night. An 18-year-old was stabbed in Grosvenor Avenue, Islington, at 10.50pm, and a 19-year-old walked into hospital at 9.18pm with a stab injury to his leg after an attack in Greenleaf Road, Walthamstow.

Knife crime in London has risen to a record level, with nearly 15,000 offences committed in the 12 months to June, a 15 per cent rise on the year before. This year there have been 69 knife killings, with 12 of the victims teenagers.

There have been no arrests in connection with the Greenwich attack.

Anyone with information should call police on 101 or ring Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.