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.

Pound Sterling falls to 2-1/2 week low on fear of challenge to PM May

Business correspondent(reuters/wp):
Pound Sterling fell on Monday as fears grew that the Irish border issue and disagreements within Britain’s ruling Conservatives over Brexit could see Prime Minister Theresa May face a serious leadership challenge.

The pound lost ground against the dollar and the euro, at one point falling close to 1 percent to the greenback, though it later clawed back some of the losses.

Sunday newspapers quoting unnamed lawmakers as saying May should prepare for a challenge to her leadership.

A report by the Telegraph newspaper’s deputy political editor said the DUP, the Northern Irish party which props up May’s government, would back an amendment proposed by rebel Brexiteer lawmakers that would effectively make the European Union’s proposal on the Irish border illegal

However, a rebel lawmaker, Steve Baker who had tabled the amendments, was later reported as planning to withdraw the proposal, according to The Times newspaper

Lee Hardman, FX strategist at MUFG in London said he still expected a deal eventually to be struck over Brexit but added: “The path to a deal seems to have become a bit harder.”

“On the weekend, we saw increasing concern over political instability in the UK and the threat of another leadership challenge back on the table,” Hardman said.

By 1530 GMT, sterling was down 0.65 percent, having earlier hit a low of $1.2957, its weakest since Oct. 4. GBP=D3

Against the euro, the pound was down 0.3 percent EURGBP=D3, well off earlier lows of 88.57 pence which had been a 2 1/2-week low. Technicals indicated sterling had fallen below its 55-day moving average — closing below this level would signal more downside risks, chartists said.

Jittery markets closely watched May’s speech to parliament, at which she is expected to say that 95 percent of the Brexit divorce deal has been settled. But she will maintain opposition to the European Union’s proposal for the land border with Northern Ireland.

However, her proposal to extend a status-quo transition period beyond the current proposed date of December 2021 has angered the eurosceptics in her party.

“(The leadership challenge issue) is hanging over sterling, which is (also) waiting for another steer on Brexit, likely from this address from May today,” Investec economist Victoria Clarke said.

Late last week, Brexit optimism, along with a paring of dollar long positions, saw short sterling bets fall to a net 50,353 contracts, versus more than 60,000 the week before, calculations by Reuters and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed.

But analysts at Nomura said they were taking profit on long sterling positions, noting short-term risks.

“Despite our view that a leadership confidence vote on May is no more than hyped-up tail risk, we admit the Conservative Party has never looked closer to triggering such action as it does today,” Nomura said, noting that centrist Tories as well as Brexiteers were disgruntled with the direction of Brexit policy.

Fertility doctor offers women a bargain deal to freeze eggs

Pic:Dr Mohammed Taranissi says he wants to help ease the pressure on women surrounding age and fertility ( PA )
Health reporter(wp/es):

One of Britain’s most controversial fertility doctors is to cut the price of egg freezing by more than two thirds in a bid to convince more women in their thirties to undergo the procedure.

Mohammed Taranissi is offering to “bank” the eggs of women aged 38 and under for £750 plus £1-a-day storage, down from the typical £3,500 cost of one-off egg freezing.

The bargain  deal is being offered at his ARGC clinic in Harley Street and the New Life Clinic in Epsom, Surrey, and comes after a report showed a huge rise in egg freezing. 

Dr Taranissi told the Standard: “We were the first to carry out this  procedure and I want to be the first to make it affordable for more women. There is so much pressure on women and many are now delaying having a family...  let’s try and preserve their fertility and ease that pressure. I am not saying egg freezing is a magic solution but at least it gives women options.” However, the deal does not include the cost of drugs and blood tests, up to £2,000.

Freezing allows women to keep their own eggs until they are ready to use them, but pregnancy success rates are still only 18 per cent.

'I'm freezing eggs for children at 40'

A financial consultant preparing to freeze her eggs in the next few weeks believes more women should be given the option. 

Judith Sarpong, below, who is in her midthirties, wants children before she is 40 and will consider using a sperm donor if she hasn’t met anyone by then. 

She told the Standard: “I don’t want to be with somebody just because my clock is ticking. I want to be able to take my time to find the right person and freezing my eggs

gives me a feeling of security. But if I get to 40 or 45 and I haven’t met the right person I also want the option to use a sperm donor so that I don’t miss out on the chance to have children.”

Ms Sarpong, from West Sussex, is aware of the low success rates but wants to take the chance. She said: “You assume you will be married with kids by 30 but these days it just

doesn’t happen that way. I know that many of my eggs may not survive the defrosting but if I can just get one or two that will give me a chance to have a child.”

Ms Sarpong saved money on the cost of egg freezing by undergoing blood tests at her doctor and ordering her fertility drugs from Asda and Tesco.

The first report into egg freezing by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority found the number of women freezing their eggs has doubled since 2013 and risen 460 per cent since 2010.

Women take powerful drugs to stimulate the ovaries to produce as many eggs as possible then have a “retrieval” operation under local anaesthetic. The eggs are then stored for future use as part of IVFtreatment. Recorded success rates are still low but doctors claim this is partly because most women freezing their eggs currently are in their late thirties and early forties. The HFEA says eggs frozen before women are 35 — and ideally younger — have a better  chance. 

Dr Amin Gafa of the New Life Clinic, owned by Dr Taranissi, said: “The truth is many women don’t think about a baby until after 35, so we are just reflecting reality. We live in a very competitive world and having a child can affect your career and chances of progressing.”

Dr Taranissi, who was said to earn £25 million a year in 2012, will face claims he is encouraging women to postpone motherhood and creating false hope for older women. But he said he was losing money on the deal.

He has faced controversy in the past. Dr Taranissi was paid almost £1 million by the BBC after a legal battle over allegations about his techniques on Panorama in 2007. He also had disputes with the HFEA and a raid in 2007 on one of his clinics was found to be illegal.

Fertility expert Dr Zeynep Gurtin from UCL said any significant reduction to freezing costs is welcome but “I would still urge women to think carefully about the pros and cons.” Under fertility laws women freezing eggs for “social reasons” must use them within 10 years.

Michael Stirling admits murder of midwife after 'affair' and dumping her body

Pic-1:The body of midwife Samatha Eastwood was discovered in a rural area near Caverswall, Staffordshire, earlier this year ( PA/wp )



Pic-2:Michael Stirling pleaded guilty at Northampton Crown Court to murdering midwife Samantha Eastwood (Staffordshire Police/PA)

Crime reporter(wp/es):

A man has admitted murdering midwife Samantha Eastwood in a bout of "intense rage" after having a "long-standing affair" with her.

Michael Stirling, the brother-in-law of Ms Eastwood's ex John Peake, pleaded guilty to murder at Northampton Crown Court on Monday.

The court heard he strangled 28-year-old Ms Eastwood during a confrontation at her home in Staffordshire, before burying her in a shallow grave.

His barrister, Charles Miskin, told the court: "This was not a pre-meditated act. The context of the killing was a background of growing tension arising from a longstanding, but not particularly intense affair."

Ms Eastwood had last been seen leaving Royal Stoke University Hospital on July 27 after a night shift.

Mr Miskin said that on the afternoon of the killing, "various things were said" between the two "which led to him becoming very angry".

He added: "There was an argument in that context and that led to him being very angry.

"After a struggle and while she was on the floor, he put his hands over her throat, her mouth and nose, and as a result of that she died."

Mr Miskin said: "During his intense rage, he originally intended to cause her really serious bodily harm, but matters escalated and he carried out the intention to kill her."

"He panicked afterwards and buried her in an area of which he had some knowledge.

"He entirely accepts that he tried, wholly dishonestly, to mislead others in the afternoon after the killing.

"He is absolutely horrified about what happened and is deeply sorry, not for himself, but for all the others who are victims of this crime."

Stirling, who had no previous convictions, appeared via video link in court on Monday.

He was sporting a full beard, sat at a table and wearing a dark grey t-shirt. Ms Eastwood's mother, sister, and Mr Peake watched from the public gallery.

Stirling, 32, of Stoke-on-Trent, will be sentenced at Stafford Crown Court on December 3.

Ms Eastwood's body was discovered in a rural area near Caverswall, Staffordshire, wrapped in a duvet and with tape around her eyes and face.

She had been missing for eight days.

extending Brexit transition beyond 2020 would be a last resort with deal '95 per cent' complete

Pic: Theresa May said the Government must hold its nerve (wp )
Political reporter(wp/es):

Theresa May has said the Government must hold its nerve as Brexit negotiations entered their final stages.

The Prime Minister addressed the Commons to say that the Tories must "not give in to those who want to stop Brexit with a politicians' vote."

She added that she "did not want nor expect to extend the Brexit transition period past the end of 2020."

Mrs May added that there may be circumstances in which a short extension to the transition period after Britain leaves the EU is a preferable option.

However, in a statement to the Commons, she said the transition period would have to be completed well before the end of the parliament in June 2022.

"There are some limited circumstances in which it could be argued that an extension to the implementation period might be preferable if we were certain it was only for a short time," she said.

"A short extension to the implementation period would mean only one set of changes for businesses at the point we move to the future relationship.

"But in any such scenario we would have to be out of this implementation period well before the end of this parliament."

Mrs May added: "The Brexit talks are not about my interests, they are about the national interest.

"And the interest of the whole of the United Kingdom. Serving our national interest will demand that we hold our nerve through these last stages of the negotiations - the hardest part of all.

"It will mean not giving in to those who want to stop Brexit with a politicians' vote.

"Politicians telling the people they got it wrong the first time and should try again."

In her highly-anticipated statement on Brexit, the Prime Minister said that 95% of  the Brexit withdrawal agreement had been completed and "broad agreement on structure and scope" of future relations with EU was reached.

However Jeremy Corbyn said the government was hamstrung by its own divisions, and that the Prime Minister was "losing control."

Mrs May also condemned the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi and demanded answers about his death.

The Prime Minister's comments came before a statement on the case by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Mrs May told MPs: "I am sure the whole House will join me in condemning the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in the strongest possible terms.

"We must get to the truth of what happened."

The Prime Minister's remarks in the Commons followed former foreign secretary Boris Johnson urging a robust response to Saudi Arabia over Mr Khashoggi's death.

Britain should "refuse to turn a blind eye" to the murder of the dissident journalist and pressure Saudi Arabia into ending the brutal civil war in Yemen, Mr Johnson said in his Daily Telegraph column.

The former foreign secretary drew parallels between the Istanbul killing and the Novichok attack in Salisbury in March, calling them "state-sponsored plots" designed to "send a terrifying public warning" to opponents.

The Gulf kingdom admitted on Friday that Washington Post columnist Mr Khashoggi, a vocal critic of Riyadh, was killed at its Istanbul consulate but claimed he died after a fight broke out.