Boris Johnson heads to Scotland, where he’s expected to hold crunch talks with Scottish Conservatives leader Ruth Davidson. She’s warned the prime minister she will never support his fall-back plan to take the U.K. out of the European Union without an agreement deal. Meanwhile Johnson is ramping up preparation for a no-deal Brexit and has formed what British media are calling a “war cabinet” to oversee the preparations.
Key Developments:
- PM heads to Scotland to boost union of U.K.’s four nations
- Johnson meeting Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon later
- Johnson sets up cabinet groups to prepare for no-deal Brexit
- Tory MP Letwin says he’s talked to Labour about how to stop no-deal split
- Foreign Secretary Raab attacks business leaders’ warnings as “unbalanced”
Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney spoke to his U.K. counterpart Dominic Raab on Friday, according to a spokesman. The pair had a good and frank conversation, in which Coveney reiterated that the Brexit withdrawal agreement is closed, said the spokesman, who added that they agreed to stay in close contact.
The conversation, which came after Coveney had warned the U.K. was on a collision course with the European Union, is the highest level contact so far between the two countries since Boris Johnson took over as prime minister. Johnson is expected to speak to Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in the coming days, according to a U.K. official.
Ryanair CEO: No-Deal Risk Has Increased (12:40 p.m.)
Michael O’Leary, chief executive officer at Ryanair Holdings Plc, said the risk of a no-deal Brexit has “significantly, materially increased” under Boris Johnson’s new government.
O’Leary said he doesn’t expect a disruption to flights at the budget airline this winter or next summer because the EU and U.K. will re-issue interim arrangements agreed prior to the March 29 deadline that will last for 9 to 12 months. But he warned that after that, there would be “material changes” in flight rights and ownership rules.
“The U.K. domestic routes would come under question,” he said on a conference call Monday.
Johnson Plans to Talk to More EU Leaders (12 p.m.)
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to speak to more European leaders over the coming days, and has also been clear he wants to meet them, spokeswoman Alison Donnelly told reporters on Monday.
The government hopes the EU will change its mind on reopening the Brexit withdrawal agreement, Donnelly said, reiterating that the backstop—the provision meant to keep the Irish border open—must be removed.
While the government would prefer to leave with a deal, Donnelly said, its “central scenario” is to do so without one unless the EU shifts its position.
Raab: CBI too ‘Pessimistic’ About Brexit (Earlier)
The new Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab took a hard line with Britain’s highest profile business lobby group, the Confederation of British Industry. The CBI had earlier warned that neither the U.K. nor the EU are ready for a no-deal divorce.
Raab was not impressed. “They take an unbalanced view, an unbalanced assessment,” Raab told LBC Radio. He described the CBI as “skeptical” and “pessimistic” about the risks of Brexit.
Letwin in Talks with Labour, Others (Earlier)
Conservative Member of Parliament Oliver Letwin, part of a rebel group that includes some Labour MPs seeking to stop a no-deal Brexit, said his colleagues could find a way to amend legislation to prevent the U.K. leaving with no divorce agreement.
“The mechanical problems we can overcome,” Letwin told BBC radio. “The difficult thing is to get a majority in Parliament for some other course of action at the last moment if there isn’t a deal.” Letwin said there is a “natural majority” of parliamentarians against a no-deal Brexit, but whether they would vote to block it would remain unknown “right up until the last moment.”
