Boris Johnson news: Queen signs Brexit bill into law as PM warned against ‘foolish’ attempt to rush trade deals with US and EU

Richard Ratcliffe speaks to reporters outside No 10

After a meeting with Boris Johnson, Richard Ratcliffe, the husband of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who is imprisoned in Iran, said: "I don't come away thinking Nazanin is coming out tomorrow, or even next week. 

"Nazanin is being held hostage. The UK needs to get together with other countries that are affected.

"There needs to be a target consequence for the Revolutionary Guard. Nazanin is being used as a chess piece."

"I don't stand here hopeful. I stand here with my wife in a prison. My job is to keep going." 

But he describes it as a "gracious visit" and added he was "deeply appreciative" of the PM taking time out of his schedule.

Richard Ratcliffe with daughter Gabriella (Reuters) 

Labour ‘almost culturally appropriating’ union event, says Tory MP

The Tory MP for North West Durham Richard Holden – who has vowed to attend the Durham Miners’ Association gala despite warnings not to bother – has been speaking about it on BBC’s Politics Live.

Clashing with Labour MP Thangam Debbonaire over whether Labour was entitled to feel a special connection with the union event, the Tory said the opposition party had “almost culturally appropriated” the event.

Holden claimed the gala celebrated “a cultural heritage of people, a lot of whom voted for me at the last election and has switched sides in recent years”.

He added: “I think there’s a danger of the Labour party almost culturally appropriating these working-class traditions ... And the Marxist Momentum wing of the Labour party travelling up from London to turn these into very political [events].”

Debbonaire replied: “We’re not appropriating – the Labour Party is literally the political wing of the trade union movement.”

I’ve been compared to ‘turd that won’t flush’, admits Zac Goldsmith

The former Tory MP Zac Goldsmith – defeat at the general election but shunted up into the House of Lords – has been his very first speech in the chamber.

“I know that my appointment to this House wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea. One political rival described me as “a turd that won’t flush” – a phrase my children are very unlikely to let me forget.”

Goldsmith said his Richmond constituents had “kindly sent me off on a short sabbatical” from parliament.

Keir Starmer’s Labour colleagues share support with family

Labour leadership candidates have been tweeting their support for Keir Starmer, after his campaign announced that his mother-in-law is critically ill and has been admitted to hospital in intensive care.

McDonnell backs ‘fine socialist’ Burgon for Labour deputy role

Labour’s shadow chancellor John McDonnell has just shared a video endorsing Corbyn loyalist Richard Burgon for the deputy leadership position.

“He’s a fine socialist and I’ve worked closely with him,” he said.

Huawei to be involved in 5G network, Downing St hints

The government has given its strongest hint yet that Chinese tech giant Huawei will be given some role in the development of the UK’s 5G network – despite US opposition.

Downing Street today insisted that no final decision has yet been made, amid reports that officials have formally recommended giving the green light to Huawei’s involvement in “non-core” elements of the network.

But one government source suggested it would not be viable to exclude the company in the absence of alternative products of similar quality and price from US or European sources.

“There’s been a market failure here which clearly needs rectifying as we go forward,” said the source. “We’ve asked the US what's the alternative to provide a solution and the answer has been a shake of the head.”

Our political editor Andrew Woodcock has all the details.

PM’s Brexit bill gets royal assent

Boris Johnson’s Brexit legislation has cleared all stages in parliament after it received royal assent.

Some MPs cheered as deputy speaker Nigel Evans confirmed the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act had received royal assent in a short announcement to the House of Commons.

‘This is a constitutional crisis’, says SNP chief in Commons

Responding to the news that royal assent has been given to the Withdrawal Agreement Act, the SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford immediately responded to the widely-expected event by claiming: “This is a constitutional crisis.”

Expressing his “deep regret” the Brexit bill had become law, he said: “We find ourselves here today, that our parliament has been ignored, our government has been ignored and, against the expressed wishes of the people of Scotland that voted in the referendum and reaffirmed the right of the people of Scotland to determine their own destiny, that that has been ignored.”

Blackford asked what he has to do “to make sure that that mandate that the Scottish government has from the people of Scotland to have an independence referendum on our future, to make sure that Scotland has that right, to be a European country, to be an independent country”.

He added: “And there’s a very clear message, I must say Mr Speaker, that has been delivered from this House - that the rights of the people of Scotland are to be shut down and we will have no part of it.”

Ian Blackford speaking in the Commons (Parliament TV) 

Bercow ‘categorically’ denies ever bullying anyone

The former Commons speaker has criticised the peer who filed a complaint about alleged bullying – and attacked the government for not elevating him to the Lords after his retirement.

His first strenuous denial of the latest allegations came on Thursday as Downing Street said the claims from Lord Lisvane are “very concerning” and should be “investigated thoroughly”.

Bercow’s one-time most senior official as Clerk of the House has handed a dossier of allegations to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.

But the controversial former speaker dismissed the allegations as having come at a "curious" time as he seeks to become a peer.

Bercow said that it has “become increasingly obvious that the government has no intention of honouring the centuries-old convention that a departing speaker is promptly elevated to the House of Lords” since his retirement.

“Indeed, it has been suggested to me that the government actively seeks to block any other attempt to nominate me for membership of the upper house,” he continued in the statement.

“I have seen in the media that Lord Lisvane is formally complaining that I bullied staff. For the record, I categorically deny that I have ever bullied anyone, anywhere at any time.”

Former speaker John Bercow (PA) 

Ministers condemned over delays in reforms to transgender rights

Government delays in publishing a long-awaited consultation into reforming transgender rights have allowed “hate to fester”, according to the shadow women and equalities minister.

Speaking in the Commons, Victoria Atkins, the women and equalities minister, was unable to confirm when the government would publish the results of the consultation on reforms to the Gender Recognition Act. 

She said Boris Johnson’s administration was looking “carefully and methodically” at the findings of the survey adding: “We are clear that we want to protect trans adults’ rights and protect single-sex spaces for women. We do want to rush this; we want to get it right.”