Boris Johnson news – live: Government embroiled in row over EU citizens’ rights, as Keir Starmer out ahead in Labour leadership poll

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of British politics, as Rebecca Long-Bailey and Emily Thornberry launch their rival bids to succeed Jeremy Corbyn as leader – and Brexiteers attempt to meet a crowdfunding deadline to have Big Ben bong on Brexit night.

Commons authorities cannot accept public donations for Big Ben bongs to mark Brexit

An update on all the Big Ben bongs for Brexit buffoonery. Tory MP Mark Francois and the group Stand Up 4 Brexit are still trying to raise £500,000 – the sum they have told it would cost to delay repair work and get the bell chiming.

On Thursday Francois expressed his frustration Boris Johnson was backing away from the crowdfunding bid. He said the donations were “literally flooding in” and fumed: “As the prime minister effectively initiated this campaign live on TV two days ago … he would be mad to back away from it.”

But last night the House of Commons Commission – the body that runs the estate and iconic clock tower – ruled that money raised could not be accepted because of parliamentary rules on financial donations.

An exasperated Sir Lindsay Hoyle said a vote in the Commons would be needed to change those donation rules.

The speaker told The Telegraph it was up to Johnson whether he wanted to table a motion on Monday ordering Big Ben to chime for Brexit.

He said: “The decision was taken in the Commission. If somebody wants to change that decision, as I said from day one, this should be the will of the House because it is political.”

A No 10 source told the newspaper: “I don’t think we ever thought it would be as complex as the Commons authorities have since set out.”

What a first-class farce this has become.

Will Big Ben bong to mark Brexit on 31 January? (Reuters) 

Francois wants to ‘celebrate becoming a free country again’ - as his campaign raises £150,000

The online fundraising campaign seeking to have Big Ben bong at 11pm on January 31 has raised more than £150,000.

Mark Francois and Stand Up 4 Brexit’s “Big Ben must bong for Brexit” campaign had raised £153,000 of its £500,000 target from almost 10,000 donors on the GoFundMe website by Friday morning.

Regardless of the House of Commons Commission’s insistence there was no permitted process to accept public donations, the campaign is trying to raise another £350,000 “by this weekend”.

A statement on the crowdfunding page states that “because there is a lead time to make the necessary preparations, we would need to raise this amount by this weekend”.

On Thursday Francois accused the House of Commons authorities of exaggerating the cost of bringing the bell - which has been silent since 2017 - back into operation.

In a video posted on the fundraising site, the ERG deputy chair of the ERG group of Tory Eurosceptics said: “Please give an amount an amount on this website now so we can properly celebrate becoming a free country again.”

‘It will happen’: Verhofstadt predicts UK will rejoin EU one day

The chairman of the EU’s Brexit steering group Guy Verhofstadt has predicted the UK will rejoin the EU one day because young people will “want to go back”.

“I think that will happen, yes, (but) it’s difficult to say when,” said Verhofstadt.

“There will be a generation, the young generation coming in the coming decades, who will say later, “We want to go back”.

“It will happen. Maybe you will not see it in my life, but it will happen.”

Verhofstadt also confirmed that plans for an “associate” membership of the EU are still being pushed for, a move that would allow Britons to sign up to be citizens of the EU even after Brexit.

“My idea is that the European Union and European citizenship has to be possible for the European living somewhere else in the world,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

Verhofstadt said his meeting with Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay on Thursday saw the government concede over allowing EU citizens to have a hard copy of their settled status confirmation.

Those who have been successful in claiming settled status were previously told to use a screenshot of their confirmation on their mobile phone as proof.

“They said we are going to look at it so people can print it so they have a physical document,” said Verhofstadt.

“People will have the opportunity to have a printout, probably a PDF document. That was the conclusion of our conversation.”

Long-Bailey promises to end Westminster’s ‘gentlemen’s club’

Rebecca Long-Bailey will promise to end “the gentlemen’s club” of British politics when she launches her Labour leadership campaign in Manchester on Friday.

The shadow business secretary’s comments will be seen as a dig at Sir Keir Starmer, her main rival in the race to succeed Jeremy Corbyn and the only man in the contest.

As the leadership race stepped up a gear, Sir Keir called for an end to Labour “factionalism” and insisted he was best placed to unite the party.

Labour announced on Thursday that 14,700 people had applied to become registered supporters of the party, at a cost of £25, in order to vote in the contest.

More details here:

Nicky Morgan weighs in on Oscars diversity row

The culture secretary Nicky Morgan has criticised the Oscars for the failure to include any female directors in its nominees – and suggested the awards body should rule out all-male shortlists.

Amid a row over lack of diversity in the Academy nominations, she said “it’s not enough [for those in charge] just to wring their hands” about the failure for any women to be considered for best director.

The recently ennobled peer suggested Hollywood awards organisers had something to learn from Commons select committees in refusing to have all-male panels. 

“If we want more female director talent, they need to see existing female directors being rewarded,” Baroness Morgan told The House magazine.

‘You’re being racist’: Actor snaps at Question Time audience member

Laurence Fox finds himself the focus of a lot attention on social media after his appearance on BBC’s Question Time last night.

The actor and musician – part of a dynasty of famous performers – dismissed claims of racism against the Duchess of Sussex and claimed anyone calling him “white, privileged male” was being “racist”.

Rejecting comments about press coverage of Meghan by an audience member, he said: “We’re the most tolerant lovely country in Europe, it’s not racism.”

The woman told Fox “you are a white, privileged male” – before he sighed and snapped back: “So to call me a white privileged male is to be racist. You’re being racist.”

‘Let the people decide’: Tory MEP backs another EU referendum in future

Tory MEP Daniel Hannan told the BBC he supported holding another referendum in the future to test Guy Verhofstadt’s prediction that the UK would return to the EU.

“Maybe I’m wrong,” said the Conservative MEP, after disagreeing with the chairman of the EU’s Brexit steering group’s prediction the country would want to rejoin.

“I’m perfectly happy to have another referendum in a generation’s time and let people decide,” he told Radio 4’s Today programme.

Hannan defended the government’s record on ensuring the future status of EU citizens living in Britain after Brexit.

“I think we’ve actually got a pretty good record on looking after the rights of settled EU citizens. A system is now up and running, and it is by far the most effective and the most generous in any of the EU countries.”

He noted that the Netherlands and Austria are charging UK citizens “to pay for the administrative costs” involved in applying for settled status, despite Britain dropping the initial £65 fee.

Incidentally, Hannan told talkRADIO he doesn’t care about Big Ben bonging for Brexit.

Verhofstadt pushing for ‘associate’ membership of EU for Brits

Our correspondent Ashley Cowburn has more on Guy Verhofstadt’s interview this morning.

As well as backing the UK to rejoin the bloc in future, the Brexit steering group chief said there were still plans to allow British people to sign up for “associate” membership of the EU.

“My idea is that the European Union and European citizenship has to be possible for the European living somewhere else in the world,” he said.

He said one of the successes from his meeting with Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay was that those European citizens who had been granted settled status in the UK after Brexit would be given the ability to print out their confirmation details as proof.

Verhofstadt also said he had been assured would be “no automatic deportation” for those who missed the deadline to apply for settled status.

And he also claimed a free trade agreement will be “very difficult” to secure if Britain does not sign up to honouring Brussels' rules on standards.

Read more here:

Brexit travel update: Quitting EU won’t impact holidays this year

The travel industry is insisting “nothing will change” for holidaymakers once the UK withdraws from the EU at the end of January.

Travel trade association Abta updated its Brexit advice to state that the expected 11-month transition period means “arrangements will remain the same at least until the end of December”.

This replaces the organisation’s previous guidance which warned of potential changes to areas such as passport validity, European Health Insurance Cards (EHIC), driving licences, taking pets abroad and data roaming.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “The UK is primed to enter a new Brexit phase from 31 January when trade talks begin, and when it does nothing will change when it comes to travel.

“This means that valid passports can still be used, EHIC cards will still be valid and the same gates can be used at border check points. People can continue to make their travel plans with confidence that things won’t change until at least the end of 2020.”