POLITICO London Playbook: PM in Argentina — Fox out of the box — Parliament ready to take back control

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By JACK BLANCHARD

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Good Friday morning. It’s St Andrew’s Day.

DRIVING THE DAY

BUENOS DÍAS: Theresa May arrived in Argentina this morning with a stern message that she will not compromise with Labour to get her Brexit deal through parliament. The PM is in Buenos Aires for the G20 summit and told reporters onboard her RAF Voyager flight that Jeremy Corbyn has offered no “proper alternative” to her agreement with Europe.

“I’ve been very clear about my position, we won’t be in the customs union,” she told the traveling lobby. “You talk about if a Norway-style strategy would bring Labour along with it — if you look at the Labour Party amendment to the motion on the 11th of December, actually what they are doing is advocating rejecting the deal we’ve negotiated.” And she refused to even discuss any Plan B if she loses the vote, complaining: “It has always been said we wouldn’t get to this position of having a deal. Now we’ve got to the position of having a deal, all you seem to want to be asking about is the next stage.” Sorry about that, prime minister. The Guardian’s Jessica Elgot has the story.

Message to MPs: May also used her onboard huddle with journos to warn that Britain faces “division and uncertainty” if MPs reject her Brexit deal. In a direct message to her party, she said: “I ask every member of parliament to think about delivering on the Brexit vote, and doing it in a way that is in the national interest, and doing it in a way that is in the interests of their constituents, because it protects the jobs and livelihoods of their constituents.” The BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg has more on that.

Still want more? May will give interviews to British TV crews in Buenos Aires this morning — expect them to start dropping on your screens anytime from noon onwards. She will also give a press conference tomorrow night — her third in less than three weeks — before she flies home.

Summit going on: Officials say the PM will hold as many as six bilateral meetings with G20 leaders over the next two days, although there will be no one-to-one with either Donald Trump or Vladimir Putin. Talks with Argentine President Mauricio Macri should definitely happen, however, and she will meet Canadian PM Justin Trudeau tomorrow. Sadly there’s been no confirmation of the big Brexit love-in with Japanese PM Shinzō Abe as yet. But as the Times’ Francis Elliott reports, her main aim will be to show MPs and voters back home that she can sell the prospect of post-Brexit trade deals on the world stage.

Another proud day for Britain: Overshadowing all her other conversations at the summit however will be May’s decision to meet today with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, despite the mountain of evidence suggesting he ordered the brutal murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey last month. May told journalists on the flight: “I am intending to speak with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia. The message that I give will be very clear … In relation to Khashoggi we want to see a full and transparent investigation into what happened, and obviously those responsible being held to account.” Which is going to be kind of difficult, given most observers think the crown prince himself was responsible, and that the crown prince himself needs holding to account.

On the other hand: May said it is important to keep engaging with the Saudis, as she wants to press for a political solution to the war in Yemen. “On the issue of the Yemen, we continue to be deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation,” she said. “The long-term solution for the Yemen is a political solution, and we’ll be encouraging all parties to work for that.”

Not engaging with anyone: German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose plane to Argentina developed a fault shortly after takeoff and had to turn back. She is spending the night in a hotel in Bonn and will try again this morning, the BBC reports. She must be devastated to be missing a precious few hours with Trump, Putin, May and co.

Speaking of Trump: The U.S. president’s bromance with Jean-Claude Juncker will be on show again in Argentina this weekend, POLITICO’s David Herszenhorn and Daniel Lippman report. “It’s a pairing that’s weird, but somehow it seems to be a hit,” David and Daniel muse. “Trump — rather approvingly — has called Juncker a ‘brutal killer’ and also a ‘great businessman,’ even though Juncker … spent his entire life in politics. Officials in Brussels and Washington say their acquaintances-with-benefits arrangement — calling it friendship would be taking it too far — put at least a temporary halt to an escalating trade war.”

Not so loving: Trump has canceled plans for a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, officially over the latest crisis in Ukraine. It would take someone far more cynical than Playbook to suggest the real reason might be the damning new revelations about Trump’s business dealings in Russia, over which his personal lawyer Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to lying about yesterday. The latest jaw-dropper landed from BuzzFeed late last night — the site reports Trump’s company planned to give a $50 million penthouse to Putin, as it negotiated the Trump Tower Moscow development midway through the 2016 campaign.

Correction of the day: Comes via the Wall Street Journal.

BACK HOME IN BREXIT BRITAIN

FOX OUT OF THE BOX: Today is international trade day in the No. 10 PR grid, and so Liam Fox takes the stage to give a warm but belated endorsement of the PM’s Brexit deal. Speaking in Bristol, the international trade secretary — and loyal May ally — will issue his own message to fellow Tory Brexiteers to get behind the deal. “The deal we’ve reached will give us a firm and stable base on which to leave the EU and build this country’s global future,” he will say. “Now is the time to set aside our differences … In politics, we cannot always have the luxury of doing what we want for ourselves — but we have an abiding duty to do what is right for our country.” The Indy’s Joe Watts has more.

What’s going on? As the FT’s George Parker and Laura Hughes report this morning, No. 10’s decision to activate Fox is part of a wider plan to use Cabinet Brexiteers to try to win back their fellow Euroskeptics in the party. The FT reports that Environment Secretary Michael Gove will be dispatched to TV studios this weekend — though that has not yet been confirmed to Playbook — before Attorney General Geoffrey Cox unveils (an edited version of) his legal advice to MPs on Monday.

How not to win people over: We got a real masterclass last night from the new Brexit secretary, Steve Barclay, who *actually tweeted* this pseudo-corporate gobbledygook in an attempt to sell May’s deal on social media. He is now busy attempting to set the world record for the worst replies/retweet ratio of all time. And rightly so.

Plenty of work to do: The number of Tory MPs who have spoken out against the deal has now hit 100, according to BuzzFeed’s Alex Wickham, who has been keeping track on behalf of the lobby. The Telegraph marks the occasion by splashing the story this morning.

The Brexit Grinch: The i’s Nigel Morris has spoken to Tory MPs who say whips are threatening to drag MPs back early from their Christmas holidays if they don’t vote the deal through on December 11. Will we all be having jerk turkey for Christmas lunch this year?

Calm down everyone: Playbook can reassure worried MPs that to deliver on this threat, the government would have to put forward a motion amending the Commons timetable and get it passed on the floor of the House. And frankly there’s more chance of turkeys voting for Christmas than politicians voting to skip their own festive break.

Inside the whips’ office: Lots of color in a piece on the Tory whipping operation filed this morning by Bloomberg’s Robert Hutton and Kitty Donaldson. “On the office mantelpiece of Julian Smith, the U.K. government’s chief whip, are two of the instruments of torture from which his job takes its name,” they report. “One has a bone handle. The other is plaited black leather, with metal studs. But as he tries to save both his own job and that of the prime minister, Smith seems to be relying more on persuasion than the prospect of pain to rally support for Theresa May’s Brexit deal.” The report also features an interview with opposition whip Mark Tami about the best way to pick off prospective rebels.

Elsewhere in Brexit: The Guardian splashes on a report that Heath Secretary Matt Hancock has convinced the Home Office to double the number of non-EU doctors allowed into Britain to cope with predicted staff shortages after Brexit … There’s still no breakthrough in the Brexit TV debate saga … and Newsnight is having to defend itself after it emerged a vicar who appeared on the show to advocate for Theresa May’s deal also works as a part-time actor. You’ll be utterly shocked to hear Remainiac Andrew Adonis is leading the charge against the Beeb.

TAKING BACK CONTROL

ONE TO WATCH: It may be wise to keep a close eye on a techy but potentially important amendment to the “meaningful vote” issued by a crossbench group of Remainers last night. Led by Commons Brexit committee Chairman Hilary Benn, the amendment first calls on parliament to reject both May’s Brexit deal and also any no-deal scenario — nothing too surprising there. But interestingly it also creates the space for MPs to take a much more prominent role in guiding what happens next, if the PM cannot get her Brexit deal through this month.

How it works: Under the terms of the EU (Withdrawal) Act passed earlier this year, if May loses the meaningful vote on December 11 — and cannot get her plan through on subsequent attempts, either — she must return to the Commons in January with a written statement setting out her proposed next steps. The act says she must also hold a debate on a “neutral motion” a week or so later (probably around January 16), so that MPs at least get a chance to have their say. But the proposals issued by Hilary Benn last night would make that “neutral motion” amendable — meaning MPs would not just debate the next steps, but actually be allowed to put forward their own proposals for what the government should do. There could be, say, an amendment seeking a second referendum, or a Norway-plus style deal, or an extension to Article 50, or whatever else MPs might fancy. In this scenario — with May (or whoever is PM) unable to get her plan through the Commons, and Britain just 10 weeks from Brexit — parliament would have the chance to assert its authority on the direction the country was headed.

It sounds boring but: This techy stuff is going to matter. As Philip Collins puts it neatly in his Times column this morning: “In the end, this wretched saga may well be settled by process. The defining power could be command of parliamentary procedure. Erskine May is going to count for more than Theresa May.”

So will the amendment pass? Several other select committee chairs have signed Benn’s amendment, including Tory Sarah Wollaston, and former Attorney General Dominic Grieve has also put his name down. With these sorts of big hitters involved, the amendment will surely be selected for a vote by Commons Speaker John Bercow. And Labour’s Shadow Brexit Secretary Keir Starmer — who knows a thing or two about legal process — tweeted his approval last night and pledged Labour support. If other Remainer Tories get on board, it has a decent chance of overturning May’s majority and passing on December 11.

Caveat: Could May (or some other PM) just ignore the will of parliament at that late stage? Goodness only knows.

Second referendum-watch: The Guardian says Remainers are at loggerheads over when to make their big play for a second referendum … While the Times says Brussels will help out by offering an extension to Article 50 until the summer, if Britain is keen to hold another vote … or indeed pivot to a Norway-plus model.

**Should the EU have its own tax scheme to make sure big companies pay their fair share of taxes? Or these legal loopholes be left intact? Watch POLITICO’s Coffee Break live at 10 a.m. on Twitter to tell us what you think how Europe should legislate this tax black hole. Our reporters Kait Bolongaro and Bjarke Smith-Meyer will also debate global environmental ambitions at COP24 and protests in France.**

TODAY IN WESTMINSTER

PARLIAMENT: Not sitting today.

BIG NEWS FROM THE FCO: Just a few days after Playbook noted the plum “head of news” job at the Foreign Office has now been vacant for almost a year, we hear that a replacement for the long-departed Simon McGee has at last been found. And it’s his former deputy, long-suffering acting head of news Matt Houlsby, who has landed the job on a permanent basis. Houlsby, a career diplomat who previously held postings in Baghdad and Beijing, tells Playbook he’s delighted to get “the job that nobody wants” and has wisely gone on leave immediately following his appointment. Many congrats.

POLITICS IS WEIRD, PT 4,872: Donations to the Labour Party before 11 a.m. this morning get you, erm, a free calendar featuring photos of “Labour cats” or “Labour dogs.” The perfect present for the animal-loving Corbynista in your life. Or something.

ICYMI YESTERDAY: Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle has given an interview to Daily Mirror Editor Alison Phillips about his “scary” decision to reveal he is HIV-positive while speaking in the Commons chamber. Recalling the moment he was given his diagnosis as a 22-year-old student, he says: “I remember them saying, ‘we have got some bad news’ and ‘is there anyone you will be able to talk to afterwards?’ and I just said ‘Yeh, yeh just tell me what it is.’ And when they do, it hits you like a wall. My first feeling was this is some joke, this is some candid camera, and someone is going to pop around the corner and say ‘Surprise.'”

WELCOME TO THE 20TH CENTURY: The press gallery elected its new ruling committee yesterday … and for what Playbook can only assume is the first time ever, more than half are now women. It’s a small step forward for one of parliament’s most archaic institutions.

HALF MAN, HALF APP: Health Secretary Matt Hancock is in a spot of bother after endorsing a private health care app in a newspaper supplement sponsored by the developer. Labour reckons it’s a breach of the ministerial code. HuffPost’s Jasmin Gray has more.

SPEAKING OF APPS: Snapchat boss Evan Spiegel is among the speakers at the Paley International Council Summit in London this morning, alongside Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright, Britain’s European Commissioner Julian King and Tortoise media boss James Harding.

MEDIA ROUND

International Trade Secretary Liam Fox broadcast round: Today program (8.10 a.m.) … LBC Radio (8.30 a.m.).

Also on the Today Program: Former U.K. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw (7.30 a.m.) … Labour MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle (8.20 a.m.).

Also on Nick Ferrari at Breakfast (LBC Radio): Former Trump adviser Sebastian Gorka (7.05 a.m.) … Tory Remainer Justine Greening (7.50 a.m.) … Labour group leader at the London Assembly Len Duvall discusses armed police patrols (8.05 a.m.).

TalkRADIO: Labour Leave Chairman Brendan Chilton (7.05 a.m.) … Labour peer and Brexit spokeswoman Dianne Hayter (8.05 a.m.) … Sky News’ Adam Boulton talks TV debates (8.25 a.m.).

All Out Politics (Sky News (10 a.m.): Lawyer and campaigner Miriam González Durántez (10.10. a.m.) … Former Conservative Home chief Tim Montgomerie and columnist Jane Merrick review the newspaper comment sections (10.15 a.m.) … Channel 4’s Lindsey Hilsum discusses her new book on the life of war correspondent Marie Colvin (10.45 a.m.).

Politics Live (BBC2, 12.15 p.m.): Conservative Home’s Mark Wallace … writer Maya Goodfellow … Telegraph Women’s Editor Claire Cohen … and comedian Matt Forde.

The Matthew Wright Show (TalkRADIO): Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell (1.30 p.m.).

Any Questions (BBC Radio 4, 8 p.m.): Broadcast tonight from the University of East London are … Tory MEP Dan Hannan … Shadow Treasury Minister Clive Lewis … Columnist Yasmin Alibhai-Brown … Crossbench peer and historian Peter Hennessy.

Reviewing the papers tonight: BBC News (10.45 p.m. & 11.30 p.m.): Daily Telegraph columnist Tim Stanley and Daily Mirror columnist Susie Boniface … Sky News (10.30 p.m. & 11.30 p.m.): Political consultant Nina Schick and former UKIP aide Michael Heaver.

TODAY’S FRONT PAGES

(Click on the publication’s name to see its front page.)

City A.M.: Mauled — Landlord shares sink as Intu takes a beating.

Daily Express: Soldier’s damning letter every MP must read.

Daily Mail: An insult to every rail user.



Daily Mirror: Left to rot — Scandal of children who need all their teeth removing.

Financial Times: Unilever chief to step down after defeat over Rotterdam HQ.



HuffPost U.K.: Health Secretary Hancock “broke ministerial code” by backing firm.

i: Christmas will be canceled, Tory MPs told.

Metro: Farce show — TV debate row.

The Daily Telegraph: Hundred Tory MPs denounce May’s deal.

The Guardian: Limits on non-EU doctors to be relaxed to plug NHS gaps.

The Independent: NHS to prescribe diet shakes in diabetes fight.

The Sun: Seann gets Strictly kiss-off — BBC bars love rat from tour.

The Times: Police to be armed in crackdown on gangs.



On the Continent: Read what the rest of Europe’s papers are saying in POLITICO’s EU press review blog here (updated daily at around 8 a.m.).

TODAY’S NEWS MAGS

The Economist: Chip wars — America, China and silicon supremacy.

THANK POD IT’S FRIDAY

All Out Politics: Sky News’ Adam Boulton is joined by academics Philip Cowley and Joelle Grogan to map out what happens next if the Brexit deal is rejected.

Chopper’s Brexit Podcast: The Telegraph’s Christopher Hope interviews Brexiteer leader Jacob Rees-Mogg … Brexit Minister Chris Heaton-Harris … Leavers of Britain founder Lucy Harris … and U.K. Music boss Michael Dugher.

EU Confidential: POLITICO’s Ryan Heath discusses diversity in Brussels with Edelman’s Lisa Ross and Gurpreet Brar.

Iain Dale’s Book Club: The LBC Radio host is joined by colleague James O’Brien … TV presenter Dan Snow … BBC exec Kamal Ahmed … and political archivist Caroline Shenton.

Political Thinking: The BBC’s Nick Robinson interviews Housing Secretary James Brokenshire.

Politics Home: The team is joined by U.K. in a Changing Europe Director Anand Menon … and interviews Justice Minister Rory Stewart.

Politics — Where Next? Channel 4 Political Editor Gary Gibbon discusses how Brexit will be written up in the history books with crossbench peer and historian Peter Hennessy. (Goes online this afternoon).

The Spectator Podcast: Host Lara Prendergast is joined by guests including academic Matthew Goodwin and Telegraph columnist Liam Halligan.

BEYOND THE M25

From Andalusia

TWO DAYS TO GO: Andalusia goes to the polls on Sunday as Pedro Sánchez faces his first electoral test since becoming Spain’s prime minister. POLITICO’s Diego Torres sets out the five key issues to watch for, from the rise of the far right to the impact of Catalonia’s bid for secession.

From across Europe

HOT TOPIC: Countries across Europe are refusing to sign the U.N.’s new global compact on Migration next month under pressure from the populist far right. POLITICO’s Eline Schaart has more.

ANTI-SEMITISM ON THE RISE: CNN International is running a special report on the rise of anti-Semitism across Europe at 7.30 p.m. tonight. A survey of more than 7,000 adults across seven European countries — Britain, France, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Sweden and Austria — found more than a quarter of people believed Jews have too much influence in business and finance, and one in five said Jews have too much influence in the media and politics. More details in this special new section of the CNN website.

YOUR WEEKEND IN POLITICS

SUMMIT GOING ON: The G20 summit continues tomorrow in Buenos Aires, where Theresa May will hold a series of bilateral meetings with world leaders ahead of a press conference at around 7 p.m. U.K. time.

HIT THE ROAD, MACK: Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell is in Blackpool tomorrow for a Labour Party conference on the impact of austerity on local communities.

SUNDAY SHOWS LOOK-AHEAD: Sophy Ridge has Tory Party Chairman Brandon Lewis confirmed … The Marr Show has Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and excitable Norwich City fan Delia Smith, with some actual politicians to follow … Nothing from Pienaar as yet … and on Sunday night the Westminster Hour has former Cabinet Minister Stephen Crabb and Lib Dem rising star Layla Moran … All line-ups subject to change, and with many more guests to be announced.

LONDON CALLING

Westminster weather: ⛅️⛅️⛅️ Finally, a much better day. Should stay dry, with decent spells of sunshine and highs of 11C. Moderate breeze.



Spotted: At last night’s terrific carol service at the journalists’ church, St Bride’s of Fleet Street, organized by the “Elizabeth’s Legacy of Hope” charity, were … Daily Telegraph Chief Political Correspondent Christopher Hope, and extended family … Actress Joanna Lumley, who read “Amazing Peace: A Christmas Poem” by the legendary Maya Angelou … The Sun’s Harry Cole … and the IEA’s Nerissa Chesterfield … Finsbury PR guru Roland Rudd … and dressmaker Rachel Hale … Former Cabinet Minister Cheryl Gillan, who read from Luke 1:26 … Tory SpAds Tim Smith, Ed Jones and James Price … and former SpAds Mo Hussain — now with event sponsor PLMR — and Stephanie Lis … PLMR boss Kevin Craig … Writer and broadcaster Rhidian Brook, who read “Christmas Bells” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow … Daily Telegraph Deputy Editor Robert Winnett, Associate Editor Camilla Tominey and Brexit Commissioning Editor Asa Bennett … The FT’s Political Correspondent Laura Hughes … ERG spin king Christopher Montgomery … FT columnist and former Telegraph City Editor Neil Collins … Playbook’s fabulous other half Emily … and many more.

Also spotted: At last night’s charity quiz in memory of legendary No. 10 aide Chris Martin, hosted by quizmaster Ed Balls and held at the National Cyber Security Center in Victoria were … BBC journos Zoe Conway, Nick Robinson and Sarah Smith … Comedian and columnist Ayesha Hazarika … Former Cameron spinners Craig Oliver and Graeme Wilson … IMF Director and former No. 10 spokesman Steve Field … and his successor Jean-Christophe Gray … Labour adviser Damian McBride, whose team won for the second year on the trot … Lloyds Bank’s Ben Brogan … PLMR’s Mo Hussain, again … Citizen’s Advice’s Katie Martin … New CCHQ comms chief Caroline Preston … Tory peer Liz Sugg … Prince William’s private secretary Simon Case … Labour MP Stella Creasy … Uber’s Adam Atashzai … and many more.

Also spotted: Hoards of thirsty SW1-ers piling into The Speaker on Great Peter Street last night, which has apparently now reopened after its lengthy refurb. Playbook will get down there next week to check they haven’t ruined it.

Also spotted: At last night’s Brunswick Christmas drinks party on Carlton House Terrace, were … CCHQ Director Amy Fisher … and former CCHQ staffers Emma Barr and Bethany Wheatley … No. 10 SpAds Sheridan Westlake and Jimmy McLoughlin … and former No. 10 SpAd Kate Shouesmith … The Adam Smith Institute’s Sophie Jarvis … Freelance journo Marie Le Conte … The U.S. embassy’s Michael Martins … Sun PR chief Andy Silvester … Tory aide Amy Selman … and many more.

New starts: Associated Press has appointed Anna Johnson as its news director for Europe and Africa. Johnson, currently news director for U.S. West, will relocate to London in the new year. Full release here.

Happy birthday to: Former Cabinet Minister Patrick McLoughlin … Wales Minister and Tory Whip Nigel Adams … Barnsley Central MP and Sheffield City Region Mayor Dan Jarvis … East Devon MP Hugo Swire … Former Education Minister David Laws … Ministry of Defense Permanent Secretary Stephen Lovegrove … Labour peer and former Chief Whip Hilary Armstrong … Labour peer David Evans … Natural England Chairman Andrew Sells … Former UKIP leader, Olympic gold medal winner and champion jockey Paul Nuttall.

And celebrating this weekend: Labour MEP Seb Dance … Hereditary peer Jane Heathcote-Drummond-Willoughby, known as Baroness Willoughby de Eresby … Commons environmental audit committee Chairwoman Mary Creagh … Enfield South MP Bambos Charalambous … The i’s Political Editor Nigel Morris … South Norfolk MP Richard Bacon … The Daily Express’ Political Editor Macer Hall … HuffPost’s Political Correspondent Rachel Wearmouth … The Observer’s Policy Editor Michael Savage … Labour MEP Linda McAvan … Former Labour MP Dave Anderson … John Alty, director general of trade policy in the department for international trade … Tory peer Timothy Boswell … Former Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt.

PLAYBOOK COULDN’T HAPPEN WITHOUT: My editor Zoya Sheftalovich.

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