Boris Johnson avait dit qu'il n'avait pas l'intention de demander une nouvel extension de l'article 50 à Bruxelles. Interrogé par une députée travailliste, il vient d'apporter une nuance de taille : si le Parlement vote un texte le contraignant à réclamer un nouveau délai aux partenaires européens, "bien sûr que nous nous conformerons à la constitution et respecterons la loi", a assuré le Premier ministre. En revanche, il estime que ce serait une erreur.

En tout cas on voit une chose de sûre c'est que c'est compliqué de quitter un mastodonte qu'est l'Europe. Vraiment compliqué.

Gove concludes by saying a no-deal Brexit would pose undoubted risks and real challenges for the UK. But he says there would also be opportunities.

We want Michael Gove’s hypocrisy to be seen from space

Yesterday a story in the Financial Times (paywall) said that Gove had been planning to publish the document today, but that he had dropped the idea because it was too negative. Here is an extract from George Parker’s story.
 
Mr Gove, minister for no-deal planning, had been expected to publish extracts of the document on Tuesday as part of his efforts to prepare the UK for the possibility of Brexit taking place without an agreement on October 31.
 
Government officials worked throughout the weekend overhauling the Operation Yellowhammer document, and Mr Gove had hoped to use the work to prove that he had a grip on potential no-deal problems.
 
But, on Monday, Mr Gove and fellow cabinet ministers decided to abandon Tuesday’s publication of the document. “The meeting didn’t go well,” said one person close to the meeting. “The whole thing was seen as far too pessimistic about no deal.”

John Crace @JohnJCrace
 
Boris Johnson is really struggling here. It’s as if his own MPs have just woken up to the fact he’s a bit shit

Peter Walker @peterwalker99
 
I haven't seen a prime minister take such as kicking in the Commons as Boris Johnson is experiencing now since... well, probably since the last time Theresa May stood at the despatch box. But you know what I mean.

Lewis Goodall @lewis_goodall
 
He has never been an especially effective Commons performer. Chamber doesn't play to his strengths. He needs laughter, an audience which wants to play along and give him energy. Today he's getting the exact opposite.

Jonathan Freedland @Freedland
 
The quiet precision of Philip Hammond, David Gauke, Yvette Cooper, Hilary Benn and others is exposing Johnson's bluster to damning effect

Tony Connelly @tconnellyRTE
 
“The one message that came back very forcefully from the meeting was that there are no concrete proposals,” says one source.  “Nothing has been put on the table, not even a proper sketch or hint of a plan.  We’re waiting. But for the moment there is zilch.” 6/

Tony Connelly
@tconnellyRTE
Breaking: EU member states have been told by the European Commission Task Force that the UK under Boris Johnson is renegeging on its commitments to protect the all-Ireland economy and meaningful North-South cooperation, as enshinred in the Joint Report of December 2017 1/

Tony Connelly
@tconnellyRTE
An EU source said 2 warnings from the Commission set "alarm bells" ringing: that Johnson was reducing the ambition of the Joint Report (no hard border, protecting North South cooperation + the all island economy) to a pledge to have trade that is "as frictionless as possible" 2/

Tony Connelly
(@tconnellyRTE)
Secondly the UK is now resisting the ambition of having a “legally operable” solution for border in the event of a renegotiated Withdrawal Agreement, instead pushing for what was described as “aspirational” measures to avoid a hard border. 3/

Tony Connelly
(@tconnellyRTE)
The warnings came during a 90-minute briefing of diplomats from EU27 member states by a senior figure from the European Commission Task Force 4/

Tony Connelly
(@tconnellyRTE)
The overall message was that the UK has not brought forward any concrete proposals to replace the backstop. 5/

Letwin says he has proposed his plan because of four facts.
 
First, the government has not come up with a plan for a Brexit deal, he says.
 
Second, he says this week is the last chance MPs will have to block a no-deal Brexit.
 
Third, he says the government has said it is willing to go ahead with no-deal.
 
And, fourth, he says a no-deal would be a serious threat to the country.
 
He says Boris Johnson is like someone standing on one side of a canyon shouting to people on the other side that, if they do not do as he says, he will jump off.