Brexit news: Theresa May warns against no-deal Brexit as Tory leadership race swells to 10 candidates
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Theresa May has warned her successor against pursuing a no-deal Brexit as the EU rebuffed the hopes of Tory leadership contenders by refusing to reopen talks.
Ms May told reporters in Brussels that the next Tory leader must "get a consensus" as the number of Conservatives jockeying to replace her reached double figures.
Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt, one of the candidates, warned the Tories a no-deal exit would be "catastrophic", in a warning to rivals such as Esther McVey who are actively pursuing such an outcome.
Elsewhere, Speaker John Bercow fanned the flames by telling an audience in Washington that it would "inconceivable" for parliament to lack a voice over the shape of Brexit.
In another dramatic day in Westminster, the equality watchdog announced a formal investigation into antisemitism in Labour, while the Muslim Council of Britain demanded the Conservatives face a probe into claims of Islamophobia.
Tony Blair's former spin doctor Alistair Campbell was also expelled from Labour after admitting he voted for the Liberal Democrats in the European election
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Diane Abbott has revealed Labour is now committed to offering the public a referendum on any Brexit deal.
The shadow home secretary told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme her party was now supporting a Final Say vote even on a deal that Labour has negotiated.
The party previously said it would only want a public vote on a Conservative deal or to avoid a no-deal exit.
But after a “disappointing set of results” in the European Parliament elections, Ms Abbot said: “What we’re saying is that we do want to have a People’s Vote on any deal, and I think that’s clear enough.”
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (Leon Neal/Getty)
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has faced mounting pressure to make a Final Say referendum a condition of Labour support for any Brexit deal.
Senior figures including shadow chancellor John McDonnell, shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry and deputy leader Tom Watson have joined calls for a public vote.
It comes after an exodus of Remain voters consigned the party to its worst national election result since 1910, writes Andrew Woodcock.
Jeremy Hunt (Matt Dunham/AP)
Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned a general election would be “catastrophic”.
The Tory leadership contender told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I’m worried that if we don’t solve it [Brexit], we will face a political crisis that is far bigger actually than our legal relationship with the EU, it could lead to the destruction of our party system and the end of my own party.
“I’ve always believed we should keep no deal on the table, I’ve always thought that’s the best way of getting a good deal and I’ve always thought that ultimately our economy would find a way to flourish even with the shock of no deal, but the biggest risk to Brexit now is...a general election.”
He added: “We must not go back to the electorate asking for their mandate until we’ve delivered what we promised we would do last time, which is to deliver Brexit, it would be absolutely catastrophic for us as a party.”
Jeremy Hunt warned the Conservative Party would be committing “political suicide” if it pursued a no-deal Brexit in the wake of a calamitous showing at the European elections.
Writing in The Daily Telegraph, the foreign secretary also claimed the Tories would be “annihilated” and “face extinction” if a general election were called before Brexit is delivered.
“Any candidate for prime minister whose strategy leads to a general election is offering a prospectus for disaster,” Mr Hunt wrote.
More on this from Tom Embury-Dennis:
Michael Gove will offer free UK citizenship to three million European Union (EU) nationals if elected Conservative Party leader, a source close to the environment secretary has confirmed.
People from the 27 EU nations who were resident in the UK at the time of the June 2016 referendum would be eligible for a British passport under the scheme.
Under Mr Gove’s plan, the EU nationals would not have to pay a £1,330 fee when eligible for naturalisation in 2021 because they resided in the United Kingdom when the referendum was held in June 2016.
The Surrey Heath MP is running to replace Theresa May as prime minister and Conservative Party leader in a crowded field of competitors which also includes Boris Johnson.
Our reporter Zamira Rahim has more on this:
Michael Gove (Reuters/Russell Cheyne)
(AP/Alastair Grant)
Prime minister Theresa May announced her resignation on Friday, saying she will step down as leader of the Conservative Party on 7 June.
It came after House of Commons leader Andrea Leadsom resigned, while other cabinet ministers including Jeremy Hunt and Sajid Javid sought private meetings with the prime minister to tell her they could not support her exit deal, and many MPs stepped up their calls for her to go.
The leadership contest will officially begin on 10 June, three days after Ms May officially steps down. She will then stay on as prime minister until a new leader is elected.
Our political correspondent Benjamin Kentish explains everything you need to know about what will happen next and how a leadership contest works here.
And here's a list of who's vying to succeed Ms May as prime minister by Andrew Grice.
(Kirsty O'Connor/PA)
Former prime minister Tony Blair said he voted Labour in the European elections “without great enthusiasm” as he pushed for the party to throw its weight behind a referendum.
He said Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn “has got to come to a clear position”, telling Sky News: “The one that is very obvious is that both party leaderships have made the same mistake, which is to think that it’s possible to sit on the fence on Europe and appeal to both sides.
“What the European elections show you is that isn’t possible.”
Kit Malthouse has become the tenth candidate to join the Conservative leadership race to succeed Theresa May.
Throwing his hat into the ring, the housing minister promised to bring “fresh new ideas” to the debate and said he was representing a “new and talented generation” of Tory MPs.
Mr Malthouse is best known for his role in bringing together Leave and Remain Tory MPs to draw up the so-called “Malthouse Compromise” in a bid to secure the House of Commons’ support for Ms May’s Brexit deal.
Our political correspondent Benjamin Kentish has more on this:
(Conservative Party/PA)Tory leadership contest: Kit Malthouse becomes 10th candidate in race to replace Theresa May
Rory Stewart is urging anyone who wants to speak to him to head down to Kew Gardens in southwest London, where he’ll be for the next hour.
The international development secretary is one of the candidates running in the Conservative leadership race to replace Theresa May when she steps down.
He tweeted a video of himself in Kew Gardens, saying his surroundings were “an amazing reminder for me of just what amazing things we have in this country and how much we can be if we come together”.
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