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A8 WORLD NEWS
Friday 13 September 2019
UK government downplays its own stark no-deal Brexit warning

By JILL LAWLESS emails and texts among of-
Associated Press ficials and aides discussing
LONDON (AP) — The British the government’s decision
government insisted Thurs- to suspend Parliament for
day that its assessment more than a month ahead
there could be food and of the Brexit deadline. Mi-
medicine shortages, grid- chael Gove, the minister in
lock at ports and riots in the charge of Brexit planning,
streets if there is a no-deal said the request was inap-
Brexit is a worst-case sce- propriate and dispropor-
nario, not what is likely to tionate. Johnson insists the
happen. country must leave the EU
The stark picture of disrup- on Oct. 31, with or without a
tion represents the govern- divorce deal to smooth the
ment’s “reasonable worst way. But many lawmakers
case scenario” for leaving fear a no-deal Brexit would
the European Union on Oct. be economically devastat-
31 without a divorce agree- ing, and are determined to
ment The government was stop him.
forced to publish the docu- Opposition lawmakers and
ment late Wednesday after rebel Conservatives have
lawmakers demanded it. dealt the government’s
Opposition politicians said The statue of former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill is silhouetted against the sky early Brexit plans a series of
the “Operation Yellow- morning in London, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019. blows. They passed a law
hammer” document — the Associated Press that orders the government
government’s code name Defense Secretary Ben between Calais and Dover ers between Britain and the to seek a three-month de-
for its Brexit preparations Wallace said the scenario would drop by between EU, uncertainty for U.K. citi- lay to Brexit if no agree-
— proved that Prime Minis- was a “planning assump- 40% and 60% within a day zens living in Europe, and ment has been reached
ter Boris Johnson is reckless tion” and would only come of a no-deal Brexit, with dis- says attempts to maintain by late October, rejected
to consider leaving the EU true if the government did ruptions possibly lasting up an open border between Johnson’s call for a snap
without a deal. nothing to mitigate it. to three months. The sup- Ireland and Northern Ire- general election and or-
Former Attorney General “We are spending the mon- ply of certain types of fresh land would probably fail. dered the release of the
Dominic Grieve said it was ey on doing lots of things foods and essential medi- It also says a no-deal exit Yellowhammer document.
extraordinary that a British to mitigate those assump- cines would decrease, could trigger major protests Then on Tuesday Johnson
government “is content on tions,” he told the BBC. prices would go up and and even riots. suspended Parliament for
inflicting on the British pub- The six-page classified doc- poor people would be hit The government refused five weeks until Oct. 14,
lic the level of disruption ument, dated Aug. 2, said hardest, it said. to comply with another sparking outrage among
which is set out in the Yel- the number of trucks cross- The paper also describes part of Parliament’s de- legislators and several legal
lowhammer papers.” ing the main freight route major disruption for travel- mand — that it hand over challenges.q

EU Parliament chief questions ‘European Way of Life’ title

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Works for People.” which this union is built,”
Associated Press Sassoli invited von der Ley- said Philippe Lamberts, the
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Euro- en to attend a Sept. 19 president of the Greens
pean Parliament’s presi- meeting of political group group at the European Par-
dent said Thursday that he chiefs at the European Par- liament. “Von der Leyen
will meet with incoming Eu- liament to discuss the issue. must present a better pro-
ropean Commission chief Von der Leyen unveiled the posal” next week.
Ursula von der Leyen to team of commissioners she Asked whether the Europe-
discuss her contentious de- wants to work with over the an Commission was consid-
cision to nominate a com- next five years earlier this ering a name change for
missioner responsible for week. The names she has the highly political portfolio,
“protecting our European put forward should get ap- spokeswoman Mina Andre-
Way of Life.” proval from the European eva said no quick decision
The name for the proposed Parliament. would be made but the
commission portfolio, Some critics said the name commission was listening to
which includes migration, of the portfolio to be held the different points of view.
has caused an outcry, with by Greek nominee Mar- Speaking to Euronews TV
critics considering it a con- European Parliament President David Sassoli talks to journalists garitis Schinas is an insult channel, Juncker said he
cession to far-right, anti-mi- during a news conference at the European Parliament in to European values and didn’t agree with the new
grant ideas. Brussels, Thursday, Sept. 12, 2019. has been chosen to please name of the portfolio be-
European Parliament Presi- Associated Press the far-right at a time when cause “accepting those
dent David Sassoli told re- the “bizarre” titles of some names,” he said. populist and xenophobic coming from far away in
porters he decided to seek portfolios. In addition to the “Protect- ideas are on the rise across Europe is part of the Euro-
a meeting with von der “I assume that probably ing Our European Way of the continent. pean way of life.”
Leyen, who will succeed in the rush to give names Life” portfolio, von der Ley- “An all-white European He said he believed the
Jean-Claude Juncker as to these portfolios there en’s proposed commission Commission claiming to portfolio title did not corre-
commission president on was a slightly casual ap- also includes job titles such protect ‘our European way spond to Schinas’ own val-
Nov. 1, after several politi- proach and we ended up as “Europe fit for the digital of life’ is a far cry from the ues and “I think that this will
cal groups commented on with these rather bizarre age” or “An Economy That idea of unity in diversity on have to be changed.”q