Brexit

Brexit means Brexit. But for some, remembering that definition can be a challenge. For Welsh Tory leader Andrew Davies, it seems Brexit means something else altogether. Davies took to the stage at the Conservative party conference and proudly declared that: 'Mark my words, we will make breakfast..Brexit a success' Davies said after his gaffe that he would 'have a word' with the autocue. But Mr S is glad to see that in spite of his blunder, he still managed to see the funny side: https://twitter.

Theresa May has done enough, for now, to put Brexit into its box. The Prime Minister hasn’t offered up much, but the piecemeal announcements she has made at the Tory party conference - including setting out a rough Article 50 timetable - have helped stave off uncertainty. Crucially, they’ve also kept the Brexit band happy: with the traditional Tory troublemakers using their conference platforms to sing the PM's praises for once rather than stick the knife in. Yet it’s clear that Theresa May wants her time in office to be about more than just the referendum. When she was asked about the Brexit vote, the PM had this to say on the Today show: ‘The vote on 23rd June was not just about leaving the European Union.

Jacob Rees-Mogg has been looking mightily pleased with himself at this year’s Conservative party conference. After the arch-Brexiteer spent years calling for Britain to leave the European Union, his wish was finally granted in June. However, he sill has work to do when it comes to convincing Remain-ers that Brexit will be a good thing. At a Politeia fringe event, Mogg recounted being teased on Question Time for suggesting Britain could get a good trade deal from Europe because French farmers still wanted to flog their champagne to Brits. It turns out that example was 'too posh' for some. So, Mogg revealed his new example to appeal to the common man: claret. This time, he said, it was clear the French still wanted to sell claret to Brits.

Philip Hammond's speech has had a mixed reaction from his MP colleagues, it is fair to say. A number have run up to me and rolled their eyes at how terrible his jokes were, or at his skill in managing to make one of the most important jobs in government sound boring, even telling delegates at one point not to switch off before talking about the very interesting productivity puzzle. One minister mutters that the speech was 'classic Hammond', which was more of a reference to his lack of charisma than his rather downbeat assessment of everything, from how interesting his job is to the consequences of Brexit. It was indeed striking that his assessment of the consequences of Brexit was quite so different to the rather glib picture painted by Boris Johnson yesterday.

A country votes against the EU in a referendum in which rabidly anti-immigrant sentiments are aired by senior politicians. That is Hungary, of course, where voters have just rejected -- with a majority of 98 per cent, albeit it on a turnout of 44 per cent, too low to make it binding  -- an EU plan for the country to house 1200 refugees. Now, perhaps, the Remain camp in Britain will stop trying to portray Britain as a nasty, xenophobic country out of step with European values and admit that actually we are really rather liberal in our attitudes towards migration. The only difference is that we had an in-out referendum on EU membership and no other country has yet done so.

In the run-up to the referendum, Philip Hammond was one of those warning of the dire consequences of a vote to leave the EU. He predicted that Brexit would have a ‘chilling effect’ on the UK economy and said there would be uncertainty for years to come. Since being made Chancellor, Hammond has softened his language about the doom and gloom of Brexit. But only just. This morning, he’s been touring the studios and airwaves ahead of his keynote speech at the Tory party conference in Birmingham. His headline announcement? Ditching the policy put in place by George Osborne to wipe out the deficit by 2020.