Dominic raab

At a dinner in the Irish embassy in London last November, Dominic Raab believed he was on the brink of a Brexit breakthrough. In a meeting with Simon Coveney, Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Brexit secretary sought to find a compromise on the issue of the backstop. He explained that parliament would never agree an open-ended pledge in the way the EU envisaged: pushing things too far would end in the failure of talks. But Britain could make separate guarantees on the border, he said, leading to a ‘win, win’ for both sides. Coveney seemed interested, and suggested he would consider it. Just days later, the idea was dropped by Leo Varadkar, the Taoiseach. But why?

Dominic Raab -  I'm 'willing to walk away' The starting gun for the Conservative leadership race has been fired and there are currently eight declared hopefuls jockeying for position. Dominic Raab, the former Brexit Secretary, who resigned in protest last year over the government's draft withdrawal agreement, sat down with Andrew Marr to outline his bid for the top job. Unsurprisingly, the issue of where the government now takes the Brexit negotiations featured highly on the agenda: https://twitter.com/BBCPolitics/status/1132579675358674944 AM: What's going to be really different because you're Prime Minister? DR: First of all... we'd be willing to walk away from the negotiations if we don't get very finite, targeted, reasonable change.

Dear Prime Minister, It's been an honour to serve in your government as Justice Minister, Housing Minister and Brexit Secretary. I regret to say that following the Cabinet meeting yesterday on the Brexit deal, I must resign. I understand why you have chosen to pursue the deal with the EU on the terms proposed, and I respect the different views held in good faith by all of our colleagues. For my part, I cannot support the proposed deal for two reasons. First, I believe that the regulatory regime proposed for Northern Ireland presents a very real threat to the integrity of the United Kingdom. Second, I cannot support an indefinite backstop arrangement, where the EU holds a veto over our ability to exit.

Dominic Raab - 'We need to hold our nerve' Andrew Marr was joined by the Brexit Secretary as the deadline for achieving a deal with the European Union draws ever closer. Marr asked Dominic Raab about rumours that the mood in the party is restless enough to trigger a leadership contest against Theresa May, with the influential 1922 Committee of Conservative backbenchers reportedly nearing the critical threshold of 48 signatures. Raab told his colleagues that now was the time 'to play for the team': AM: What is your message to all of your colleagues who look at this and say 'This is a complete shambles'? DR: We're at the end stage of the negotiation. I think it's understandable there are jitters on all sides of this debate. We need to hold our nerve.

After a welcome reprieve from parliamentary scrutiny over the summer, DExEU Secretary Dominic Raab was back in the hot seat today as he took questions from the House of Lords EU committee about the state of Brexit negotiations. While the tone of the questioning was mostly serious, and occasionally antagonistic, Raab couldn’t quite help lightening the mood when talking about his predecessor David Davis. Discussing the flexibility Britain and the EU had demonstrated in order to reach an agreement, Raab pointed out: ‘We’ve made proposals which clearly involve political compromises and pragmatism. That’s why you’re hearing from me, not my predecessor.

The House of Commons breaks for recess on Tuesday, and accordingly the Sunday shows will be taking a break. For his last show until September, Andrew Marr was joined by the Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, who has taken over the reins after David Davis' resignation and has already made the headlines by insisting that the UK could tear up the agreed £39 billion 'divorce bill' if the two sides do not reach a trade deal. Raab told Marr that he was 'striving every sinew' to get the best deal for the United Kingdom, and insisted that his government was on course to agree a deal in the timeframe they expected: DR: We are striving every sinew to get the best deal, but...

Dominic Raab has this morning been appointed as David Davis's successor as Brexit Secretary. Raab moves from his role as minister of state for Housing to his first Cabinet post as Secretary of State for Exiting the EU. Well-liked among colleagues, Raab is someone who is seen to have been consistently overlooked for promotion. He was recently asked in a television interview, why he hadn't been promoted given that he was so consistently loyal in defending the government's position. He is also a savvy hire by No 10 thanks to the fact Raab is a Davis ally and a dedicated Leaver. It will help to send the signal that this is still a Brexit Brexiteers can get behind. Also getting a Brexiteer to take on this job shows that the revolt against the Chequers deal is, still, relatively limited.

Keir Starmer - Tory Remainers should vote with us The week ahead promises a showdown in the House of Commons as the government's EU Withdrawal Bill will face several key votes which could decisively impact the future of Brexit. The votes come after the bill was substantially amended by the House of Lords back in April, with peers notably seeking to keep the UK in the EU's customs union and to give Parliament a 'meaningful say' on the final Brexit deal. Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer joined Andrew Marr to discuss Labour's approach to the bill, with Marr highlighting that Labour was not seizing the opportunity to keep the UK in either the single market or the European Economic Area: https://youtu.be/E2nTJR66vSw AM: You've let the Prime Minister off the hook really, haven't you?

Dominic Raab has found himself the subject of much mockery today after one of his aides allegedly told an undercover reporter about his rather repetitious lunch habits: ‘He has the chicken Caesar and bacon baguette, superfruit pot and the vitamin volcano smoothie, every day. He is so weird. It’s the Dom Raab Special.’ Happily, Mr S's mole reports that he has not been put off – he was spotted back in Pret this lunchtime. Still, just so he is not alone – Mr S has reached out to MPs, ministers, SpAds and staffers to discover the eating habits of Westminster's big beasts: Sadiq Khan: The Mayor of London varies his lunches – in part because he is so often our about – but he always tries to have a fruit salad.

Normally, the Saturday before an autumn statement would be dominated by speculation about what is in it. But, as I say in The Sun today, both Number 10 and the Treasury are emphasising that while there’ll be important things on productivity, infrastructure and fiscal rules in Wednesday’s statement, there’ll be no rabbits out of hats. Partly, this is because of  Philip Hammond’s personality: he’s not a political showman. But it is also because he’s not got much room for manoeuvre.  As he has emphasised to Cabinet colleagues, the growth forecasts might not be dramatically lower than they were in March, but cumulatively they have a big effect—limiting what the government can spend.

With Dominic Raab’s appointment as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Justice, a pattern is starting to emerge in David Cameron’s reshuffle of reconciliations with old foes in a new parliament. Raab organised one of the most effective rebellions of the last Parliament on the Immigration Bill, which left the Tory whips in complete chaos. Now he has been brought into government. Cameron is also - belatedly - handing out jobs to members of the ‘Curry Club’: a group of Conservatives who are pretty savvy at sniffing out policies that won’t work on the doorstep (and who have rather proven this by increasing their majorities).

MPs are preparing to debate devolution this afternoon, with a motion from Dominic Raab which includes a call for a review of the Barnett formula and a resolution to the West Lothian question. It’s a backbench business debate, so it is not binding on the government, but it is causing trouble for a number of reasons. The first is that Raab has managed to get an impressive sweep of the political spectrum on his list of supporters for the amendment. It includes senior Tories such as 1922 Committee chairman Graham Brady, former Attorney General Dominic Grieve (not someone who often agrees with Raab), and Andrew Mitchell. But it also has Frank Field as a co-signatory and a number of other Labour MPs such as Kate Hoey and John Cryer, Lib Dems and Ukip’s Douglas Carswell.

Pint-sized Tory MP Dominic Raab ruffled the feathers of the powerful with his amendment to the Immigration Bill last month, which forced the government into a humiliating abstention. Raab has a growing group of supporters (who call themselves the Raabels) on the backbenches. His popularity has made an impression in the corridors of power. I hear that spinners for one Cabinet minister have taken to turning down broadcast bids by saying: 'Try Dominic Raab, he's always keen for publicity!

Dominic Raab is one of the most impressive members of the Tory back benches, able to pick a string of good fights and – even rarer – able to win them. He’s a black belt and seems to regard politics as karate by other means. He’s a 3rd Dan in fighting and a 10th Dan in rebellion. But his latest victory – forcing the government into a humiliating climbdown over deporting foreign prisoners – was one too far. Thanks to Labour votes, his amendment failed so all he really achieved was embarrassing the Home Secretary. Yes, Raab can fight. Yes, he can win. But in my Daily Telegraph column today, I suggest it’s time for him (and other rebels) to stop.

So now that the Speaker has called Dominic Raab's amendment on deportation, the government whips have a frenzied few hours ahead of them as they try to peel off rebels. But this amendment has 106 signatures (two have joined since yesterday) and the rebels are expecting more to back it too. Labour told Coffee House yesterday that it will not support something that is illegal - but that still leaves room for the party to abstain rather than vote against. So we now have a situation where the amendment that caused all the fuss over the past few months - the Mills amendment on transitional controls for Bulgarian and Romanian migrants - is diminishing in support, while the Raab amendment, which snuck in at the last minute, is growing in power and causing all the fuss at the last minute.