Uk politics

One of the better questions at today’s PMQs came from Tory MP Chris Green, who asked about the government’s proposed funding model for refuges. Green was among the Conservatives who last week raised concerns about the plan for local authorities to pay grants to refuges rather than individual places being paid for by a woman’s housing benefit, and he did so again today, asking Theresa May the following: ‘Will my right hon. Friend join me in praising the work of Fortalice, which has provided domestic abuse support in Bolton for 40 years? Will she consider under the current reforms the benefits of a new funding structure for domestic abuse refuges separate from the supported housing sector, so that refuges can continue to deliver their specialist support?

Today the Cabinet finally held its first discussion on what type of relationship the UK should have with the EU post-Brexit. The reason the discussion had been put off for so long is that it is potentially a toxic one – with strong feelings on both sides of the debate. In recent weeks (or months, if you're a regular Coffee House Shots listener) the two tribes in Cabinet have come to be known as the divergers and the aligners. The first camp – composed of the likes of Boris Johnson, Michael Gove and Gavin Williamson – think it's vital that Britain is able to diverge from EU regulations in any trade deal.

Since arriving in Parliament in 2015, Mhairi Black has caused a stir in Westminster. The 23-year-old SNP MP rarely misses the chance to criticise the place – whether it's the 'old and defunct' systems and procedures or the 'sociopaths' that inhabit it. Now it seems that not even her own party is beyond criticism. In an interview with Holyrood magazine, Black recalls an incident involving Alex Salmond, then an SNP MP. The party veteran took Black to lunch in a Commons restaurant, where he offered her some fashion advice: 'I was just sitting chatting away to him and the whole time I’m thinking, what’s the point of this meant to be – is this a date, do I need to come out to Alex Salmond?

Here we go again. Earlier this year, Laura Pidcock caused a stir when the newly-elected Labour MP announced that she could never be friends with a Tory MP. The reason? 'I feel disgusted at the way they’re running this country, it’s visceral – I’m not interested in being cosy.' Although Pidcock has since come under criticism for her narrow world view, it seems she is far from alone in her approach. Appearing on Pienaar's Politics, her Labour comrade Mike Amesbury rules out keeping Tories as friends: JP: Could you have a conservative as a friend? MA: No So much for a kinder, gentler politics...

On Monday, the Brexit inner Cabinet will finally have a proper discussion on what kind of trade deal with the EU, the UK wants. But this meeting won’t settle the question. Rather, it will be the start of a discussion. Inside government, I write in The Sun this morning, an unofficial deadline of mid-January has been set for working out a position agreed by the whole Cabinet. The aim is that this should give the UK government a chance to work out its negotiating strategy before talks proper start in March. Privately, senior figures in Downing Street admit that the government wasn’t as prepared as it should have been for the first round of these negotiations. They are keen not to repeat that mistake in this the second—and more important—phase of the talks.

This week the 'stop Brexit' campaign went into overdrive after the government suffered its first defeat on the EU withdrawal bill – with 11 Tory rebels voting to back an amendment calling for a meaningful vote on the final deal. The whips now have their work cut out trying to prevent a second rebellion next week on Theresa May's own amendment to put the exit date in the bill. However, should Chief Whip Julian Smith's charm offensive fail again, perhaps the government could look to last night's Question Time for back-up.