Boris Johnson news – live: No 10 chaos branded ‘pathetic’ by Starmer as Ireland warns of no-deal Brexit

Generation must pass before second Scottish independence referendum, Gove insists

A full generation must pass before a second Scottish independence referendum can be considered, Michael Gove has said.

The Cabinet Office minister insisted on Thursday that it was too soon to hold another vote as it had only been six years since the 2014 referendum.

Our reporter, Tim Wyatt, has the full story below:

A minister has said families “do tend to squabble a little bit” after being challenged over the power struggle in Downing Street which is thought to have led to the resignation of director of communications Lee Cain.

Lord Greenhalgh, a Tory frontbencher, made the comment while responding to a question in the House of Lords on the plight of rough sleepers during England’s second lockdown.

Opposition spokesperson Lord Kennedy of Southwark said: “The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting longer and colder, and what do we have? Squabbling in Number 10, a shambolic government with no homeless tsar in post.”

Lord Greenhalgh replied: “Families do tend to squabble a little bit but that’s nothing to do with the massive ambition we have to end rough sleeping.”

China’s ambassador to the UK has suggested that ministers should not intervene in the country’s “internal affairs” after four opposition MPs were expelled from the Hong Kong parliament.

Liu Xiaoming was summoned to the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office after Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, denounced the expulsions as a “clear breach” of the Sino-British Joint Declaration on Hong Kong.

“The qualification of Hong Kong legislative council members is purely an internal affair of China,” Mr Liu said.

“No foreign country has the right to intervene in the matter.”

Chancellor Rishi Sunak is not happy with suggestions that he might bring back a version of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme next year to kickstart the economy again…

The government has given the go-ahead for a controversial plan to dig a road tunnel near the prehistoric monument of Stonehenge.

The decision, made by transport secretary Grant Shapps, was announced in a written statement to the Commons by transport minister Andrew Stephenson.

Our reporter, Samuel Osborne, has more on the story below:

Earlier this year, there was a surge in support for Scottish independence – in part due to widespread dissatisfaction with the UK government in the country.

However, a YouGov poll out today shows support for leaving the UK decreasing slightly to just 51 per cent.

Senior Conservative backbencher Sir Roger Gale has said Boris Johnson needs to “get a grip” on the power struggle in Downing Street, which he warned was a “distraction” from the coronavirus pandemic and Brexit negotiations.

“The government, and Downing Street particularly, should be concentrating all of its efforts on the pandemic and on the end game of Brexit, and frankly this is a distraction that cannot and should not be allowed to take place, and the prime minister has got to get a grip on it,” the Tory MP told the PA news agency.

“For my money Cummings is a liability and what the prime minister needs and deserves is a first-rate chief of staff who is a serious heavyweight, I think the expression currently in use is big boy pants.”

Downing Street has insisted that Boris Johnson still intends for the UK to leave the EU without a trade deal if one cannot be agreed by the end of the transition period on 31 December.

The prime minister’s spokesperson said there were still “significant gaps” between the two sides in the post-Brexit trade negotiations but talks were continuing in London.

“Time is in short supply and there are still significant gaps that remain,” they said.

In response to criticism of the UK’s position by Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheal Martin, the spokesperson added: “We have been working hard throughout to get a deal but we’ve always said that it needs to be a deal that fully respects UK sovereignty, and that’s what we’re continuing to pursue.

“Right from the outset I don’t think we’ve been seeking anything that the EU hasn’t agreed to with other sovereign countries and we’re working hard and are continuing to work hard, but it is the case that significant gaps remain.”

Downing Street has defended its handling of communications during the coronavirus crisis following the resignation of the government’s communications director Lee Cain.

“We’ve been responding to what’s been an unprecedented global pandemic, which has been a significant challenge for countries all across Europe and throughout the world,” Boris Johnson’s spokesperson said.

“What we have worked hard on is promoting clear messages about the need to wash hands, wear face coverings, keep distance from other people and working with the media on promotions to make sure the public have access to the information they need to protect themselves from this virus, and that work continues.”

The spokesperson also insisted that Mr Johnson remained “absolutely focused” on the pandemic despite infighting in his top team.

Tory MP mocked after saying northerners like football but southerners prefer opera

Jake Berry – who is currently leading Tory attempts to hold Boris Johnson’s feet to the fire over his electoral pledge to “level up” the north –has managed to score a spectacular own goal while attempting to secure financial aid for ailing football clubs.

Suggesting that Accrington Stanley, Barrow and Carlisle football clubs were the northern equivalents of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Mr Berry said opera, ballet and theatre were “at the heart of” southern communities but, in the country’s upper half, “it is our football clubs”.

Our reporter Colin Drury has the details: