Protests continue in Hong Kong

In a sign of escalated tensions in Hong Kong, a group of protesters stormed the parliament building and vandalised it on Monday. It happened as a ceremony was held to mark the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from British to Chinese rule. Demonstrations had been held on the city’s streets for weeks, with hundreds of thousands marching against what they see as an increase in meddling from China and an erosion of freedoms.

Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, warned China of “serious consequences” if the authorities responded to the protests with repression, and offered the UK’s “unwavering” support for “peaceful” protests aimed at protecting Hong Kong’s autonomy. China, meanwhile, warned the UK government not to “interfere” in its domestic affairs.

On Sunday the protests extended to Kowloon, marking the first day of street demonstrations since Monday’s clashes. The route took protesters towards West Kowloon train station, the gateway between Hong Kong and mainland China. They chanted and waved banners in Mandarin, not Cantonese used in Hong Kong, in an attempt to attract attention from tourists visiting from the mainland.

 

Brexit Party crashers

Following elections across the 28 member states in May, the new term of the European Parliament began this week. After a series of videos posted on Twitter suggested that many were surprised to discover the existence of an elected parliament in Strasbourg, Brexit Party MEPs were keen to make their mark on the institution. They caused a stir by turning their backs as a quartet played the EU anthem, ‘Ode to Joy’, but it was Ann Widdecombe’s likening of EU membership to slavery that provoked the strongest reaction.

On the other side of the Brexit debate, Liberal Democrat MEPs drew attention for wearing bright yellow ‘Bollocks to Brexit’ t-shirts. It was their way of reminding their 678 colleagues from 27 other member states that there is a diversity of opinion in the UK at the moment, to put it mildly. However, added to with the antics of Brexit Party counterparts, it is possible that these attention-grabbing stunts will simply hasten many EU-27 MEPs’ desire to see Brexit finally happen.

Meanwhile, the European Council agreed on a set of nominees to lead its main institutions. After intense and protracted negotiations, EU heads of government nominated German defence minister Ursula von der Leyen to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as President of the European Commission; her nomination requires the consent of the European Parliament. They also put forward Josep Borrell Fontelles to serve as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and Christine Lagarde as President of the European Bank.

 

Boris Johnson still on course to be Prime Minister

Boris Johnson holds a commanding lead over his leadership rival, Jeremy Hunt, as the Conservative Party’s 160,000 members started to receive their ballot papers. A poll of party members by YouGov found that 74 percent say they will vote for Johnson, while only 26 percent support Hunt. Activists who thought a candidate’s personal life was irrelevant to whether or not someone would make a good prime minister were more likely to back Johnson, who was also seen as the candidate most likely to deliver Brexit by 31stOctober.

The two candidates flew to Belfast for another round of hustings chaired by Iain Dale. Both Johnson and Hunt insisted that “alternative arrangements” could maintain a soft border on the island of Ireland, and that the backstop could therefore be dropped from the Withdrawal Agreement. This will have pleased the DUP, having claimed that the backstop would threaten Northern Ireland’s union with Great Britain. However, Arlene Foster may not have been terribly reassured by Boris Johnson’s carefully worded tweet that ruled out Northern Ireland ever being taken out of the UK’s customs territory. The leadership frontrunner may be creating a degree of manoeuvrability whereby Northern Ireland may still end up with a distinct regulatory regime.

 

No end in sight to Stormont talks

Despite visiting Stormont, the Conservative leadership front-runner did not drop in on multi-party talks – now in the ninth week of their sixth round since the collapse of devolution in January 2017. Sinn Féin has suggested that the talks have “effectively been stalled,” citing the distractions of the Marching Season getting underway. This account has been disputed by other parties and the Northern Ireland Office, insisting that the talks will be continuing.

At Westminster the Secretary of State, Karen Bradley, revealed new legislation that will extend the date by which another Assembly election must be called until October, with a possible further one-off extension until January 2020. MPs will vote on the Northern Ireland (Executive Formation and Exercise of Functions) Bill this week. It is likely to attract amendments to try and avert a no deal Brexit  and to extend same-sex marriage to Northern Ireland.

Jeremy Hunt has said he would keep Karen Bradley as Northern Ireland Secretary, but her future is less clear in the event that Boris Johnson becomes Prime Minister. She had initially supported Michael Gove in the leadership race.

 

‘Salute to America’, and facepalm by America

On 4th July Donald Trump became the first president to make a televised address to the nation on Independence Day. Inspired by France’s Bastille Day celebrations, President Trump saw that the ‘Salute to America’ was replete with military action, with tanks stationed by the Lincoln Memorial and numerous flypasts. Despite fears that the polarising president would use his speech as an effective campaign rally, he surprised critics by delivering a scripted speech on American history. He surprised many more when he claimed that the Continental Army “took over the airports” during the Revolutionary War of 1775-1783. President Trump blamed the gaffe on a teleprompter malfunction.

It comes in the same week as memos from the British Ambassador in Washington were leaked, describing the Trump administration as “inept” and “uniquely dysfunctional.” The Foreign Office has launched an investigation into the leak. A spokesman said that the views expressed by diplomats were “not necessarily the views of ministers or indeed the government. But we pay them to be candid.”