Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal approved by EU nations – follow live

One of the major promises of the Leave campaign was to “control” immigration – i.e. to get the numbers down.

But as Professor Thom Brooks point out, the final set of immigration figures we’ll see before the end of the transition show net migration has gone up to 313,000 over the past year to March. This is a rise of about one-third from 221,000 a year ago.  

“Getting Brexit done has not seen immigration go down; it has driven it up,” he writes. “Promises won’t be kept and should not have been made.”

More despair at the decision to withdraw the UK from the Erasmus student exchange programme with the EU – described as “a huge blow” by the Scottish government’s universities minister.

“The loss of Erasmus is huge blow. This is simply unacceptable and we are looking at alternative options,” said Richard Lochhead.

While students in Scotland will be prevented from participating, their counterparts in Northern Ireland will still have access to the programme thanks to a pledge by the government in the Republic of Ireland.

There were suggestions on Sunday that Nicola Sturgeon would make a formal request for Scottish students to remain part of the scheme – but Lochhead said he seeking “further clarification” on the new, replacement scheme (named after codebreaker Alan Turing) before taking further steps.

How many Labour MPs will rebel against leader Keir Starmer’s order to back the Brexit deal in the Commons this Wednesday? Reports earlier this month suggested dozens of his MPs could abstain.

Ben Bradshaw, Kevin Brennan, Neil Coyle, Rupa Huq, Geraint Davies and Clive Efford are among backbenchers thought to be considering it. Coyle has tweeted that he is “with Hezza on this” – referring to Lord Heseltine’s call for MPs and peers to abstain.

Daniel Zeichner, a shadow environment minister and Paul Blomfield, a shadow Brexit minister could also choose to ignore the party whip, according to The Times.

Schools must only reopen next month if two-metre distancing between staff and pupils can be guaranteed and with compulsory face coverings, a union says.

And head teachers must be given the option of remaining closed except for vulnerable children and those of key workers in Covid-19 hotspots, the NASUWT has told Gavin Williamson.

Read the full story here by Deputy Political Editor Rob Merrick: 

The Conservative mayor of the West Midlands has called on the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, to more than treble the £3,000 monthly grant for businesses forced to shut by the coronavirus to an average £10,000, as the new variant of Covid-19 threatens to extend the period of shutdown deep into 2021.

Read the full report by our Political Editor Andrew Woodcock: 

Boris Johnson has today welcomed Britain’s trade deal with the European Union as a new starting point for relations with the bloc in a call with the President of the European Council Charles Michel.

“Just spoken with @eucopresident Charles Michel. I welcomed the importance of the UK/EU Agreement as a new starting point for our relationship, between sovereign equals,” Mr Johnson said on Twitter.

“We looked forward to the formal ratification of the agreement and to working together on shared priorities, such as tackling climate change.”

It comes after EU nations unanimously approved the Brexit trade deal. However it still requires approval from MEPs in the European Parliament, which is not expected to sit again until February.

EU negotiator Michel Barnier has thanked senior MEPs after discussing next steps in ratifying the Brexit deal – describing their exchanges as “fruitful”.

Although the agreement can be implemented provisionally, the European Parliament is not expected to ratify it until next year, with 8 February thought to be the “working assumption” for the vote.

Fewer than 200 lorry drivers are waiting to travel to France following a week of disruption at the English Channel border, the Department of Transport has said.

The vast majority of the 15,000 vehicles stuck in Kent have been able to make the crossing in the past few days. But Michael Gove earlier warned businesses to get ready for disruptions and “bumpy moments” when the new customs rules take effect from Friday.

An agreement has been reached for a Dumfries and Galloway airfield to be used by hundreds of lorries in case of post-Brexit disruption at the Cairnryan port.

The Scottish government has signed a lease from Friday January 1 as part of Operation Overflow – the contingency plan by Transport Scotland and partners.

Up to 240 goods vehicles can park at the site with welfare facilities if port capacity is too high as freight continues to travel between Scotland and Northern Ireland.

It is hoped the airfield will help manage any queuing traffic in the area, although the Scottish government’s transport secretary Michael Matheson said they do not expect that to happen “at this stage”.

A former head of the UK civil service has branded Boris Johnson “an Amazon driver with a modest package” because his Brexit trade deal is so meagre.

Lord Wilson hit out at the PM for acting like “an angel of the Lord bringing glad tidings about the birth of Christ” when the agreement was finally signed.

In a letter to The Times, Lord Wilson said: “It does not resolve the issue of our place in Europe and the world, which nearly half of the British people would have preferred to continue to be in Europe.” 

The former Cabinet secretary, who worked under Tony Blair, added: “The combined damage of Brexit and the coronavirus will be with us for decades to come.”