The UK government was under pressure Tuesday to publish its latest Brexit analysis after a leaked internal report said Britain would be worse off whatever deal it strikes with the EU.

The economic impact assessment, drawn up for the Brexit ministry and seen by the BuzzFeed News website, showed growth would be lower under a range of potential scenarios.

The leak comes as Prime Minister Theresa May prepares to fly out on a three-day trade mission to China and as parliament`s upper House of Lords begins scrutinising the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, a key plank of Brexit legislation.

The January 2018 study, titled &quot;EU Exit Analysis&quot;, examined three of the most plausible Brexit scenarios.

If found that if Britain remained in the European single market, growth would be two percent lower over the next 15 years compared to current forecasts.

Under a comprehensive free trade agreement with the European Union, growth would be five percent lower, it said.

And if London and Brussels end up with a &quot;no deal&quot; scenario and revert to World Trade Organization rules, growth would be reduced by eight percent over the same period, the report said, according to BuzzFeed News.

Responding to the leak, a government source said officials across the ministries were undertaking &quot;a wide range of ongoing analysis&quot;.

&quot;An early draft of this next stage of analysis has looked at different off-the-shelf arrangements that currently exist,&quot; the source said.

&quot;It does not, however, set out or measure the details of our desired outcome -- a new deep and special partnership with the EU.

&quot;It also contains a significant number of caveats...significantly more work needs to be carried out to make use of this analysis.&quot;

Opposition Labour lawmaker Chris Leslie, part of the Open Britain group -- the continuity Remain campaign from Britain`s 2016 referendum on EU membership -- urged the government to make its assessment public.

&quot;The government must now publish their analysis in full so that MPs and the public can see for themselves the impact that Brexit will have and judge for themselves whether it is the right thing for our country,&quot; he said.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the chairman of the pro-Brexit European Research Group of MPs from May`s governing Conservative Party, said the findings were &quot;highly speculative&quot;.

Meanwhile, parliament`s foreign affairs scrutiny committee said Britain`s diplomatic network was spread too thinly and needed to be bolstered to cope with Brexit.

The panel of MPs said British representation in EU capitals, particularly Berlin and Paris, needed to be significantly increased to help maintain influence in Europe.

The January 2018 study, titled "EU Exit Analysis", examined three of the most plausible Brexit scenarios

The UK government was under pressure Tuesday to publish its latest Brexit analysis after a leaked internal report said Britain would be worse off whatever deal it strikes with the EU. The economic impact assessment, drawn up for the Brexit ministry and seen by the BuzzFeed News website, showed growth would be lower under a range of potential scenarios. The leak comes as Prime Minister Theresa May prepares to fly out on a three-day trade mission to China and as parliament`s upper House of Lords begins scrutinising the EU (Withdrawal) Bill, a key plank of Brexit legislation. The January 2018 study, titled "EU Exit Analysis", examined three of the most plausible Brexit scenarios. If found that if Britain remained in the European single market, growth would be two percent lower over the next 15 years compared to current forecasts. Under a comprehensive free trade agreement with the European Union, growth would be five percent lower, it said. And if London and Brussels end up with a "no deal" scenario and revert to World Trade Organization rules, growth would be reduced by eight percent over the same period, the report said, according to BuzzFeed News. Responding to the leak, a government source said officials across the ministries were undertaking "a wide range of ongoing analysis". "An early draft of this next stage of analysis has looked at different off-the-shelf arrangements that currently exist," the source said. "It does not, however, set out or measure the details of our desired outcome -- a new deep and special partnership with the EU. "It also contains a significant number of caveats...significantly more work needs to be carried out to make use of this analysis." Opposition Labour lawmaker Chris Leslie, part of the Open Britain group -- the continuity Remain campaign from Britain`s 2016 referendum on EU membership -- urged the government to make its assessment public. "The government must now publish their analysis in full so that MPs and the public can see for themselves the impact that Brexit will have and judge for themselves whether it is the right thing for our country," he said. Jacob Rees-Mogg, the chairman of the pro-Brexit European Research Group of MPs from May`s governing Conservative Party, said the findings were "highly speculative". Meanwhile, parliament`s foreign affairs scrutiny committee said Britain`s diplomatic network was spread too thinly and needed to be bolstered to cope with Brexit. The panel of MPs said British representation in EU capitals, particularly Berlin and Paris, needed to be significantly increased to help maintain influence in Europe.

Britain worse off under any Brexit scenario: Report

Britain&#39;s government on Thursday published a draft law that would authorise Prime Minister Theresa May to begin the procedure for leaving the European Union in an important milestone towards Brexit.

&quot;The British people have made the decision to leave the EU... so today we have introduced a bill in parliament which will allow us to formally trigger Article 50 by the end of March,&quot; said Brexit minister David Davis.

The two-clause &quot;European Union Notification of Withdrawal Bill&quot; asks parliament to give May authority to start the formal mechanism by which Britain will leave the bloc.

The government said MPs would get their first chance to debate and vote on it on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. 
 
May&#39;s&nbsp;government was forced to go to parliament following a landmark Supreme Court ruling this week that rejected its argument that executive powers allowed it to proceed.

The ruling Conservatives have a small majority in the House of Commons and the bill is expected to get the go-ahead from MPs, although opposition parties have said they plan put forward amendments that could slow it down.

Davis said he hoped that parliament would &quot;respect the decision taken by the British people and pass the legislation quickly,&quot; arguing that MPs had supported holding the referendum in the first place.

House of Commons leader David Lidington told parliament that the bill`s third and final reading in the House of Commons -- followed by a final vote by MPs -- would be on February 8.

The bill will then pass to the upper House of Lords, where progress is less certain as the government has no majority there and no control over the timing.

&quot;The Lords will not block or wreck the bill but they will want to give it proper scrutiny, especially if they think the scrutiny in the Commons has been inadequate,&quot; Robert Hazel and Alan Renwick from University College London`s Constitution Unit said.

If approved by the House of Lords, the bill would then have to be signed off by Queen Elizabeth II before May can trigger Article 50 of the EU`s Lisbon Treaty -- the formal process for leaving the bloc.May has said she is confident she will be able to stick to her timetable of triggering Article 50 by the end of March at the latest and the government has said it hopes to start Brexit talks before the summer.

Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum on June 23 last year following a bitter campaign and divisions have persisted since then.

A majority of Britain&#39;s 11 Supreme Court judges on Tuesday ruled that withdrawing from the EU meant there would have to be changes in Britain&#39;s domestic laws and therefore parliament had to be involved.

There were shouts of &quot;disgraceful&quot; from MPs as the government outlined its rapid timetable for the bill.

The main opposition Labour Party has said it is planning amendments including a clause calling for the protection of workers` rights, while the Scottish National Party wants to put forward dozens of changes.

May&#39;s Conservative government currently has a working majority of 16 in the 650-member parliament.

The bill came as official data showed Britain`s economy grew solidly in the final months of last year, even as it prepares for a difficult departure from the EU.

Gross domestic product expanded 0.6 per cent between October and December, matching growth during the previous two quarters, the Office for National Statistics said.

For 2016 as a whole, British growth reached 2.0 per cent, a decline from the previous year`s increase of 2.2 per cent.&nbsp;The economy has performed better than expected since the Brexit vote, though analysts have said they expect a more difficult 2017.

(AFP) 
&nbsp;

The government said MPs would get their first chance to debate and vote on it next week

Britain's government on Thursday published a draft law that would authorise Prime Minister Theresa May to begin the procedure for leaving the European Union in an important milestone towards Brexit. "The British people have made the decision to leave the EU... so today we have introduced a bill in parliament which will allow us to formally trigger Article 50 by the end of March," said Brexit minister David Davis. The two-clause "European Union Notification of Withdrawal Bill" asks parliament to give May authority to start the formal mechanism by which Britain will leave the bloc. The government said MPs would get their first chance to debate and vote on it on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. May's government was forced to go to parliament following a landmark Supreme Court ruling this week that rejected its argument that executive powers allowed it to proceed. The ruling Conservatives have a small majority in the House of Commons and the bill is expected to get the go-ahead from MPs, although opposition parties have said they plan put forward amendments that could slow it down. Davis said he hoped that parliament would "respect the decision taken by the British people and pass the legislation quickly," arguing that MPs had supported holding the referendum in the first place. House of Commons leader David Lidington told parliament that the bill`s third and final reading in the House of Commons -- followed by a final vote by MPs -- would be on February 8. The bill will then pass to the upper House of Lords, where progress is less certain as the government has no majority there and no control over the timing. "The Lords will not block or wreck the bill but they will want to give it proper scrutiny, especially if they think the scrutiny in the Commons has been inadequate," Robert Hazel and Alan Renwick from University College London`s Constitution Unit said. If approved by the House of Lords, the bill would then have to be signed off by Queen Elizabeth II before May can trigger Article 50 of the EU`s Lisbon Treaty -- the formal process for leaving the bloc.May has said she is confident she will be able to stick to her timetable of triggering Article 50 by the end of March at the latest and the government has said it hopes to start Brexit talks before the summer. Britain voted to leave the European Union in a referendum on June 23 last year following a bitter campaign and divisions have persisted since then. A majority of Britain's 11 Supreme Court judges on Tuesday ruled that withdrawing from the EU meant there would have to be changes in Britain's domestic laws and therefore parliament had to be involved. There were shouts of "disgraceful" from MPs as the government outlined its rapid timetable for the bill. The main opposition Labour Party has said it is planning amendments including a clause calling for the protection of workers` rights, while the Scottish National Party wants to put forward dozens of changes. May's Conservative government currently has a working majority of 16 in the 650-member parliament. The bill came as official data showed Britain`s economy grew solidly in the final months of last year, even as it prepares for a difficult departure from the EU. Gross domestic product expanded 0.6 per cent between October and December, matching growth during the previous two quarters, the Office for National Statistics said. For 2016 as a whole, British growth reached 2.0 per cent, a decline from the previous year`s increase of 2.2 per cent. The economy has performed better than expected since the Brexit vote, though analysts have said they expect a more difficult 2017. (AFP)

UK takes first step towards triggering Brexit, tables draft bill

The UK Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that Prime Minister Theresa May must get Parliament&#39;s approval before she begins Britain&#39;s formal exit from the European Union.

The UK&#39;s highest judicial body dismissed the government&#39;s argument that May could simply use executive powers known as &quot;royal prerogative&quot; to invoke Article 50 of the EU&#39;s Lisbon Treaty and begin two years of divorce talks.

However, the court rejected arguments that the UK&#39;s devolved assemblies in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales should give their assent before Article 50 is invoked.

&quot;The referendum is of great political significance, but the act of Parliament which established it did not say what should happen as a result,&quot; said David Neuberger, president of the Supreme Court which ruled by 8-3 against the government.

&quot;So any change in the law to give effect to the referendum must be made in the only way permitted by the UK constitution, namely by an Act of Parliament.&quot;

&nbsp;

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UK Supreme Court ruled that PM Theresa May must get Parliament&#39;s approval before she begins Britain&#39;s formal exit from the European Union (WION)
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PM Theresa May has repeatedly said she would trigger Article 50 before the end of March but she will now have to seek the consent of lawmakers first, potentially meaning her plans could be amended or delayed, although the main opposition Labour Party has said it would not slow her timetable.&nbsp;

(Reuters)

UK Supreme Court ruled that PM Theresa May must get Parliament's approval before she begins Britain's formal exit from the European Union

The UK Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that Prime Minister Theresa May must get Parliament's approval before she begins Britain's formal exit from the European Union. The UK's highest judicial body dismissed the government's argument that May could simply use executive powers known as "royal prerogative" to invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty and begin two years of divorce talks. However, the court rejected arguments that the UK's devolved assemblies in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales should give their assent before Article 50 is invoked. "The referendum is of great political significance, but the act of Parliament which established it did not say what should happen as a result," said David Neuberger, president of the Supreme Court which ruled by 8-3 against the government. "So any change in the law to give effect to the referendum must be made in the only way permitted by the UK constitution, namely by an Act of Parliament." UK Supreme Court ruled that PM Theresa May must get Parliament's approval before she begins Britain's formal exit from the European Union (WION) × PM Theresa May has repeatedly said she would trigger Article 50 before the end of March but she will now have to seek the consent of lawmakers first, potentially meaning her plans could be amended or delayed, although the main opposition Labour Party has said it would not slow her timetable. (Reuters)

Brexit: UK government loses appeal to trigger EU exit

A UK-based Sikh campaign group today said it has launched an appeal to make public the secret files believed to hold details of Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the 1984 Operation Blue Star that killed hundreds of people.

Sikh Federation UK&#39;s appeal with the UK&#39;s Information Tribunal will be heard in the New Year.

It centres around four files &quot;withheld&quot; during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron into Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the military action on Golden Temple in 1984.

&quot;The first tier tribunal will consider this case in the New Year and it would be inappropriate to comment any further,&quot; a UK Cabinet Office spokesperson said. 
The files include one titled &quot;UK/Indian relations: situation in Punjab; activities of Sikh extremists; proposed visit to UK by Rajiv Gandhi in June 1985&quot;.

The other documents include a Joint Intelligence Committee file on India; one with details of then British PM Margaret Thatcher&#39;s meetings with a close adviser of Indira Gandhi; and other papers under &quot;India: Political&quot; related to events around Mrs Gandhi&#39;s assassination in October 1984.

Sikh Federation UK, which believes the closed files will shed more light on the extent of Britain&#39;s alleged involvement in the military operation in Amritsar, had earlier complained to the UK&#39;s Information Commissioner to make these documents public but it was decided to keep the files closed as they were &quot;too sensitive&quot;.

The group has now issued an appeal against this decision on the grounds that the Commissioner did not take into account the &quot;thousands of civilian casualties during the Amritsar massacre as a public interest factor in favour of disclosing the information&quot;.

It claims the decision to keep the documents secret is &quot;political&quot; rather than security related and that the &quot;public has a right to know what happened 30 years ago&quot;. 
Bhai Amrik Singh, chair of Sikh Federation UK, said in a statement: &quot;This shows the lengths we are having to go to try and get to the truth and why we believe an

independent public inquiry is necessary to get to the information the UK government will continue to withhold.

&quot;We will take legal and other steps in 2017 to get to the truth of UK involvement and the ongoing conspiracy against Sikhs. Working with like-minded Sikhs in Punjab we will expose the role of Akali leaders, the Congress and BJP in the attempted genocide of the Sikhs to simply hold on to power.&quot;

In 2014, Cameron had ordered the Heywood Review into the exact nature of British involvement in the operation at Golden Temple in June 1984 after documents released previously under the 30-year declassification rule had implied British SAS commanders had advised the Indian government as it drew up plans?for the removal of militants from the Sikh shrine.

The report concluded that the nature of the UK&#39;s assistance was &quot;purely advisory&quot; and provided to the Indian government at an early stage of planning.

(PTI)

The files were "withheld" during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron

A UK-based Sikh campaign group today said it has launched an appeal to make public the secret files believed to hold details of Britain's alleged involvement in the 1984 Operation Blue Star that killed hundreds of people. Sikh Federation UK's appeal with the UK's Information Tribunal will be heard in the New Year. It centres around four files "withheld" during an official UK government inquiry ordered by former prime minister David Cameron into Britain's alleged involvement in the military action on Golden Temple in 1984. "The first tier tribunal will consider this case in the New Year and it would be inappropriate to comment any further," a UK Cabinet Office spokesperson said. The files include one titled "UK/Indian relations: situation in Punjab; activities of Sikh extremists; proposed visit to UK by Rajiv Gandhi in June 1985". The other documents include a Joint Intelligence Committee file on India; one with details of then British PM Margaret Thatcher's meetings with a close adviser of Indira Gandhi; and other papers under "India: Political" related to events around Mrs Gandhi's assassination in October 1984. Sikh Federation UK, which believes the closed files will shed more light on the extent of Britain's alleged involvement in the military operation in Amritsar, had earlier complained to the UK's Information Commissioner to make these documents public but it was decided to keep the files closed as they were "too sensitive". The group has now issued an appeal against this decision on the grounds that the Commissioner did not take into account the "thousands of civilian casualties during the Amritsar massacre as a public interest factor in favour of disclosing the information". It claims the decision to keep the documents secret is "political" rather than security related and that the "public has a right to know what happened 30 years ago". Bhai Amrik Singh, chair of Sikh Federation UK, said in a statement: "This shows the lengths we are having to go to try and get to the truth and why we believe an independent public inquiry is necessary to get to the information the UK government will continue to withhold. "We will take legal and other steps in 2017 to get to the truth of UK involvement and the ongoing conspiracy against Sikhs. Working with like-minded Sikhs in Punjab we will expose the role of Akali leaders, the Congress and BJP in the attempted genocide of the Sikhs to simply hold on to power." In 2014, Cameron had ordered the Heywood Review into the exact nature of British involvement in the operation at Golden Temple in June 1984 after documents released previously under the 30-year declassification rule had implied British SAS commanders had advised the Indian government as it drew up plans?for the removal of militants from the Sikh shrine. The report concluded that the nature of the UK's assistance was "purely advisory" and provided to the Indian government at an early stage of planning. (PTI)

Sikh group to UK tribunal: Release Operation Blue Star files

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Britain worse off under any Brexit scenario: Report

UK takes first step towards triggering Brexit, tables draft bill

Brexit: UK government loses appeal to trigger EU exit

Sikh group to UK tribunal: Release Operation Blue Star files