It is more or less impossible to keep abreast of developments at the moment, with fresh headline-generating pieces of news being issued almost every minute of every day. Yesterday was extremely hectic on the floor, as well as in the Commons. It is difficult to see how Theresa May could have done much more than she has – her task has been impossible from the start, with absolutely no chance of pleasing several competing ideologies.
But this is politics and for three hours, May had to listen to MPs tear her Brexit proposals to shreds. The deal looks to be a non-starter now, with very little chance of it passing through Parliament. Dominic Raab resigned as Brexit Secretary, while Michael Gove is reported to have turned down the offer of being his replacement. Esther McVey has stepped down, while several MPs have written letters to Sir Graham Brady, Chair of the 1922 Committee. If Brady receives 48 votes of no confidence, then there will be a leadership challenge (which May could still win).
Retail sales were disappointing in October, with month-over-month figures coming in at -0.5%, while the year-on-year figure fell to 2.2% from 3% the previous period. It is the smallest annual gain in retail sales since April. However, given the political events of the day, this release slipped under the radar somewhat. There are no economic data releases today, which is perhaps just as well given what our attention will be trained on throughout the day.
