There is an old Lloyds Bank television commercial featuring those darlings of the 1980s sitcom, Jan Francis and Nigel Havers.

Francis’s character has just bought a house from Havers and the ad has the pair bumping into each other at the supermarket checkout. The encounter prompts Francis to give Havers a few unsolicited personal finance lessons, by explaining how her new Lloyds banking card means she has to write fewer cheques (it’s debatable whether the ad is dated more by the plot or the actors).

17/02/2019 - www.theguardian.com

PM makes appeal in letter for unity and announces further talks with EU president

Theresa May has issued a fresh plea to Conservative MPs to unite and deliver on Brexit, urging her party to “move beyond what divides us” and sacrifice “personal preferences”.

The prime minister’s rallying cry follows another tumultuous week in Westminster that saw tensions in the Tory party reach boiling point, with one of her ministers accusing his Eurosceptic colleagues of “treachery”.

17/02/2019 - www.theguardian.com

Campaigners against Theresa May’s “my deal or no deal” Brexit strategy are planning to mobilise the public and politicians for a showdown over the UK’s future in Europe in the final six days before Britain is due to leave the EU, the Observer can reveal.

The plans will involve a huge march in London on Saturday, 23 March, aimed at demonstrating the scale of public anxiety about the two Brexit options May is offering, which will conclude with speeches outside the Palace of Westminster. Hundreds of thousands are expected to attend. Then on 25 and 26 March, MPs of all parties say they will be ready to rally behind a “lethal” amendment that will allow May’s deal to be passed, but only on condition that it is first ratified and approved by the British people in a referendum. Such a referendum would require article 50 to be delayed.

16/02/2019 - www.theguardian.com