As family, friends and former colleagues gather in Grimsby for his memorial service, today we salute the memory of former Labour MP Austin Mitchell, BrexitCentral’s most prolific author. His was an important, authentic and good-humoured voice in the European debate. RIP Austin.

I'm guilty of labelling too many articles as 'must reads', but I urge everyone to read this challenging piece and consider making a donation to Marie Curie. Anand Menon has brought energy and positivity to politics over the past 7 years and I'm sorry 2020 was so tough for him

- Fighting a global pandemic & the economic fallout
- Negotiating an EU-UK trade deal that (on first sight) is far better than the models being discussed by Brexiteers in the runup to 23rd June 2016
That's a pretty epic record for 18 months.
Happy Christmas, Prime Minister 🎄3/3

But a quick thought on Boris Johnson...
Has any peacetime Prime Minister faced such a tough first 18 months?
- Negotiating the Withdrawal Agreement
- Persuading a hung Parliament to agree an election, and then winning with an 80 majority 2/3

Having made the wrong call on MV3 (remember that? - see below), I’m looking forward to reading the detail of the new UK-EU trade deal. But early signs are very promising, especially on the ECJ. It looks like we truly have taken back control 1/3
thecritic.co.uk/issues/februar…

Thank you to the judging panel: Kate Andrews, Lord Cruddas of Shoreditch, Jonathan Isaby, Helena Morrissey DBE, Jon Moynihan, Mark Wallace & Georgiana Bristol

And to the excellent ConservativeHome for publishing my articles about the awards

Congratulations to the winners, and Merry Christmas to everyone 🎄 3/3

2. Christopher Barnard, and the British Conservation Alliance team, for a Youth Environment Summit during COP26 in Glasgow

With a special runner-up prize of £5,000 for:
3. Sophie Sandor, a talented film maker, to produce a documentary called No Victim 2/3

On a day lacking in good news, I'm pleased to announce the winners of BrexitCentral's policy entrepreneurship awards. The two cheques for £10,000 go to:

1. Dr Richard Johnson (@richardmarcj) of Queen Mary University of London for a book on the history of Labour Euroscepticism 1/3
conservativehome.com/platform/2020/…

There’s great opportunity here for a young policy or campaigning entrepreneur to win a £10,000 grant! Matthew Elliott explains all 👇🏻 conservativehome.com/parliament/202…

Would you like £10,000 for a new project? We have two cheques for young policy entrepreneurs who have an exciting proposal they would like financial support for. Applications welcome from across political spectrum. Deadline 8th Nov. Full details below.
conservativehome.com/parliament/202…

I was really sad when I heard yesterday that Stuart Wheeler had passed away. He was one of the most instrumental people in my career and became a good personal friend.

It began with his support for TaxPayers' Alliance in its early days. 1/10
telegraph.co.uk/obituaries/202…

Delighted to announce that in September I am becoming Director of Politeia. Am looking forward to ensuring its rigorous research reaches an ever larger audience as it promotes the best policies for a free society under the rule of law. More here 👉🏻 politeia.co.uk/looking-ahead-…

I’m delighted that the Metropolitan Police have confirmed they won’t be acting on the allegations made against Darren Grimes and Alan Halsall by the Electoral Commission. This proves that the wild allegations made against Darren Grimes & Vote Leave since 2016 are completely baseless. (1/4)

In The Sun today, I return to my old TaxPayers' Alliance stomping ground of tax and spend to discuss the forthcoming Budget. 'In our first Budget as a newly born, independent nation, Boris must give all Brits a much-needed boost.' #Budget2020 TaxPayers' Alliance

How to keep up to speed with post-Brexit negotiations and developments
brexitcentral.com/how-to-keep-up…

Jonathan @Isaby: The Brexit Story, as told by BrexitCentral
brexitcentral.com/the-brexit-sto…

True prize is the chance to make politics work again, writes @MichaelGove
thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/t…

Boris Johnson plans to impose full customs and border checks on European goods
telegraph.co.uk/politics/2020/…