Boris Johnson news – live: Starmer says might back tougher Covid restrictions as fishermen attack Brexit deal

Hello and welcome to the latest updates on Brexit as we await a speech from Sir Keir Starmer, who will declare himself “pro-American” today.

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Empty supermarket shelves, job losses and rising prices are expected amid huge post-Brexit disruption to supply chains in coming weeks, according to an Irish freight group.

The Freight Transport Association of Ireland (FTAI) wrote to Ireland’s premier Micheal Martin to warn him of the consequences of the impact of Britain leaving the EU unless the government takes action to assist the industry trying to bring goods into the country.

The letter, signed by FTAI general manager Aidan Flynn, also said the industry was struggling to keep the flow of goods moving.

“There is a growing backlog of goods of all hues, from mechanical parts (car parts) to electrical household goods, furniture, clothing, food supplies, sitting in depots because there are not enough agents to process the declarations correctly,” the group said.

Mr Martin said he read the letter and shared their concerns, adding that an additional 1,500 people have been employed to manage the new customs rules.

He also said the Irish government is managing “very damaging developments” in the wake of Brexit.

“Now that Brexit has become a reality, we are seeing operational effects on supply chains, and on ports, on trade between Great Britain and the European Union countries, including Ireland,” he added.

Boris Johnson’s “desperately poor” Brexit deal has left Scottish fishermen with losses mounting by the day and many businesses fearing for their survival, the industry’s trade body has said in a scathing letter to the prime minister.

Elspeth Macdonald, the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation chief executive, accused Mr Johnson of misleading the public about the agreement and giving the industry “the worst of both worlds”.

Our business reporter, Ben Chapman, has the full story:

We should not confuse the economic cost of Brexit with the temporary cost of adjusting to the new rules, or with the disruption caused by coronavirus, John Rentoul, our chief political commentator, cautions.

The website of pro-Brexit pressure group Leave.eu has been suspended amid a row over its attempt to switch its registration to Ireland to avoid losing its .eu domain name.

The group, founded by businessman Arron Banks and supported by Nigel Farage, moved its registration from the UK to Waterford in the Republic of Ireland shortly before the end of the transition to Brexit on New Year’s Eve, to get round a rule stating that .eu addresses can only be used by individuals and organisations based in the EU.

Andrew Woodcock, our political editor, has the full story:

The government seems to be considering using its post-Brexit freedom to diverge from European Union regulations by dismantling various workplace rules, including scrapping the maximum 48-hour week.

The proposals are at an early stage and may not go anywhere, but it’s long been an argument among Brexit supporters on the right that one of the benefits of leaving the EU would be the ability to scrap such workplace rules. But would it help the UK economy?

Ben Chu, our economics editor, investigates:

The government is facing criticism over an “incomplete” attempt to get laptops to students needing them at home, as school leaders raise concerns over the quality of laptops and waiting times for them.

One headteacher told The Independent he has not been allowed to order a single laptop for his school since England’s new lockdown, with the online system telling him he would be able to “as soon as possible”.?

Others say the equipment that has arrived is not up to task, with one school leader saying laptops do not seem durable enough.

Our reporter Zoe Tidman spoke to teachers about the situation:

Brexit has meant a tangle of rules and restrictions for travellers.

Simon Calder and Maya Yagoda provide some clarity on what the changes mean:

In other UK news, the accidental deletion of as many as 400,000 records from police computer databases led to several “near misses” in identifying suspects in serious crimes.

It emerged on Friday that at least 150,000 records relating to people arrested and released without further action were scrubbed from the Police National Computer after being incorrectly flagged for removal.

But now a letter from the National Police Chiefs Council has revealed that the blunder may have affected as many as 213,000 offence records, 175,000 arrest records and 15,000 person records stored on the system that shares criminal records information across the UK.

And deputy chief constable Naveed Malik, the NPCC’s lead for PNC, said: “We are aware of a couple of instances of ‘near misses’ for serious crimes where a biometric match to an offender was not generated as expected but the offender was identified through matches between scenes.”

We go to Andrew Woodcock for more on this:

Germany’s Christian Democrats elected Armin Laschet as chairman on Saturday, aiming to unify its divided party behind a new leader who they hope can succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor when she steps down after federal elections in September.