Britain would take unilateral action in the event of a no-deal Brexit | The Guardian |

In a speech coinciding with the publication of the first batch of technical notices laying out the government's contingency plans for a no-deal scenario, the Brexit secretary will say that Britain would not risk triggering a tit-for-tat battle with Brussels by imposing new border checks or travel restrictions.

○ No deal Brexit plans 'better late than never', business groups tell government

"Our overarching aim is to facilitate the smooth, continued functioning of business, transport, infrastructure, research, aid programmes and funding streams," he will say.

"In some cases, it means taking unilateral action to maintain as much continuity as possible in the short term in the event of no deal - irrespective of whether the EU reciprocates.

...
One policy expected to be included is a pledge that the government will underwrite aid projects, to ensure British NGOs can still take part in EU-funded work.

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In some areas such as farming - where the government's Rural Payments Agency already administers EU subsidies, and the Treasury has pledged to maintain the budget at its current level for this parliament - achieving continuity should be relatively straightforward. In others, the way the EU27 responds will be crucial.

The foreign secretary, Jeremy Hunt, warned in the Netherlands last week that parting from the EU on unfriendly terms would be "a huge geostrategic mistake," in "a period where the world is increasingly unstable"

Important not to misrepresent my words: Britain WOULD survive and prosper without a deal...but it would be a big mistake for Europe because of inevitable impact on long term partnership with UK. We will only sign up to deal that respects referendum result

— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) August 17, 2018

ENDURING FRIENDSHIP

Great meeting with UK Foreign Secretary @Jeremy_Hunt. We discussed the importance of the historic alliance between our two nations & our strong partnership for freedom. pic.twitter.com/cjRCP5SYBd

— Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) August 21, 2018

Life expectancy is seen as indicator of well-being in a modern state ...

○ The UK and the US are witnessing a decline in life expectancy

A  new study, published in the British Medical Journal, indicates that the United Kingdom and the United States are the only 2 western countries where life expectancy is falling. Researchers conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study, which evaluated trends in national mortality data across 17 high-income countries during recent years.

○ Ranking of the 20 countries with the highest life expectancy as of 2016 [Germany also missing in top 20]

'Sapere aude'