Sunday newspaper round-up: Brexit, The Independent Group, Asda, Sainsbury's Honda, Euromoney

A vicious cabinet war erupted last night over a plot by senior ministers to delay Brexit, as Theresa May looked certain to shelve plans for a Commons vote on her deal this week. Five cabinet colleagues rounded on Amber Rudd, calling for her to be sacked after she publicly threatened to defy the prime minister by voting to delay article 50. - The Sunday Times

Theresa May has delayed a vote on her Brexit deal for up to two weeks and refused to censure Remain ministers for calling for Article 50 to be extended. The Prime Minister repeatedly refused to criticise Amber Rudd, David Gauke and Greg Clarke after they vowed to support a backbench bid to take a no-deal exit from the EU off the table. - Sunday Telegraph

Chuka Umunna has called on voters to join breakaway Labour and Tory MPs in building a new movement that represents modern Britain. In a sign that the Independent Group (TIG) will form a fully fledged parliamentary party, the former Labour MP called for the public to “join us, and help us forge a new, different kind of politics for Britain’s future”. - Observer

Environment Secretary Michael Gove has accepted the price of staple foodstuffs could rocket in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Responding to figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) which warned the price of cheddar cheese could leap 32 per cent, and beef by 29 per cent, Mr Gove said: 'It is one scenario but it is not the scenario we plan to go down.' - Mail on Sunday

The American private equity giant that owns ticketing app Trainline is plotting a bid for Asda as the supermarket’s £14bn merger with rival Sainsbury’s teeters on the brink of collapse. KKR, whose past investments include chemist chain Alliance Boots, is thought to be working with Tony De Nunzio. - The Sunday Times

Business Secretary Greg Clark is being urged to lead a mission to Japan to personally argue the case with Honda executives for the company to save its Swindon plant. Last week Honda announced plans to shut the Wiltshire factory - which employs 3,500 staff and supports more than 6,000 jobs in its supply chain - as part of a global restructuring as the company accelerates its move into electric vehicles. - Sunday Telegraph

The African Union is seeking to kill off the EU’s latest blueprint for stemming migration, claiming that it would breach international law by establishing “de facto detention centres” on African soil, trampling over the rights of those being held. A “common African position paper” leaked to the Guardian reveals the determination of the 55-member state body, currently headed by Egypt, to dissuade any of its coastal states from cooperating with Brussels on the plan. - Observer

The PPI mis-selling scandal will have cost Britain's biggest banks and building societies almost £44bn by the time payouts end later this year, analysis by the Mail on Sunday shows. Documents published over the past two weeks reveal that the amount set aside by large lenders to pay PPI redress jumped by £2.4bn in 12 months. - Mail on Sunday

The owner of the Daily Mail is considering offloading its interest in the publisher Euromoney - a move that would bring down the curtain on a 50-year partnership and fund a £750m special cash return to shareholders. Daily Mail and General Trust … is understood to be working on a sale of its 49% stake in Euromoney Institutional Investor, the FTSE 250 group that publishes financial titles including Euromoney magazine and puts on events. - The Sunday Times

The troubled British fashion icon Laura Ashley faces a shock takeover bid from a Manchester-born entrepreneur, the Sunday Telegraph reported. Michael Flacks, who left school at 15 to start his own retail business before making his fortune in property, is to approach Laura Ashley’s Malaysian controlling shareholders in the hope of taking it private and reviving it. - Sunday Telegraph

Anti-corruption campaigners have criticised prosecutors for closing a long-running investigation into the payment of multimillion-pound bribes by Rolls-Royce. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) announced on Friday that it had shut down its investigation to establish which senior executives were responsible for paying huge bribes to secure export contracts for Rolls-Royce, without charging anyone. - Observer

One of Britain's largest same-day courier companies is set to be sold for up to £250m by an investment company backed by Lloyds Banking Group. Sources said Lloyds Development Capital, a division of Lloyds, has hired bankers from Raymond James to carry out a 'strategic review' of CitySprint, which may lead to a sale. - Mail on Sunday

Britain is in the grip of an opioid epidemic, experts have warned, after an investigation by the Sunday Times exposed a huge rise in prescriptions of powerful painkillers and soaring addiction rates, overdoses and deaths. Senior doctors, drug specialists and MPs warned last night that the UK is hurtling towards a US-style crisis. - The Sunday Times

Tom Watson has directly challenged Jeremy Corbyn over his party’s anti-Semitism crisis, as he revealed he has handed the Labour leader a dossier of 50 complaints made by parliamentary colleagues. Laying down a “test” of Mr Corbyn’s sincerity on eradicating anti-Jewish hatred, Labour’s deputy leader said he would now be required to stage a “personal intervention” if he was to have any chance of becoming prime minister. - Sunday Telegraph

Ban Ki-moon has urged Britain to stop funding fossil fuel projects overseas, in what he said would mark a test of Theresa May’s commitment to act on climate change. The former UN secretary general said he was deeply concerned that the UK’s export credit agency had provided billions of pounds in recent years to support businesses involved in oil and gas schemes around the world. - Observer

A 33-year-old man has been arrested after a probe into 'extreme right-wing activity'. West Yorkshire Police said the man was arrested in Leeds on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of terrorist acts. They added that a property also in Leeds is being searched by police following the planned and intelligence-led arrest by counter-terror officers. - Mail on Sunday