Friday newspaper round-up: Brexit, BAE Systems, Flybe

Some of the UK's biggest pharmaceutical companies, research hospitals and medical industry groups say it is now impossible for them to be prepared for a no deal Brexit, which would put the future of medical trials in doubt. They say leaving the EU at the end of next month without a deal would also potentially delay life-saving breakthroughs in fields such as cancer care. - Telegraph

Rail passengers commuting into London could have services disrupted by freight trains if a no-deal Brexit causes logjams at the Channel tunnel, it has emerged. Go-Ahead, the company behind the rail operator Southeastern, said it was working with the government to try to ensure commuters were not affected. - Guardian

Jeremy Corbyn has been warned that he faces another exodus of MPs unless he backs a plan to put Theresa May’s Brexit deal to a second referendum. His office has been told that dozens of MPs, including shadow ministers, are prepared to join the new Independent Group in parliament or resign the whip, in defiance over the party’s EU policy. - The Times

Ireland is accelerating preparations for a no-deal Brexit amid growing alarm that parts of the Irish economy could face severe disruption and even collapse – and that the UK hopes to leverage that prospect to wring concessions from the European Union. Leo Varadkar’s government is due on Friday to publish a mammoth omnibus bill incorporating 16 pieces of legislation to try to shelter Ireland from the doomsday scenario of the UK crashing out of the EU. - Guardian

A German ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia over the Jamal Khashoggi scandal could blow a £2.5 billion hole in the accounts of BAE Systems and scupper a £5 billion order for 48 Eurofighter Typhoons, potentially putting thousands of jobs at risk. Shares in the British defence company fell nearly 8 per cent yesterday, taking them close to 3½-year lows, because of concerns over contracts with Saudi Arabia, its largest customer after the British and US governments. - The Times

The boss of Heathrow has come out in support of the Virgin Atlantic-led rescue of Britain’s biggest regional airline Flybe as the airline completed the sale of its operating companies to the consortium. John Holland-Kaye believes a cut-price takeover by Connect Airways, which also includes Southend Airport owner Stobart and US private equity firm Cyrus Capital “could be a really positive move”. - Telegraph

An American biotechnology company has announced it will stop selling to China equipment used to create a DNA database of the country’s Uighur minority. Thermo Fisher issued a statement on Thursday following a report in the New York Times which noted the “help of American expertise” in China’s campaign of surveillance. - Guardian

Apple is planning to launch a credit card with Goldman Sachs within the next few months that would link to the iPhone and give special features on the Apple Wallet app, according to reports. The credit card is due to be tested with employees of both companies in the coming weeks before an official launch in the US later in the year. - The Times