“Tory planning minister Nick Boles, suggested Mr Clegg was a hypocrite because he did not want state schools to have the same freedoms enjoyed by his private alma mater, Westminster School. … Education minister Liz Truss yesterday said it was a ‘shame’ some Lib Dems did not back free schools and suggested Mr Clegg was pretending to be opposed to elements of the programme to appease left-wing activists.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
“The government is set to give the go ahead for the UK’s first new nuclear station in a generation. … France’s EDF Energy will lead a consortium that includes Chinese investors, to build the Hinkley Point C plant in Somerset. … Ministers say the deal will help take the UK towards low-carbon power and lower generating costs in future.” – BBC
“But the company has said it will not carry out the work without first receiving Government subsidies to guarantee a hefty return on its investment. … The cost of the subsidies will be passed on to consumers — sparking fears that hundreds of pounds will be added to families’ electricity bills.” – The Sun (£)
And comment:
“David Cameron will this week demand the return of powers from Brussels amid new evidence of the massive cost of EU regulation to Britain. … A report published today by the Open Europe think-tank claims that the top 100 EU regulations are costing the UK more than £27 billion a year, outweighing benefits in a quarter of cases.” – Daily Mail
> Today, by Adam Afriyie on Comment: I won’t be bullied out of moving my EU referendum amendment
“A European Commission report revealed more than 600,000 “non-active” migrants are currently living here. … They include the unemployed, students and OAPs. The report said the cost to the NHS alone could be £1.5billion a year. But it also concluded the impact on public services was ‘incredibly low’. … Tory backbencher Douglas Carswell accused the Commission of ‘spinning the facts to down play the impact of benefit tourism’.” – The Sun (£)
> Today, by Priti Patel on Comment: We should be proud of the tough new measures in the Immigration Bill
> Yesterday, by Henry Smith MP on Comment: We’re right to seek to curb EU benefit tourism
“But the answer is not to try to persecute rich foreign investors with new mansion taxes, or complicated and unenforceable taxes on the tiny proportion of homes they leave empty. The answer to house-price inflation is to build more homes – as we can, on London’s 33 brownfield opportunity areas.” – Boris Johnson, Daily Telegraph
> Yesterday, by Luke Springthorpe on Comment: Seven problems with Help to Buy
“David Cameron is planning to build on the huge popularity of the Royal Mail privatisation by prioritising retail investors for the sell-offs ahead of the general election in 2015. … Attracting retail investors will be a key aim as the government prepares to complete the sales of Royal Mail and Lloyds Bank next year, according to people close to the situation.” – Financial Times
“MPs are expected to have a £7,600 pay rise rubber-stamped within weeks – despite fears of a public backlash. … David Cameron is facing pressure from a powerful group of backbenchers who insist the 11 per cent rise recommended by their independent pay watchdog must be implemented.” – Daily Mail
“Jeremy Hunt, the health secretary, is moving to end the situation whereby some hospitals decide not to look into a complaint or to halt an investigation simply because the patient or relatives have also launched a lawsuit – or even just sought legal advice about doing so. … The Department of Health has agreed to issue new guidance to all NHS organisations in England telling them to look into all complaints, regardless of the possibility of being sued.” – The Guardian
“The scrapping of the subsidy caused protests by Left-wing activists, who called it ‘the bedroom tax’ and claimed it would inflict misery on less well-off families. … But Freedom of Information requests show that, in tens of thousands of cases, the move encouraged people to find a job. … The figures were revealed by Harry Phibbs, a Tory councillor, in an investigation for the ConservativeHome website.” – Daily Mail
> Today on Local Government: Cutting the spare room subsidy is getting thousands into work
“Despite university fees soaring, the system has become ‘lopsided’ with institutions focusing more on research than on teaching students, the Universities Minister David Willetts has said in a damning report. … He said that given the growth in the number of students it was ‘surprising’ that the time devoted to teaching had fallen, and argued that the ‘pendulum has swung too far away’.” – Daily Mail
“Damian Green, the Policing Minister, said today that Mr Mitchell is ‘absolutely’ owed an apology from police. … In a separate interview Eric Pickles, the Local Government Secretary, said he would be ‘honoured’ to sit with his former colleague in the Cabinet.” – Daily Telegraph
> Yesterday’s video to WATCH: Damian Green – the police should apologise to Andrew Mitchell
“Eighty-five scientists have joined forces to challenge the claims of biotech giants and the UK government that GM food is safe for humans. … Environment Secretary Owen Paterson, who has responsibility for food and farming, and the industry have embarked on a huge public relations exercise to win over a sceptical public to genetically modified food.” – Daily Mail
“The BBC licence fee is a ‘medieval anachronism’ and can only be justified if those who pay it elect the chairman and board, have a more direct say on programme-making and an input on celebrity pay, MPs will hear today. … Mr Halfon believes the fact that fee-payers have little input into how the Corporation is run makes the BBC as undemocratic as a ‘feudal monarchy.’” – Daily Mail
“The problem is that the bill is so flawed that it is hard to see how it can be easily amended. Instead, as both the constitutional affairs committee and the newly formed Commission on Civil Society, chaired by the former bishop of Oxford, are suggesting, it should be paused until it can be made fit for purpose.” – Guardian editorial
“The press has not covered itself in glory in recent years: the hacking scandal, of which I am a victim, is just one example. However, those who have been libelled or abused by the press have access to legal recourse to defend their rights and their good name. Without a free press to hold politicians to account, the people will not have the knowledge and power to make their voices heard.” – Nigel Farage, The Independent
“Surely the first question is who signed off this programme? I discount the possibility that GCHQ went rogue. Its head at the time, Sir David Pepper, was a bureaucratic stickler. Sir David Omand, cabinet office permanent secretary in charge of intelligence, would also have insisted on ministerial sign-off.” – Chris Huhne, The Guardian
“Cherie Blair has called for stay-at-home mothers to get Government-funded training and subsidised salaries to help them get back to work and boost the economy. … The wife of former prime minister Tony Blair said more women could get back on the ‘ramp into employment’ if the state offered support in the first six months of their return to work.” – Daily Mail
“Margaret Hodge, the [Public Accounts] committee’s chairwoman, has announced a “deep dive” investigation into town hall finances. … She indicated councillors or town hall chief executives could be called to account if an authority ran into funding difficulties or failed to deliver on the Government’s troubled family programme.” – The Times (£)
“Her husband has never been afraid of voicing his concerns over the issues of the day. … Now it appears that the Duchess of Cornwall may be following in Prince Charles’s footsteps by taking a more political approach to her role. … [The Archbishop of Canterbury] was invited to Camilla’s London residence, Clarence House, on Friday for a meeting about his campaign against companies that charge exorbitant rates of interest on their loans.” – Daily Mail
“Alex Salmond has suggested a final deal on removing Trident nuclear submarines from an independent Scotland would be delayed until 2016 … The first minister appeared to soften his stance on the immediate future of the Trident fleet by suggesting its fate was conditional on the Scottish National party retaining power after independence was formally declared.” – The Guardian
> Yesterday’s video to WATCH: Salmond – “We would ask the nuclear submarines to be removed from Scotland as soon as possible.”