9.15pm MPsETC: Mark Bowen selected as the Conservative candidate for Feltham and Heston by-election
6pm MPsETC: Parliamentary authorities clamping down on "political" material in the Palace of Westminster? Updated with new details of the material authorities objected to
5pm MPsETC: Feltham and Heston by-election to replace Labour MP Alan Keen set for 15th December
5pm Teatime newslinks featuring the Eurozone crisis, unemployment, public sector strikes and more
4pm Columnist Anthony Browne: The government needs a powerful message that it is giving help to the unemployed: an employers' NI holiday would fit the bill
3.45pm Local government: Will there really be any Conservative councils putting up Council Tax next year?
2.30pm WATCH: Danny Alexander: Planned strikes are "going to have a significant impact on our economy", costing £500m
2pm ConHomeUSA: Today's top American news for Thanksgiving Day 2011
1pm Columnist Andrew Lilico: The €uro: A remarkably sustained exercise in Really Not Getting It
Noon Nick Gibb MP on Comment: The Education Act will help free teachers from bureaucracy and restore discipline to classrooms
10.45am ToryDiary: New sign of backbench unhappiness at Osborne with call for MORE borrowing to fund tax relief
9.30am MPsETC: Parliamentary authorities clamping down on "political" material in the Palace of Westminster?
ToryDiary: Osborne is warned that Britain will lose its high earners if he doesn't abolish 50p tax band
Columnist Jill Kirby: The agencies handling confidential information are still failing to take privacy seriously
Mats Persson of Open Europe: Cameron’s alleged deal on treaty change for working time changes would be a strategic mistake
Oliver Colvile MP on Local government: There needs to be a robust, cohesive and transparent campaign to ensure that abuses of the housing system are eradicated
Local government: Greens plan Council Tax hike in Brighton & Hove and How the New Homes Bonus is making a difference in Walsall
VIDEO: Cameron buys £140,000 plot of land from neighbour, who happens to be a lobbyist
David Cameron: A sicknote culture in the workplace is acting as a ‘conveyor belt to a life on benefits’
"The Prime Minister, speaking to the Daily Mail, said he would press ahead with recommendations from an expert report to strip family doctors of the power to sign people off work long-term."
Government mobilises non-striking civil servants to protect UK borders – BBC
- David Cameron goads Ed Miliband as shadow cabinet avoids backing strikes – Guardian
- So that's why you won't condemn the strikes Ed! Cameron attacks Labour as it emerges almost 90% of its funding comes from unions – Daily Mail
- Public sector workers earn £4,000 a year pay premium compared to private staff – Daily Mail
- "The time has come for the public sector to leave the parallel universe it inhabited under Labour and join the rest of us in the real world." – Express leader
Vince Cable to work with Lord Heseltine to block attempts to relax employment laws
- The Guardian notes that the Business Secretary has only agreed to a consultation, under pressure from Number 10
- "It was notable that, perhaps as a result of wrangling within the Coalition, there were few immediate proposals in Mr Cable’s speech. Instead, we had a laundry list of consultations and “calls for evidence” that may, in several years, result in action. It is hardly the bold and sweeping programme that will get the economy moving." – Telegraph leader
- The Independent describes employment law shake-up as a "return to Victorian values"
- Plan to ease sacking rules ‘will hit women’, top lawyer warns – Times (£)
- Overhaul of workers’ rights is a charter for bullies, claim unions – Scotsman
Britain told to choose EU or City
"José Manuel Barroso, the President of the European Commission, told the Prime Minister to choose between protecting the City of London and retaining Britain’s clout before a key EU summit next month. Pushing for special opt-outs while also seeking to be a powerbroker has left Mr Cameron looking inconsistent and risks weakening Britain’s position, Mr Barroso said." – Times (£)
- Nigel Lawson has clashed with George Osborne by labelling plans to preserve the Eurozone as “mad” – City AM
- EU costs Britain £50m a day, UKIP claims (a net contribution of £28 million) – Daily Mail | Telegraph
Despite newspaper speculation benefits WILL increase by 5.2% but tax credits will be squeezed – Telegraph
"A £1bn jobs fund that aims to get a grip on soaring youth unemployment is to be announced by Nick Clegg this week, partly funded by a squeeze on tax credits paid to poorer workers. The deal is a compromise thrashed out between Conservative and Liberal Democrat ministers." – FT (£)
Andrew Lansley says that cancer care on NHS lags behind other developed countries because Labour wasted billions of pounds on PFI schemes and inflated salaries – Telegraph
The Health Secretary sets out his views in an article for The Telegraph.
- Europe surges ahead of UK on life expectancy because of our poor survival rates on cancer and obesity – Express | Daily Mail
- One in four NHS trusts withhold life-saving drugs to help cut costs – Metro
One-fifth of councils may reject council tax freeze, fearing they may have to raise it abruptly the following year – BBC
Cost of renewable and nuclear energy will add £280 to average energy bill within next decade, says official statistics – Telegraph
- "The Government plans to spend £11billion installing smart meters in every property, saying that once people see how much energy they use, they will make cutbacks.
Ministers say energy use will also be reduced by the so-called Green Deal, which will allow people to install double-glazing and loft insulation at no upfront cost." – Daily Mail - Chris Huhne unveils 'green deal' under which 14m homes could be fitted with insulation and other energy-saving measures – Guardian
David Cameron should have declared land deal with party donor, says former watchdog – Telegraph
Ministers urge Osborne to reduce steep rail fare rises – Independent
Nick Clegg launches inquiry into whether banks treat black customers fairly – Independent
"Nick Clegg has ordered a review of how British banks treat black and ethnic minority customers, in the light of evidence suggesting bank managers discriminate against them." – FT (£)
Allister Heath: Don't exaggerate Britain's economic strength
"George Osborne’s necessary austerity policies have so far prevented a run on the pound. But the main reason why UK gilt yields hit record lows yesterday is that the Bank of England is monetising the entirety of the government’s borrowing thanks to its latest £75bn QE programme. The UK economy isn’t a haven – and it isn’t safe." – Allister Heath in City AM
Eyeing parliamentary majority, Tories focus on ethnic minorities
"Andrew Cooper, Downing Street's political strategist, has identified 30 seats, largely urban, that have large ethnic minorities and that need to be won to gain victory in the next election." – Guardian
Stephan Shakespeare says Ed Miliband's squeezed middle phrase has resonated in a way that Cameron's words have not
"David Cameron, a strong and confident speaker, has nevertheless failed to find the language to pull the nation together. When he defined our moment in history as “the post-bureaucratic age”, he did not ignite the passions of the oppressed masses (even though it thrilled a few marginal techies like me). His next phrase, the Big Society, achieved a greater reaction, but has tended to fade. And in this moment of profound crisis, he has not been able to find a voice to calm our nerves." – Stephan Shakespeare in The Telegraph
Against apprenticeships; For the Government to throw millions of taxpayers’ money at large companies to train their own staff is absurd – Camilla Cavendish at The Times (£)
Countries that dominate high-value industries invest long-term. We must be one of them – Lord Mandelson in The Times (£)
SNP raised more money than Lib Dems in the last quarter – Scotsman
- The Guardian finds political resistance, but public support for the 'devolution plus' option in Scotland's referendum
The British people were anti-Brown, not anti-state – Rafael Behr in the New Statesman
David Miliband has ruled out a return to Labour's frontbench for as long as his brother Ed is leader – The Sun
The American political system has seldom, if ever, looked so inadequate to the challenges the country faces – Max Hastings in the Daily Mail
And finally… Who got a Christmas card from Cameron?
"Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin was snubbed from David Cameron’s 2010 Christmas card list last year. South African president Jacob Zuma did not receive a card, and no one from Iceland – which was refusing to bail out British savers of its collapsed banks – got one either." – Daily Mail
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