“Almost 150,000 criminals convicted or cautioned last year had committed 15 or more previous offences, figures revealed last night. The ‘frightening’ re-offending rates mean this group alone have been responsible for more than two million crimes between them…Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said the figures exposed the abject failure of the criminal justice system to get to grips with repeat offenders and showed the desperate need for action to tackle persistently high reoffending rates.” – Daily Mail
“The Government faced mounting pressure to reform its green policies yesterday after bosses from Britain’s largest energy companies promised that cutting the levies would be passed on to customers via lower bills. Executives from the big six energy firms were grilled by MPs on the Energy and Climate Change Committee as to why electricity and gas bills are rising so sharply, with independent suppliers such as Ovo Energy also present on the panels.” – City AM
>Today:
“The Department for Work and Pensions plans, which go out for consultation today, call for a 0.75 per cent charge cap on workplace pension schemes. At the moment someone who saves throughout their working life (46 years at an initial £100 per month) could end up losing almost £170,000 from their pension pot with a one per cent charge, and more than £230,000 with a 1.5 per cent charge.” – Daily Express
“The rising price tag of the HS2 rail link has forced the Government to scale back estimates of its economic benefits. Latest forecasts claim the 351-mile high speed line will earn £2.30 for every pound spent by 2026 – 20p less than thought last year.” – Daily Mail
“The Privy Council is to meet today to approve a plan to impose draconian controls drawn up by politicians from all three main parties along with the Hacked Off pressure group. Last night Government sources said the meeting would be chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg but refused to say who else will attend or even where the meeting will be held.” – Daily Mail
“Dog owners whose pets kill could be jailed for up to 14 years under tough new laws…Secretary of State Owen Paterson said the new sentences would be in line with the penalties imposed on motorists whose dangerous driving leads to someone being killed.” – Daily Mail
“Former home secretary Jack Straw has urged Ed Miliband to take action over fresh evidence that Unite union officials attempted to rig the vote in the selection of a Labour party candidate. Mr Straw said Mr Miliband ‘should actively consider re-opening the investigation’ into the selection process at the Falkirk constituency.” – Daily Mail
>Yesterday: WATCH: Jack Straw says that Unite put politics before the interests of their members
“Labour should have made cuts to public spending before the financial crisis hit Britain, Tony Blair has admitted. The former Prime Minister said that he regretted not following through on a plan to weed out billions in unnecessary and wasteful spending in 2005.” – The Times (£)
“The Electoral Commission considered the wording contained in the draft legislation, which asks: “Do you think the United Kingdom should be a member of the European Union?” It discovered that Britain’s 40-year membership of the EU had passed some people by. “The phrase ‘be a member’ in the question was felt by many to imply that they are being asked whether the United Kingdom should become a member, rather than if it should remain a member.” – The Times (£)
“The UK’s current intelligence and security network could not be easily divided and resources such as the £860million UK cyber security programme ‘would not be available to Scotland’, she said. Mrs May added: ‘Separate bits could not be hived off. This is one of the challenges, one of the hard issues that the SNP need to address.’” – Daily Mail
>Today: Henry Hill’s Red, White and Blue column: Five suspected republican terrorists arrested in Scotland
>Yesterday: Lord Ashcroft on Comment: How the Conservatives could gain traction in Scotland
“Education in the UK lags behind much poorer countries including Lithuania, Latvia and Hungary, according to a major international report. The knowledge and skills of British adults is ranked 30th out of 142 countries – despite our economy being the 28th best. Schools in Lithuania were rated two places higher than here, even though it languishes in the bottom third of economies in 94th place.” – Daily Mail