“Migrants whose English is judged to be so poor that they would struggle to find work in Britain could be denied benefits, Iain Duncan Smith has announced. The Work and Pensions Secretary said the Government was overhauling the test that enables migrants to claim benefits to prevent them from taking advantage of the welfare system.” – Daily Telegraph
“Fewer than a quarter of benefit cheats were prosecuted for flouting the welfare system last year, official figures have revealed. The Department for Work and Pensions and the Crown Prosecution Service did not pursue legal proceedings against more than 35,000 people who were investigated by the fraud inquiry arm of the department and found to have received a “recoverable overpayment” during 2012-13.” – The Times(£)
“The HS2 high-speed rail project is “essential” for the UK’s future and the potential gains “significantly outweigh” any risks, MPs have said. The Commons Transport Committee also said the estimated cost of up to £50bn had been exaggerated, leading opponents to think ministers were offering a ‘blank cheque’.” – BBC
“A fresh attack on Britain’s welfare budget was announced by George Osborne as he told MPs he would prefer to cut benefits than slash the size of the state to its smallest since the 1940s. In a calculated challenge to Labour in the runup to the next election, the chancellor said many more billions would need to be shaved from welfare to avoid deeper cuts in spending by Whitehall departments.” – The Guardian
“Some 767 primaries failed to reach basic targets for 11-year-olds in the three-Rs this summer – almost 50 per cent more than last year. These schools, which teach around 200,000 pupils in total, now face being closed down, taken over or turned into academies under government plans to combat ‘chronic under-performance’…According to the Department for Education, 834 schools would have fallen below the new standards last year if the three tests had been introduced then.” – Daily Mail
“Three damning reports last night laid bare the crisis in NHS hospitals, maternity units and GP surgeries. One investigation revealed that a quarter of new mothers were abandoned by their midwives during labour, with some left to give birth on the floor or in corridors.The second found that mistakes deemed so serious they should never happen are being made in hospitals five times a week. And the third survey said thousands of patients have all but given up trying to secure appointments with their family doctor.” – Daily Mail
“Further sanctions would have substantially weakened those in favour of negotiations and would have strengthened conservatives who were grimly prepared to resist foreign pressure to the bitter end. It is a pity that the Conservative Party has subsequently apologised for Thatcher’s opposition to sanctions. The approach adopted by Margaret Thatcher and her friend President Reagan helped to buy essential time for South Africa.” – FW de Klerk The Times(£)
“George Osborne’s flagship scheme to kick-start Britain’s mortgage market risks “detonating a bomb both under the British economy and his own political career”, David Cameron’s new housing adviser has warned. Alex Morton, who will start work in Downing Street next week, is set to play a key role in forming the Conservative Party’s manifesto pledges on housing and the planning system.” – The Times(£)
“Education Secretary Michael Gove accused university bosses yesterday of ‘pandering to extremism’ by endorsing the compulsory segregation of audiences for campus visits by hard-line Islamic speakers. He said it was ‘a disgrace’ for Universities UK to support the policy of separating men from women at lectures and debates.” – Daily Mail
>Today:ToryDiary: Segregated seating: Who should decide? Judges, who we don’t elect, or MPs who we do?
“Candidates at the 2015 general election will come under pressure not to take a proposed 11 per cent pay rise for MPs after an impasse between party leaders and the body responsible for fixing parliamentary salaries. Although many backbenchers want to accept the increase, which would raise their salaries from £66,396 to £74,000 after the election, they fear they will be pressured into refusing to take it if rival candidates say they will turn it down or give it to charity.” – The Independent
>Today: Mark Field on Comment: It won’t make me popular to say so but MPs should get their pay rise
“MORE than three out of five Brits think they would either be no wealthier or even WORSE off if Labour were in power today, a surprise poll has revealed. The findings in the exclusive YouGov survey for The Sun are a bitter blow for Ed Miliband on his cost of living offensive. A total of 32% said their family would be fairing worse financially now if his party won the last election. A further 31% said they would be “much the same as I am today”. And just one in four – 25% – thought they would be better off.” – The Sun(£)
“In 2008, the UK exported £19.1bn worth of goods to Ireland, much more than twice our exports to China (including Hong Kong), which were worth a pathetic £8.7bn. Over the last five years, however, exports to China (again, including Hong Kong) have soared 120 per cent, while sales of goods to Ireland have stagnated. The result: in the last three months, exports to China and Hong Kong combined were – for the first time ever – slightly (£7m) greater than exports to Ireland, the Citigroup research reveals.” – Allister Heath City AM
“Britain’s biggest trade union has told Ed Miliband it “cannot accept” any move to dilute its voting strength at the Labour Party’s annual conference. Unite said its “collective voice” must be preserved, even if fewer of its members sign up to Labour in future.” – BBC
“SAMANTHA Cameron has forgiven husband David for his selfie flirt with Denmark’s blonde PM — as he has ALREADY confessed to a crush on her. The Premier’s missus told pals the furore sparked by the infamous mobile photo at Nelson Mandela’s memorial didn’t upset her at all.
Revealing his soft spot, Mr Cameron often tells successful businesswoman Sam about seeing striking Helle Thorning-Schmidt during EU summits.” – The Sun(£)