“David Cameron was branded a ‘blackmailer’ in Europe last night as he vowed Britain would veto any further expansion of the EU unless migration rules are reformed. The Prime Minister demanded new rules to apply to countries joining the EU, ensuring their economies must reach a certain level before free movement of their citizens is allowed.The reform would be designed to eliminate the overwhelming economic pull for people to move from poor countries to richer ones. – Daily Mail
Editorials:
Although some don’t see a hard line:
>Yesterday:
“Today he tried to sell the Gaullist vision of a Europe of sovereign states collaborating in a common endeavour. This vision involves compromise, endless attention to detail, and an ability to build alliances across Europe. On the basis of Mr Cameron’s speech this morning, I now believe he is capable of selling the Eurosceptic case to the rest of the EU and winning. He is a most formidable politician.” – Daily Telegraph
“George Osborne will announce an extra £1billion in NHS funding next week to avert a potential winter crisis, government sources say. The Chancellor is expected to use his Autumn Statement to pledge the extra money, as hospital admissions soar. Lib Dem Health Minister Norman Lamb has suggested extra health funding for England must be found before the general election to prevent a ‘crash’ in services.” – Daily Mail
>Yesterday: Heresy of the Week: Eliminating the deficit is the same thing as paying down our debts
“Those with two or more empty bedrooms lose a quarter of their handouts. According to the DWP, the policy has saved at least £750million since it was introduced – more than £1 million a day. Figures also suggest that more families are moving to smaller accommodation, or getting jobs, in order to avoid having their payments docked. Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith said: “The system we inherited was expensive, unfair, and in dire need of reform.”” – The Sun (£)
>Yesterday: Ryan Shorthouse and David Kirkby on Think Tanks: Welfare reform should recognise contributions and support families
“The chairman of the influential 1922 committee, Graham Brady, and former leadership contender David Davis are among those supporting the campaign, the Daily Mail has learned. At present, the law forbids new grammar schools, whose intake is based on selection according to academic ability – only allowing existing institutions to open ‘satellites’ in new locations. Theresa May, the home secretary, and Michael Fallon, the defence secretary, have broken ranks to back plans for new satellite grammar school campuses in their constituencies.” – Daily Mail
“Jeremy Paxman was asked to see David Cameron about becoming the Tory candidate for mayor of London, the presenter has revealed. However, the former Newsnight anchorman said in response to the story in today’s Times that he had decided not to run for the post “for all the éclairs in Paris”. Mr Paxman’s literary agency, Capel and Land, released a statement from him. It said: “It began life as a Boris Johnson joke. I was indeed approached about the gig and invited to see David Cameron to discuss the idea.” – The Times (£)
“Mr Mitchell will stand again as the Tory candidate for Sutton Coldfield and aims to restart his political career after the general election in May, he told The Times: “I’m planning to stand again. “We are faced with a substantial cost, which has yet to be determined, we’ll deal with that when we know what it amounts to.” It is understood that he is taking comfort from a precedent set by Cecil Parkinson, the Tory minister who resigned over a sex scandal in the 1980s but who was re-elected and saw his political career was rehabilitated.” – The Times (£)
“The truck-driving brother of the Labour MP who resigned over her picture of a white van and a house with the flag of St George has said that she was the victim of prejudice against Islington. Ben Thornberry, a builder who was raised with his older sister Emily in a council flat, said that he was dazed by the “wild reaction” over Ms Thornberry’s tweet. He blamed “dirty politics” for her forced resignation as shadow attorney general.” – The Times (£)
“Scottish MPs should be banned from becoming Chancellor or Chief Secretary to the Treasury after the next election, Tory MPs have said as a dramatic new front in the backlash against the Smith Commission proposals emerged. Backbenchers told The Telegraph it would be “inappropriate” and “just plain wrong” to allow politicians representing Scottish constituencies to take up top Treasury ministerial roles given the new economic powers being devolved to Holyrood.” – Daily Telegraph
“With opinion polls in Scotland showing a surge in support for the SNP and his party losing all but a handful of its 40 seats, he told voters that they face a “very simple, clear choice” between a Labour and Tory government. Mr Miliband also argued that the package of extra powers for the Scottish Parliament, unveiled this week by the cross-party Smith Commission, showed that Scots could trust him to deliver on his promises.” – Daily Telegraph
“Those of us who think that in the end England will have to have devolution too would be sensible to pipe down and be patient. Let Scotland take powers over income tax; hold back on urgent demands for the same for England. The logic for this is so stark that in time the argument, perhaps spurred by events, will prove impossible to slither away from, although Labour will try. Federation must come. There’s no rush.” – The Times (£)
“Labour’s mansion tax would unfairly penalise the elderly, slow the housing market and trigger a £2billion slump in stamp duty, a damning report reveals. Ed Miliband has claimed the controversial proposal to impose a levy on homes worth over £2million would raise £1.2 billion a year, which could pay for thousands of extra doctors, nurses and midwives. But the study shows this is ‘overly optimistic’ and the policy could actually cause a loss in stamp duty receipts of almost £2billion in just six years. This drop could, the report says, be ‘even greater than the proceeds’ of the new mansion tax – rendering it pointless.” – Daily Mail
“Rightly, the ISC investigated a narrower question: did the intelligence fail? In its answers, however, it leads us nearer to the main issue. It shows that something important was missing, and still is. Almost unnoticed in public comment, the report is quite tough on the intelligence services, much more than in its previous reports. It also contains unprecedented amounts of telling detail. While not exaggerating blame, it clearly shows that the intelligence did, in fact, fail. The future killers were noticed a bit, but not enough.” – Daily Telegraph