“Nigel Farage has dismissed claims that Ukip backs the repatriation of EU migrants who have lived and worked in Britain for years. … He insists the party would allow lawful migrants to stay – even if the UK leaves the European Union. … His intervention follows a storm of protest after Ukip candidate Mark Reckless, who is set to win the party’s second parliamentary seat in the Rochester and Strood by-election tomorrow night, was accused of advocating the repatriation of existing migrants.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
“Nigel Farage reckons Ukip will romp home in today’s by-election in Rochester and Strood – because of ‘cocky’ David Cameron. … The Ukip chief said the Conservatives had made a massive mistake in basing their campaign around the PM. … He told The Sun: ‘They thought their trump card was David Cameron. They couldn’t be more wrong. This will be a massive personal rebuke for him.'” – The Sun (£)
“Two Conservative MPs are considering jumping ship to Nigel Farage’s party if it wins the Rochester and Strood byelection, Ukip candidate Mark Reckless said on Wednesday. … Further defections would be likely to prompt a crisis in Downing Street about the haemorrhaging of the Tory vote six months before the general election, and potentially a move on David Cameron’s leadership.” – The Guardian
And comment:
“Lord Ashcroft, the Conservatives’ former deputy chairman, has accused David Cameron of putting ‘two fingers’ up to natural Tory supporters who are now supporting Ukip. … In a private meeting with fellow Tories, the businessman and former party donor warned that Mr Cameron’s ‘vote Miliband, get Ukip’ message would backfire. He said the Tories had decided to ‘scream abuse’ at ‘decent’ former supporters and were telling them they were ‘dumb’.” – The Independent
“The Tory policy chief claims he will vote to leave Europe unless Brussels hands powers over border controls and justice back to Britain. … He added it was not clear that PM David Cameron could secure the necessary reform – but said the odds were ‘better than 50-50’. … Mr Letwin – who penned the party’s 2010 Manifesto – said: ‘If we don’t get the sort of position I was describing then I wouldn’t want to recommend anything. … I would want to recommend leaving.'” – The Sun (£)
> Today:
“Kenneth Clarke has launched a frontal assault on David Cameron’s EU reform plans, declaring that he was seeking to dismantle one of Margaret Thatcher’s greatest legacies by challenging the free movement of people in the EU. … In a provocative intervention on the eve of the Rochester and Strood byelection, the former Conservative chancellor also accused John Major of encouraging people to vote Ukip, after he floated plans to reform free movement on behalf of No 10.” – The Guardian
“We no longer have Prime Minister’s Questions but Prime Minister’s Putdowns – pre-packaged insults both aimed and delivered by David Cameron. … He enjoys this more than he should. His opponent (or punchbag) has plainly come to loathe the weekly ordeal and is increasingly terrible at it. … Mr Cameron, with unseemly alacrity, jested about Mr Miliband’s television clash with Myleene Klass. ‘He had a pasting from a pop star!’ Loud laughter.” – Quentin Letts, Daily Mail
And comment:
> Yesterday:
“The Big Society has failed, according to charity chiefs who have accused David Cameron of ‘stifling civil society’ by preventing them from speaking out about service failures. … The Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (Acevo) has attacked the government, saying that some of its measures have been ‘constitutionally and morally disastrous’.” – The Times (£)
“Weekly pay packets increased by just a pound last year – the lowest rise since 1997, official stats show. … But the Government hailed the pay gap between men and women falling to a record low level of 9.4 per cent – down from 17.4 per cent in 1997. … Women Minister Nicky Morgan said: ‘I am delighted that the gender pay gap has reduced to its lowest point in history.'” – The Sun (£)
And comment:
“A nuclear deal with Iran is unlikely to be completed on schedule by next Monday but there may be enough progress to warrant extending the deadline, Britain’s foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, has said. … Talks between Iran and six world powers on the future of the country’s nuclear programme are in their last week in Vienna, with significant gaps remaining between the negotiating positions on how much capacity for enriching uranium Tehran should have, and the speed at which international sanctions should be removed.” – The Guardian
“The First World War was defined by those who volunteered for the greater good – millions of Britons who believed in fighting to make the world a better place. That’s why our ‘Remember WW1’ campaign is about much more than reflection. … We are encouraging people to pledge an hour of their time – in whatever sphere – to show just a small token of gratitude to those who fought for our liberty.” – Eric Pickles, Daily Telegraph
“Ministers will today urge schools to bring back traditional textbooks to end a growing reliance on worksheets and the internet. … They will say that an ‘anti-textbook ethos’ has contributed to England’s slide in international rankings of pupils’ performance in key academic subjects. … In a speech to the Publishers Association, School Reform Minister Nick Gibb will call on all schools – both primary and secondary – to reintroduce good quality textbooks in most subjects.” – Daily Mail
“A leading state school will be put into special measures by Ofsted today amid claims that pupils have been exposed to Islamic extremism. … Inspectors visiting the Church of England school in East London discovered girls and boys were being segregated in the playground. … They also found that an Islamic society set up by sixth formers had posted links on its Facebook page to hardline Islamist preachers.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
“Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg today called on Scotland Yard to investigate ‘grotesque’ claims police helped to ‘cover up’ the death of an eight-year-old boy at the hands of a Westminster paedophile ring. … Vishambar Mehrotra claims his son Vishal was murdered by a Westminster-based abusers after disappearing on the day of the Royal wedding in 1981.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
“Simon Hughes said there should be a legal presumption that no one goes to jail for less than 12 months, with criminals given community or suspended sentences instead. … But figures show such a move would mean 60,000 fewer criminals going to prison every year, including thousands of violent thugs, burglars, sex attackers and robbers.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
> Today: Peter Riddell on Comment – What would a minority government be like?
“Britain will donate a stunning £700 million of taxpayers’ cash to a global green fund – £100 million more than thought. … Sources said the pledge would come at a ‘donors meeting’ in Berlin – despite fury from Tory backbenchers. … The Government refused to comment ahead of the summit. Energy secretary Ed Davey – a Lib Dem green campaigner – has been leading the talks.” – The Sun (£)
And comment:
“A senior Liberal Democrat has revealed that he was approached dozens of times by wealthy supporters who offered £1million or more to buy seats in the House of Lords. … In remarks that threaten a new cash for honours controversy, the party’s former treasurer Lord Razzall admitted yesterday he told business people who made such approaches ‘several times a year’ to ‘keep quiet’.” – Daily Mail
“Labour are to force lotto bosses to reveal whether poorer ticket buyers are getting their fair share of cash back for good causes, The Sun can reveal. … The intervention over the long-running scandal came as the National Lottery last night marked its 20th birthday. … Owners Camelot detail where all lottery grants go to geographically. … But they have refused to publish any breakdown of ticket sales by area or region for the last 15 years.” – The Sun (£)
“Nicola Sturgeon has been voted in as the first female First Minister of Scotland,sealed with a hug from outgoing leader Alex Salmond. … Watched from the sidelines by her proud family, Ms Sturgeon achieved her lifelong ambition to become Scotland’s first female leader yesterday as she vowed to ‘open the gate to greater opportunity’ for all women. … The SNP leader was elected First Minister by MSPs in a historic vote as Salmond’s seven-and-a-half-year reign officially came to an end.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
> Yesterday: Henry Hill’s column – Labour’s Scottish meltdown continues
“Waiting times for cutting-edge drugs will be cut in half under government plans to rip up a ‘broken’ system that has denied many NHS patients life-extending treatments. … Ministers want to bypass traditional clinical trials by using patients as a ‘test-bed’ for promising new drugs, linking their health service data to pharmaceutical company records to discover much more quickly how effective treatments are.” – The Times (£)
And comment:
> Today: Profile – Jeremy Hunt, the restorer of calm at Health. But will it last the winter?
> Yesterday: Jeremy Hunt MP on Comment – Why NHS culture still needs to change
“All hospitals have been ordered to publish their cancer survival rates, as part of plans to give patients a legal right to information comparing standards across the country, the Health Secretary has announced. … Jeremy Hunt told The Telegraph he will propose new powers – enshrined in law – in a bid to move away from the ‘dark days’ of Labour, which he said had left the public with no idea which hospitals were safe.” – Daily Telegraph
“Obesity is a greater burden on the UK’s economy than armed violence, war and terrorism, costing the country nearly £47bn a year, a report has found. … The study, commissioned by consultancy firm McKinsey and Company, reveals obesity has the second-largest economic impact on the UK behind smoking, generating an annual loss equivalent to 3% of GDP.” – The Guardian
And comment:
“Millions of households will have to retune their TV sets and up to 300,000 will need to move their aerial or install a new one following a decision to sell off the broadcasting frequencies used by Freeview. … Regulator Ofcom yesterday announced the decision, which will create space on the nation’s airwaves to expand high-speed mobile phone services.” – Daily Mail
And comment:
“Britain’s drinkers could see the price of a pint fall in the biggest shake-up of the pub industry in centuries. … MPs have voted to scrap the ‘beer tie’ under which breweries that rented out pubs to landlords locked them into selling their beer. … The surprise move means landlords will now be able to shop around to get the best deals when ordering beer.” – Daily Mail
“Business minister Matthew Hancock, a protege of George Osborne, has named his new cat Gideon – after the Chancellor’s hated real first name. Osborne is unamused. … Telling journalists over lunch Hancock had ruefully confessed he had called the feline ‘after the name my mother gave me’, the Chancellor rages: ‘It’s about the most disloyal thing Matt has ever done.’” – Ephraim Hardcastle column, Daily Mail
“She had an affair with a Prime Minister and claimed Northerners were dying of ‘ignorance and chips’. … Edwina Currie isn’t for the faint-hearted and has warned her soon-to-be jungle chums that she ‘will drive them crazy.'” – The Sun (£)