ConservativeHome

Friday 17th July 2009

ToryDiary:

• A very good week for compassionate conservatism
• The Economist predicts 'the Tory divisions to come'
• Ken Clarke on mobile phones, jogging and Ted Heath

Dr Patrick Nolan on Platform: Reducing family breakdown requires fairer incentives within families

Seats and candidates:

• We still have empty seats on this Sunday's coach to Norwich North
• Four ex-MEPs and five other parliamentarians hope to become Tory MPs

Parliament: The Sun attacks part-time Parliament passing "half-baked" laws

Local government: Do we need eco-towns?

WATCH:

• James Arbuthnot MP repeatedly asks Gordon Brown if the Chief of the Defence Staff asked for 2,000 more troops
• Andy McNab, former SAS soldier and author of "Bravo Two Zero", speaks alongside Liam Fox at the Conservative Party's Combat Stress Summit

Today's top story: Labour ministers plan reputation trashing of Army chief General Sir Richard Dannatt

"Relations between the Chief of the General Staff and the Government hit a new low after senior Labour sources warned the general will be “fair game” for political attacks when he leaves his post at the end of August. Sir Richard has publicly called for more troops and helicopters in Afghanistan, piling pressure on Gordon Brown over his support for the Armed Forces." - Telegraph

"Not that the prospect of a Tory victory at the next election holds out much hope for a significant reallocation of resources towards defence. Behind the scenes, Mr Cameron and his aides are briefing opinion-formers to expect the worst. More money will be found for the Army, but only at the expense of the RAF and Navy. Writing in the Financial Times, Malcolm Rifkind, a former Conservative defence secretary, stated boldly: "The defence budget of over £34 billion [sic] is simply too big to be exempt from cuts." - Jeff Randall in The Telegraph

George Osborne intensifies attack on "dishonest" Brown

"Last night, George Osborne launched a full-blown attack on the Prime Minister, saying: "Gordon Brown's dishonesty is becoming an embarrassment for the whole government. His claim that cuts can be avoided is now openly challenged by the Cabinet Secretary and the Chancellor. "He dismisses newspaper reports the civil service are contemplating 20% cuts but those reports come straight from the mouth of Gus O'Donnell." - The Herald | BBC report on Mr Brown's latest spending remarks

Quoted in The Telegraph Mr Osborne reaffirms his approach to financial regulation: "The next Conservative government will abolish the tripartite system... We will put the Bank of England in charge of the prudential supervision of our banks, our building societies and our other significant financial institutions. For we have learnt from this crisis the old truth: that you cannot separate central banking from the supervision of the financial system."

David Cameron attacks the spineless Labour MPs who deserted Gary McKinnon

"David Cameron and Nick Clegg last night attacked hypocritical MPs who pledged support for Gary McKinnon's fight against extradition to the U.S. before reneging in a key Commons vote. It came as the Asperger's sufferer's family and charities lashed out at former minister Denis MacShane for suggesting he was faking his condition." - Daily Mail

Tory chairman tells party to get ready for autumn election - Guardian

Half of next generation of Tory MPs comfortable with Scottish independence

"A poll showing almost half the Tory candidates thought most likely to become the next generation of Conservative MPs, are "not uncomfortable" with the idea of an independent Scotland was hailed by the SNP last night as a boost for the nationalist cause and an embarrassment for the Tories in Scotland. The snapshot conducted by the Conservativehome.com website asked questions on a variety of subjects of 144 election candidates in what it regarded as the 220 most winnable seats for the Westminster opposition party across the UK." - The Herald

> The full survey results were published here two weeks ago.

Barnett formula should be scrapped as Scotland's needs were not as great as other parts of the UK says Lords Committee - BBC

Andy Coulson will face grilling from Commons Culture Cttee on Tuesday - BBC | Sky News

No more News of the World phone-tapping trials, says Director of Public Prosecutions - Daily Mail

Technology should not be excuse to erode our precious freedoms - Damian Green MP in The Independent

Seven-in-ten voters don't want Tories to repeal hunting ban - The Mirror

Nick Clegg claims that Britain's political duopoly is over

"The duopoly that dominated British politics in the 20th century is dying on its feet. In the 1951 General Election, only 2 per cent of voters chose a party other than Labour or the Conservatives. At the local elections last month, that figure had risen to nearly 40 per cent. The glue that held the duopoly together has disintegrated. Class divides have shifted. Geography no longer maps allegiance. Ideological differences once so important feel immaterial in the post-Cold War world. And because of globalisation and technology – not least the internet – identity has become more fluid and more complex." - The Liberal Democrat leader quoted in The Independent

And finally...

Gordon Brown's guests at Chequers last year included Jimmy Carr, Bruce Forsyth, Sir Fred Goodwin and John Motson - The Guardian

"Gordon Brown’s globetrotting last year cost twice as much as Tony Blair in his final year" - The Times

And, reports The Telegraph, The number of spin doctors and political advisers Gordon Brown employs in Downing Street at taxpayers' expense has risen again.

Please use this thread to highlight other interesting news and commentary and visit PoliticsHome.com for breaking political news and views throughout the day.

Thursday 16th July 2009

10.15pm ToryDiary: Edward McMillan-Scott MEP must be expelled from the Conservative Party

9.30pm WATCH: In an eight minute interview with Channel 4 News David Cameron says more helicopters for Afghanistan should be number one priority for defence budget

3.30pm Local Government: How green is your Council? and Tory Council plans skate park.

10.45am ToryDiary: Labour has left Britain "uninsulated against the long-term rise in energy prices" says Greg Clark

ToryDiary: Clarke prepares the way for Tory tax rises

Sir Simon Milton on Platform: Boris is transforming London

Christina Dykes on Platform: Just like any other profession, politicians need skills training

Seats and candidates: Thirty-three lawyers in the next intake of Conservative MPs

Local government: Youth Clubs struggle with Council funding squeeze and Liverpool Council could be sued for flying gay rights flag

WATCH: Gordon Brown backs Tony Blair to become 'President of Europe'

David Cameron: The five lessons I learned as the father of a disabled child – and intend to put into practice

"It feels like you're on the beginning of a journey you never planned to take, without a map or a clue which direction to go in. That's one of the reasons why the next Conservative government is going to increase radically the number of health visitors. I'm not suggesting it's their job to diagnose disabilities, but for decades they've been in the home with parents, spotting warning signs early and offering sound advice. I know how crucial that early help is, which is why we need more of it." - The Conservative leader writing in The Independent

"Families caring for disabled children should be spared the ordeal of having to spend hours dealing with paperwork by being offered a one-off assessment of all their needs, David Cameron reveals today... Mr Cameron sets out a comprehensive plan to help disabled children and their families in a speech at a Research Autism conference today." - Independent

"When it comes to special needs, Mr Cameron knows whereof he speaks. Armed with knowledge of the bureaucratic jungle faced by parents in similar situations, he is putting forward sensible proposals to improve the lives of children with disabilities, as well as their carers. The expected pledge that a future Conservative government will put an immediate stop to the programme of special school closures is welcome. Undoubtedly, some disabled children benefit from being educated in a mainstream school. But the Government's policy of pushing "inclusion" has made life harder for many disabled children and their carers. Special schools still have a vital place." - Independent leader

Tories plan local TV revolution

"ITV’s regional news bulletins would be replaced by 80 city-based stations under a Conservative government, under a plan for reforming local television unveiled today... The Shadow Cabinet member threw his weight behind a scheme devised by Roger Parry, the former chairman of Johnston Press, who said that it was possible to set up 81 new television stations covering four fifths of the country after 2012." - The Times

Greg Clark says Labour is copying Tory ideas on green energy

"David Cameron's party has sought to claim the environment as a Conservative issue, and the Tories, like Labour, want to increase the share of Britain's energy generated from renewable sources. That would mean the number of wind turbines would continue to grow sharply under a Conservative government.  However, the Tories say local communities should be given a more direct incentive to accept new windfarms and other sites." - Telegraph

"The Conservatives are urging the government to avoid a "valley of death" between the end of the current grants scheme for small-scale renewable energy projects and the launch of the so-called "feed-in tariff" over the next two years." - Guardian

"The government is expected to announce a scaled-down version of its grand plan to create up to 10 "eco towns"." - BBC

Sixteen of twenty specialist newspaper respondents say Tory media is operation is 'good' or 'excellent'

The operation won the thumbs up in a survey by PR Week.

In suggesting possible replacements for Andy Coulson should he leave his Tory communications post, PR Week produces this gem: "1,000/1 Damian McBride Gordon Brown's former media handler has relevant experience and is looking for a job. Of course, it would take a conversion of Damascene proportions." "Damascene" does not come close as a description!

Tories accuse Labour MPs of hypocrisy after abandoning Gary McKinnon in his fight against extradition to the US - Daily Mail

Peter Riddell: Expect David Cameron to bring in outside experts to run departments

"The pool of experience in the Commons has become narrower as many MPs are already full-time politicians when elected. Hence Mr Brown has brought in outsiders with specialist knowledge, such as Lord Carter to work on the Digital Britain plans... Future prime ministers will face the same dilemma. Where will they find expert ministers? Mr Cameron has brought in Baroness Neville-Jones to work on national security issues and Lord Freud on welfare reform and unemployment. Expect many more." - Peter Riddell in The Times

Real UK unemployment is between 4 and 5.5 million - Allister Heath in City AM

Stephen Glover: The BBC will always hate the Tories

"If Mr Cameron becomes Prime Minister, I would like him to address the question of the BBC's excessive power in the interests of freedom and plurality. I hope he understands that the Guardian/BBC onslaught of recent days was calculated to discredit Andy Coulson, and therefore to damage him... Mr Cameron can hug as many huskies as he likes, and embrace all manner of fashionable causes, but the lesson of the past week is that the Guardian and the BBC will always hate him because he is a Tory." - Stephen Glover in the Daily Mail

Please use this thread to highlight other interesting news and commentary and visit PoliticsHome.com for breaking political news and views throughout the day.

Wednesday 15th July 2009

4.45pm WATCH: Cameron and Brown clash over Afghanistan in last PMQs before recess

12.30pm ToryDiary: Helicopters for Afghanistan dominates last PMQs before recess

11.45 Jill Kirby on CentreRight: Help the dying - or build a Next Stage Review?

9.30am Dan Hamilton on CentreRight: Kamiński's credo

ToryDiary: Chris Grayling promises a “21st-century clip around the ear” for the "Nokia generation"

Stephan Shakespeare on Platform: Cameron must not be like Boris

Dan Hannan MEP on Platform: We can be very proud of our new leader in the European Parliament

Seats and candidates:

• Potential members of the new parliamentary intake coming from an ethnic minority
• Andrew Stephenson's PPC Diary: Eleven months until Pendle can vote Labour out!

CentreRight:

• Stephan Shakespeare has another go at explaining the Post-Bureaucratic Age: No more milkman
  
• Melanchthon on the Church of England and homosexuality
  

Local government: Adoption failure rate is only 2%

WATCH: The BNP get a cold welcome to the European Parliament

Tory MEP Edward McMillan-Scott expelled after poll rebellion

"A senior Tory MEP was expelled from the party on Tuesday night after winning election to the post of European Parliament vice-president against the Conservatives' official candidate." - Telegraph

> Yesterday evening's ToryDiary: Michal Kaminski MEP elected leader of European Conservatives and Reformists

Quentin Letts: George Osborne is stuck in oppositional mode

"The problem with his performance was that it was predictable. Its tone, scornful, sardonic, rushed, was unremittingly negative... He is stuck in oppositional mode. He is so consistently, vigorously rude about the Treasury that it has become slightly tiresome. As David Cameron once said, maybe he needs to let in the sunshine. Mr Osborne’s crossness is in contrast to the controlled demeanour of the Chancellor. Mr Darling is like one of those airline pilots who manages to keep his voice level, even while disaster is unfolding all around the cockpit." - Quentin Letts in the Daily Mail

"Osborne said that lending in the economy was lower than expected because half of the government’s financial assistance schemes were not working." - ePolitix

Theresa May: Unemployment to cost taxpayers £11bn pa - Telegraph

Ken Clarke speech will accuse Brown of a "lack of candour" on public spending - BBC

Mandelson concedes that Britain faces ten years of spending squeeze

"Of course, there will be pressures on spending until 2011 and constraints for the next decade," the business secretary told a Westminster lunch. But he argued that a Labour government would protect frontline services, such as police and hospitals, while a Cameron administration's "mixture of indifference and dogma" would erode the public sector. "That is going to be absolutely the fulcrum of the coming election battleground." - FT

Only Lord West is left as a 'G.O.A.T.' after Lord Darzi quits as health minister - BBC

Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley MP commented: "This was surely coming for a long time. Ara Darzi's laudable focus on quality was increasingly at odds with the Brownite fixation with targets and command and control".

Elderly face £20,000 bill in plan to defuse population timebomb

"Elderly people could be compelled to pay up to £20,000 to insure themselves against the cost of being cared for at the end of their lives. The proposals are designed to replace a system that the government describes as unjust with one that is "fair, simple and affordable for everyone"." - Guardian

Alan Johnson: I won't cap immigration - Daily Mail

Max Hastings leans towards abolishing Trident

"Exponents of maintaining Trident and a successor rely overwhelmingly upon traditional arguments about the deterrent as a statement of Britain’s place in the world, its claims upon a seat at the top table. It would be foolish to dismiss this argument, not least because it may well prevail. But it begs the insistent question: can Britain afford such a gesture in our newly straitened circumstances, and at the expense of other, much more utilisable, elements of national security?" - Max Hastings in the FT

And finally...

Photograph of Cameron playing football with youngsters in Kennington - The Sun

Please use this thread to highlight other interesting news and commentary and visit PoliticsHome.com for breaking political news and views throughout the day.

Tuesday 14th July 2009

10.30pm ToryDiary: Michal Kaminski MEP elected leader of European Conservatives and Reformists

10.15pm ToryDiary: 'Through the keyhole'

9.45pm Seats and candidates: Totnes Tories shortlist three candidates

9.15pm Alex Deane on CentreRight: Obama is right on Africa - and perhaps he is the only man who can advance this agenda

B is for Buildings. The annual cost of EU institutions renting their buildings comes to €449 million. The actual value of the property owned, or on long lease with an option to purchase, is €5.8 billion. That is nearly six Buckingham Palaces....

F is for Fitness. The European Parliament hosts a gym, studio classes, two squash courts, and a sauna, and caters for beauty therapy (vital for wooing the voters, and the stagiaires). There’s also a sunbed. Public money subsidises it....

W is for Wheels. The total annual car bill for these institutions is €7.4 million...

3.30pm On CentreRight, Matt Sinclair presents a Taxpayer's A to Z guide to the European Union

12.45pm ToryDiary: Whatever happened to The Telegraph's coverage of the Conservatives?

11am ToryDiary: Not an auspicious start for the European Conservatives and Reformists

ToryDiary:

• The Tories must stop the Charity Commission's war on private schools
  
• Boris dismisses his £250,000 fee for Telegraph column as "chicken feed"

Grant Shapps MP on Platform: Labour's Mortgage Rescue Scheme has hardly rescued anyone

Local government:

• Cllr David Ashton: If councils turn a blind to parents' lies on school application forms then the system becomes unworkable
• Nick Seaton says Sex Education is destroying childhood

Seats and candidates:

• Eric Pickles MP: Will YOU bring the Crewe and Nantwich magic to Norwich North?
• Members of the potential new intake who have fought the same seat twice or three times

David T Breaker on CentreRight: My day for Britain would be Churchill Day

LISTEN: Andrew Lansley and Health Secretary Andy Burnham discuss the challenge of long-term care for the elderly

WATCH: Anti-BNP video launched entitled 'Not in my Name'

Army asked for 2,000 extra troops and Brown sent 700

"Liam Fox, the Shadow Defence Secretary, said that the Government had to explain “why our Armed Forces are having to do so much with so little”." - Quoted in The Times

ICM: Tories are winning battle on public spending

"The Conservatives have won round one in the party battle over spending, the latest Guardian/ICM poll suggests. Voters are keener on the Tory message that spending must fall than the Labour one that increases will help to fight the recession. The figures suggest the prime minister's efforts to define the political battle around the issue of Labour spending v Tory cuts has failed. Tomorrow's Guardian/ICM poll shows that 64% of voters think the government should be reducing spending now, against only 28% who want to see it increase." - Guardian

> Yesterday's ToryDiary: Tories at 41%, Labour on 27% in ICM/Guardian poll

British Chambers of Commerce urges Tories to change course on Heathrow expansion

"A leading business lobby group appealed on Monday to the Conservative party to reverse its opposition to the building of a third runway at Heathrow airport, warning the policy would cost the economy billions of pounds in lost productivity.  A study published on Monday by the British Chambers of Commerce said the direct economic benefit of adding capacity at Heathrow would be in the region of £300m ($488m)-£500m a year." - FT

Tory MP Ian Taylor issued this statement: "Opponents of the third runway have a problem: we need more airport capacity so where else should it be in the south-east?  The Heathrow expansion will be privately financed. Who now believes there will be public funds for sufficient alternative new fast rail links in this decade? And as long as we draw electricity for trains from our energy source of coal and gas, the environmental impact of rail travel is more adverse than the impact of modern aircraft per passenger mile. We need to inject some common sense and better environmental science into the debate."

David Cameron pledges to protect foreign aid from recession

"David Cameron has renewed his pledge to spare foreign aid from future Conservative spending cuts, arguing that recession-hit voters would understand the UK's "responsibility" to the world's poorest." - The Herald

"The Opposition leader said a Conservative government would impose tougher controls to ensure development money was not misspent and show taxpayers where every penny was going.  But the temptation to switch the money to meeting domestic needs would be a "serious long-term mistake" as it would help foster terrorism, climate change and war, posing security risks at home." - Yorkshire Post

The West's aid to Africa does nothing but ease its conscience - Dominic Lawson in The Independent

> Yesterday's ToryDiary: We must not (and cannot) balance the budget on the backs of the world's poorest people*

The Civil Service has turned its back on Labour and is getting into bed with the party it thinks will hold power in a year - Rachel Sylvester in The Times

The next generation of Tory MPs will pose a big management challenge for David Cameron - Tim Montgomerie in the FT

Michael White: IDS's family report proves there are second acts in political lives

"Over-promoted politicians sometimes make a better fist of their second careers. Arthur Balfour and Alec Douglas-Home were better foreign secretaries than they were prime ministers. Jimmy Carter is a more impressive ex-president than he was a chief executive. At a less exalted level Iain Duncan Smith, Conservative leader 2001-03, fits that mould too. David Cameron, a better politician, looks favourably on his endeavours... Britain tops so many European leagues for social dysfunction that it is sometimes hard to remember – as the CSJ report does – that two-thirds of first marriages still survive until death, that most people (84%) value marriage and that married people are happier, richer and live longer than cohabitees and the separated. Such talk puts the Tories in conflict with New Labour politicians such as Harriet Harman, who champions equal rights for cohabiting couples, but a decade of progressive remedies has barely reversed the pattern of family breakdown. Time for the Tories to try again?" - Michael White in The Guardian

Guardian video of Polly Toynbee challenging IDS on his family proposals.

> WATCH: Iain Duncan Smith explains his proposal for a three month cooling off period for divorcing couples

Lord Kingsland: Conservative MEP and Shadow Lord Chancellor - Times obituary

Ann Widdecombe secures a phone in show on LBC - Telegraph

BBC axes bonuses as Culture Secretary attacks 'wrong-headed' attitude of bosses over licence fee sharing

"Culture Secretary Ben Bradshaw warned poor leadership at the BBC has led senior staff to lose confidence in the corporation.  He also criticised the broadcaster for showing 'wrong-headed' leadership over plans to share the licence fee with rival television channels." - Daily Mail

And finally... Obama's Teleprompter crashes to earth

"President Barack Obama had just started a spirited defense of his economic stimulus plan on Monday when one of his teleprompter screens came loose, crashed to the floor and shattered into pieces.  The gadget's fall surprised Obama, who uses a teleprompter during most speeches and even brief remarks. The glass plate displaying his speech hit the floor in the auditorium of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, a massive building within the White House compound.  "Oh, goodness," Obama said. "Sorry about that, guys."" - Fox News Politics

Please use this thread to highlight other interesting news and commentary and visit PoliticsHome.com for breaking political news and views throughout the day.