Thursday 19th June 2008

6.15pm Samuel Coates on CentreRight: Happy Birthday Aung San Suu Kyi

5.30pm Alex Deane on CentreRight: Abuse in the blogosphere

4.30pm Seats and candidates: Boris complains at "low point in a long and undistinguished history of Liberal Democrat campaigning"

4pm ToryDiary: Shami Chakrabarti threatens to sue Andy Burnham after "innuendo" about her friendship with David Davis

Lunchtime updates on CentreRight: Douglas Murray calls for the prosecution of Abu Qatada and Peter Whittles urges cancellation of the Cuban Festival.

"Unlike the Liberal Democrat candidate, who stood in the local elections in Plymouth last month, I haven’t just arrived for the by-election. I have lived in the Henley constituency for 20 years... We all know that anything can happen in a by-election, especially when the Lib Dems are fighting dirty, as they are doing here. That's why we're taking nothing for granted."

12pm Seats and Candidates: John Howell writes about the campaign in Henley

11am ToryDiary: People in Northern Ireland want a Conservative government

10am Seats and candidates: Peter Atkinson MP to step down from Hexham

ToryDiary: The future of the Davis-Cameron relationship

Alex Deane on Platform: The case against legalising drugs

Greg Hands MP on CentreRight: The Irish "no" has given us an opportunity to seek fundamental change in the EU

PlayPolitical videos:

• David Davis seeks Labour votes in interview for LabourHome website
• Barack Obama enjoys a 27% lead among the under 30s, McCain enjoys a 10% lead amongst the likelier-to-vote 60 to 69 year-olds.

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David Davis hit backs after Labour minister implies "heart-melting" relationship with Shami Chakrabarti

"Andy Burnham was left grovelling last night following remarks made to Progress magazine in which the cabinet minister painted a colourful picture of the relationship between David Davis and Liberty director Shami Chakrabarti. In a crass attempt to belittle the Tory MP's surprise opposition to "42-days", he questioned Davis' "having late-night, hand-wringing, heart-melting phone calls with Shami Chakrabarti."" - Independent

"'While Gordon Brown cowers in Downing Street, his henchmen are out and about to attack me personally rather than engage in rational debate,' said Mr Davis, who resigned his seat in protest at Labour plans for six-week detention without charge.  'Labour has now resorted to personal smears and lies rather than make its case for 42-day detention and for the other illiberal measures it has taken.'" - Daily Mail

"Dianne Hayter, chairman of Labour's National Executive Committee, said: "We do not believe a parliamentary by-election should be held at taxpayers' expense to resolve tensions at the top of the Conservative Party... She claimed that Mr Davis had done a deal with Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg, who said last week that his party would not contest the by-election, and never intended to put his seat at risk." - Independent

Kelvin MacKenzie explains why he won't be standing against David Davis - The Sun

The Tories' tax and spending plans

"Morality is the most under-used weapon in the armoury of a small-government Conservative. Economy-boosting tax relief doesn't have to be "tax cuts for the rich". The Tories' next moral target should be the taxation of low-income workers. Income tax is taken from many poor families, churned through an expensive bureaucracy and then returned in benefits." - Tim Montgomerie, Editor of ConservativeHome.com, in The Telegraph.

Do the Tory plans add up? - Steve Richards in The Independent

Royal Assent for EU Treaty expected within 24 hours

"A last-ditch Tory bid to delay the process for four months was defeated by a margin of 93, and peers later gave the EU Amendment Bill a third reading." - BBC

Philip Bushill-Matthews, Acting Leader of Tory MEPs, tells Birmingham Post that Lisbon is dead.

> Video: David Cameron's Commons clash with Gordon Brown over the Lisbon Treaty.
> Video: Gerard Batten MEP accuses European Parliament of "necrophilia" over Lisbon.

The result of the ConservativeHome poll on Caroline Spelman

955 votes were received in this survey.

Our View: "ConservativeHome continues to believe that Mrs Spelman will be exonerated and that she should not step down.  To do so would only encourage vexatious complaints against MPs and other public figures."

Dominic Grieve: Labour stole Tory idea for convicts on community service to wear hi-visibility clothing - Metro

Heathrow's local Tory MP insists that party hasn't closed door to Heathrow expansion - FT

"Shadow transport secretary Theresa Villiers said this week that the Conservatives will back the  development of new high speed rail lines in their election manifesto... "I am working hard on proposals to take high speed rail forward in this country to see if we can't at least start to catch up with countries like France and to deal with the capacity problems on our network," she said." - New Civil Engineer

Michael Gove to visit grammar school in Graham Brady's backyard

Shadow Education Secretary will be visiting a Trafford grammar school as well as an Academy, faith-based and high schools during a visit to North West England today.  In a peace-making move Mr Gove is expected to pay tribute to the "excellent" education offered by the borough's grammar schools.  Jonathan Isaby has more.

Boris Johnson wants more transparency over Olympics

"Officials working for Johnson have announced the cost of the venues has risen by £106 million, but London 2012 officials and the Government insist the net increase is only £16 million." - Telegraph

Boris for PM?

New chapter of Andrew Gimson's biography examines Boris Johnson's ambitions - Telegraph

> A ConservativeHome poll found 41% of Tory members suspecting that Boris is NOT cut out to be Tory leader.

Labour losing support among public sector workers - IpsosMORI poll for Unison quoted in Telegraph 

Wintertons did break rules on MPs' allowances for seconds homes but not knowingly - Daily Mail

Demand growing for English Parliament, says Labour MP - ePolitix

Britain needs GM crops says Environment Minister - Independent

LibDems want rebate for green firms - BBC

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