Monday 31st May 2010
10pm Matthew Sinclair on CentreRight: William Hague needs to issue a new statement on the flotilla incident
9pm ToryDiary: Michael Gove reportedly has no "ideological objection" to firms running academies making a profit
8.30pm ToryDiary: Major blamed for 1922 putsch
4.45pm Jonathan Isaby on CentreRight: Is now really the time for the Queen to be asking for more public cash?
1.30pm ToryDiary: William Hague condemns Israel's "unacceptable" blockade of Gaza in wake of flotilla deaths
12.15pm Parliament: Damian Collins, Stephen Mosley and Thérèse Coffey give vocal backing to nuclear power in their maiden speeches
10.45am Melanchthon on CentreRight: David Laws' resignation was the consequence of setting the misjudgement bar too low
9.45am ToryDiary: The Coalition will try to tough out the Telegraph's Danny Alexander revelations
ToryDiary: The government information and data being opened up to public scrutiny
Simon Clark on Platform: The tobacco industry has every right and every reason to lobby government
- Mark Wallace: The abolition of Comprehensive Area Assessments is to be welcomed
- Preston Lib Dem councillor resigns "to spend more time with his girlfriend"
Telegraph raises questions over Danny Alexander's "avoidance" of Capital Gains Tax
"The new Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, avoided paying capital gains tax when he sold his taxpayer-funded second home at a profit, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. Mr Alexander, who was appointed on Saturday after the resignation of fellow Liberal Democrat David Laws, designated the property as his second home for the purpose of claiming parliamentary expenses but described it to HM Revenue and Customs as his main home." - Daily Telegraph
> Last night's ToryDiary: The Telegraph guns for Danny Alexander after toppling David Laws
Coalition tries to calm fears following departure of David Laws
"Senior figures in David Cameron's government attempted to calm jittery markets yesterday by insisting that the resignation of David Laws as Treasury chief secretary, and his replacement by the relatively inexperienced Danny Alexander, did not undermine plans for a deficit reduction programme in next month's emergency budget. As Michael Gove, the education secretary, acknowledged that the government had suffered a serious loss, ministers said Alexander would be just as much a hawk on the deficit as his predecessor, who had been winning plaudits from the Tory right for cutting £6bn from spending within a week of taking office." - The Guardian
"Senior Conservatives said that Mr Cameron had no choice but to promote Mr Alexander from Scottish Secretary because he did not dare to upset the delicate equilibrium between the parties." - The Times
"David Cameron sought to reassure the City on Sunday that the loss of David Laws as chief secretary to the Treasury would not destabilise the coalition government’s plans to tackle the £156bn deficit." - FT
"Mr Laws's departure is a serious and untimely blow for the Government. He has been the most effective Cabinet minister in the brief life of this coalition." - Independent editorial
The coalition will survive, but it has been weakened with loss of Laws - Peter Riddell in The Times
"The Parliamentary inquiry into David Laws is expected to stretch back almost a decade and may scrutinise claims totalling more than £140,000." - Daily Telegraph
The foul hypocrisy of David Laws’ downfall - Matthew Parris in The Times
Iain Duncan Smith signals 'major exemptions' to rise in capital gains tax
"Iain Duncan Smith, the work and pensions secretary, sent out a strong signal that there would be major concessions over the coalition's plans to raise capital gains tax from 18% to 40%. Duncan Smith said he was sure the chancellor, George Osborne, would want to make concessions to take the sting out of the issue." - The Guardian
> WATCH: IDS tells Andrew Marr that Osborne plans to take sting out of CGT rise
George Osborne spreads deficit cut gospel
"George Osborne will this week urge leading economies to follow Britain's lead and start cutting their budget deficits. The Chancellor will insist to fellow finance ministers that ' excessive deficits are a risk to the world recovery', according to the Treasury. At his first meeting of the Group of 20 leading economies, Osborne will tell other countries with heavy government borrowings that the time has come to wield the axe." - Daily Mail
Peter Luff has "one of the toughest jobs in government"
"Liam Fox, the new secretary of state for defence, was one of the first ministers appointed by David Cameron and Nick Clegg... But it took two weeks to make the other key appointment - the minister for defence equipment and support. Peter Luff, the Conservative MP who was chairman of the Business Innovation and Skills Select Committee during the last parliament, was appointed only last Wednesday... Mr Luff, along with Dr Fox, now faces one of the toughest tasks in government. They will spend the five months between now and October dragged in opposite directions by the competing demands of what the armed forces need and what the country can afford. " - Daily Telegraph
Right-wing historian Niall Ferguson given school curriculum role
"Niall Ferguson, the British historian most closely associated with a rightwing, Eurocentric vision of western ascendancy, is to work with the Conservatives to overhaul history in schools... Michael Gove told the Guardian he "definitely" wanted Ferguson to be involved in a review of the curriculum, though he stopped short of signing up to Ferguson's proposal of a compulsory GCSE in history." - The Guardian
Gary McKinnon extradition can be stopped, says Lib Dem QC
"The coalition can and must save Gary McKinnon from extradition, the Government’s terror law adviser Lord Carlile says today. The senior Lib Dem peer insists that blocking the Asperger’s sufferer’s removal to the U.S. for computer hacking would not set any legal precedent involving other pending or future cases... Home Secretary Theresa May has temporarily halted his removal to consider new medical evidence." - Daily Mail
Theresa May urged to stop Islamic hate-preacher's tour
"Muslim fanatic Zakir Naik will start a tour preaching hate – unless new Home Secretary Theresa May stops him. The Islamic extremist, who once claimed “every Muslim should be a terrorist”, has been granted permission to enter the UK... Ms May, 53 is being urged to step in to stop him before he gives lectures at venues including Wembley and Sheffield arenas." - Daily Star
Ministers move to change universal jurisdiction law
"The government is moving swiftly to change the law on universal jurisdiction to abolish the ability to bring private prosecutions for international crimes in the UK. The foreign secretary, William Hague, has said the coalition government is already examining the law in detail, amid fears that the threat of arrest is preventing high-ranking Israelis from visiting the UK." - The Guardian
Boris Johnson: All our limo-loving politicians should be sent down the Tube
"David Cameron has made a good start in taking away some of these ministerial cars, but there is much further to go. We are going to take some very tough decisions in the next few years. We will push up the age of retirement, and I believe it should go to 70, rather than 68, and we will need to do it long before the current target of 2046. We must find ways of persuading huge numbers of people claiming incapacity benefit that they would be better off working. We must make difficult reforms to the benefits system, and in those circumstances it is utterly nauseating that politicians – and anyone benefiting from the public payroll – should think they can swank around in taxpayer-funded cars just because it used to be one of the perks of the job." - Boris Johnson in the Daily Telegraph
Ed Miliband: The Lib Dems betrayed their principles by entering the Coalition
"Liberal Democrat voters have been "betrayed" by their party's coalition with the Conservatives, according to Ed Miliband, the former climate change secretary. In the most vigorous attack on the Lib Dems since the government was formed Miliband, now a Labour leadership contender, said: "They are socially liberal but at same time – and this is where they have already betrayed a lot of people who voted for them – they believe in the state getting out of the way in terms of economics, and in terms of many of the things people value in our society." - The Guardian
Homeowners in a rush to sell after HIPs are scrapped - Daily Mail
Heating benefits for ex-pat elderly to be cut - The Independent
And finally... Lib Dem minister "warned to tone down her blogging"
"A minister who said she would love to ban The Sun's Page 3 has been rapped by civil servants after a series of online rants. Lib Dem Lynne Featherstone has been warned to tone down her blogging by Home Office officials. In one a fortnight ago, the equalities minister revealed she had been "lying in the bath thinking about the portfolio". She posted another in which she appeared to criticise Home Secretary Theresa May's record on gay rights." - The Sun
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