Weblinks for Wednesday 27th October 2010

8pm Parliament: Jonathan Lord is the last of the 2010 Tory intake to make his maiden speech

5.45pm Parliament: Treasury minister Mark Hoban insists the UK is exempt from EU economic governance regime

5.15pm Daniel Hamilton on CentreRight: Privacy and the internet: a call to arms

3.45pm ToryDiary: "Strengthening economic governance in the EU" - Read Herman van Rompuy's full report

2.30pm WATCH Three clips from today's Prime Minister's Questions:

• David Cameron says it's not fair that people should fund the housing benefit of others living in houses they couldn't dream of affording themselves
• David Cameron mocks Ed MIliband's plan for Prime Minister's Questions, as leaked to The Times
• Kate Hoey and David Cameron spar on UK contributions to the European Union

12.45pm ToryDiary: Ed Miliband challenges David Cameron on housing benefit at PMQs

11.30am Local government: Norfolk County Council's savings plan is not "savage cuts"

10.30am Seats and Candidates: Anthea McIntyre set to become Conservative MEP as UK gets 73rd seat in Brussels

ToryDiary: Who are "the Squeezed Middle"?

Simon Clark on Platform: The state should stop giving anti-smoking groups public money to lobby the Government

Local Government:

• A time to support Brian Coleman
• Cllr Robert-John Tasker: Cut the Schools' Adjudicator down to size

Parliament:

• Nine new Conservative select committee appointments
• Nick Clegg blasts "deeply offensive" Chris Bryant for accusing Coalition of "sociological cleansing"

ThinkTankCentral: Britain is ranked 13th in Legatum's annual prosperity index

Gazette: Michael Gove attends Graham Brady's Friends of Grammar Schools parliamentary reception

WATCH: Culture minister Ed Vaizey answers questions from the public on his departmental website about arts cuts and his recent lack of blogging

Housing benefit cap "may change"

"The government may have to amend its plans for a cap on housing benefit payouts, the BBC has learned. The proposed cap could force people out of cities where rent is higher, some MPs and charities have argued. But Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said people living in areas that many working families could not afford should not expect to be subsidised. A Whitehall source said the Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, was listening to MPs' concerns." - BBC

"The Government is trying to avoid holding a vote on the most controversial changes to housing benefit in a generation. Changes to reduce the housing benefit bill by £2.5 billion will be made in secondary legislation, which does not require a Commons vote and risk the embarrassment of defeat. However some Lib Dems were last night planning to ambush this attempt to bypass the Commons, The Times has learnt." - The Times (£)

> David T Breaker yesterday on CentreRight: We need house prices to go up

75% of incapacity claimaints are fit to work

"Three-quarters of people who applied for new benefits for the long-term sick failed tests to prove they were too ill to work. Out of about 840,000 who tried to obtain the £95-a-week Employment and Support Allowance, 640,000 were told they were fit for work, or withdrew their applications before they took the tests – suggesting they were ‘trying it on’." - Daily Mail

Fraudulent claims worth £135m uncovered by councils - BBC

George Osborne declares economy back on track after GDP increase

"Britain's economy grew twice as fast as expected over the summer, providing a boost for George Osborne as he fights Labour warnings that the coalition is jeopardising growth with the the most drastic fiscal retrenchment in a generation. The chancellor yesterday welcomed a "double dose of good news" after GDP grew by 0.8% in the past three months, and the ratings agency Standard & Poor's confirmed Britain's AAA credit rating. Britain, which is now considered a safe haven, is to be taken off the agency's list of countries on "negative watch". - The Guardian

"Britain is in the midst of the sharpest post-recession rebound for 50 years, boosting hopes that the economy can weather the Government’s austerity programme." - The Times (£)

"We are pulling out of this recession a touch faster than we climbed out of the one in the 1980s, the one that most closely resembles the current cycle." - Hamish McRae in The Independent

"The fear – so carefully cultivated by the Labour opposition – of a double-dip recession has also receded. While it cannot be ruled out, it looks increasingly unlikely, which leaves Alan Johnson, the shadow chancellor, even more bereft of an alternative economic strategy." - Daily Telegraph editorial

Surging economy brings new interest rate rise warning from Bank of England - Daily Mail

> WATCH: George Osborne welcomes higher than expected economic growth and endorsement by S&P of deficit strategy

Ken Clarke to scrap no win, no fee deals

"No-win, no-fee deals are to be scrapped under a radical shake-up of the courts to stop ambulance-chasing lawyers from cashing in on frivolous cases. Justice Secretary Ken Clarke announced yesterday that he will scrap lucrative success fees which allow lawyers to double their bill at the expense of the person or organisation that loses the case... Mr Clarke told Radio 4’s Law in Action programme: ‘You should not have a situation where, regardless of however frivolous the claim is, the sensible thing for the defendant to do is to settle, get out, before the legal costs start running up’." - Daily Mail

Philip Hammond unveils eight schemes to reduce motorway jams

"Eight major schemes to reduce congestion on motorways, often through peak-time use of the hard shoulder, were among 16 transport projects announced by the transport secretary, Philip Hammond, yesterday." - The Guardian

"The transport secretary picked out the schemes, which include improvements to parts of the most congested motorways, because they were “key drivers” of growth. “Each pound we spend on these schemes will generate on average £6 of benefits,” he told the House of Commons." - FT (£)

Lansley announces £600m cancer drug fund

"Patients in England will benefit from a £600m fund to improve access to cancer drugs over the next three years, the government has confirmed. The move is to address the UK's poor record of cancer treatment provision compared with the rest of Europe. Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said cancer patients were already getting extra treatments thanks to an interim fund of £50m which began in October." - BBC

Liam Fox warns UK defence firms to offer 'better value for money'

"Defence secretary Liam Fox warned industry that he would buy military equipment from foreign suppliers unless British groups offer ‘better value for money ’ in forthcoming negotiations. Peter Luff, the minister for defence equipment, is set to engage in discussions with industry chiefs, which will form the basis of a ‘defence industry blueprint’, Fox said." - Daily Mail

"Junior Isas" to be launched in 2011 - The Times (£)

EU makes a fresh grab for control of our budgets

"A move to drag Britain into ‘deeper economic and monetary union’ with the rest of the EU is being planned in Brussels, it emerged last night. European President Herman Van Rompuy intends to use a report on the economic crisis to press for sweeping reforms that will ‘strengthen economic governance in the EU’." - Daily Mail

> Saturday's ToryDiary: Why David Cameron's unlikely to push hard next week to freeze or cut the EU budget

Tim Montgomerie: Rebellious MPs are not the usual suspects

"A quarter of Tory MPs (77) voted to relax the smoking ban, 37 voted against the government line on EU funding. On Monday 22 backbenchers supported an amendment calling for a reduction in the number of government ministers. It’s not just the usual suspects. Many of the most active rebels are new MPs. They cut their political teeth when Margaret Thatcher was in power and have entered public life because they want to carry forward her ideas on Europe, small government and crime." - The Times (£)

> On Monday ConHome identified the most and least rebellious MPs

Talks being held to avert November 5th fire strike

"Talks aimed at averting a strike by London firefighters on Bonfire Night will be held on Wednesday, the Fire Brigades Union said. The union said its full negotiating team will attend the meeting with London Fire Brigade." - Press Association

> Yesterday in Local Government: The truth about the London fire strike

Lord Mandelson praises coalition on welfare, schools and Big Society... and issues stern warning to Ed Miliband

"Lord Mandelson praised David Cameron’s vision of a ‘Big Society’ yesterday – as he warned new Labour leader Ed Miliband against abandoning the centre ground of politics. In a series of interventions the former Business Secretary went out of his way to praise the coalition for its tough action in tackling the deficit and wide-ranging programme of reforms. He said the Government’s welfare and education reforms – both of which have been criticised by Labour – were moving in the right direction. And he praised the coalition for tackling the deficit head on – a strategy Mr Miliband has called a ‘big gamble’." - Daily Mail

Beating evasive Cameron is easy if you see the funny side, Miliband memo says

"Ed Miliband has been advised to use “mocking humour” to disarm David Cameron at Prime Minister’s Questions, according to a briefing note prepared for the Labour leader. The memo counsels Mr Miliband to develop “cheer lines” to help to secure a slot on broadcast news bulletins. The “big prize”, though, is to make the Prime Minister appear “evasive” by asking him simple questions that he will struggle to answer, it says. The three-page document, a copy of which has been obtained by The Times, warns the Labour leader that Mr Cameron is likely to be patronising in response." - The Times (£)

Britain "seen as more corrupt since MPs' expenses scandal" - The Guardian

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

Weblinks for Tuesday 26th October 2010

6.45pm Local government: The truth about the London fire strike

4pm ToryDiary: Open thread to suggest questions for the end-October ConHome survey

2.30pm WATCH: George Osborne welcomes higher than expected economic growth and endorsement by S&P of deficit strategy

11am LeftWatch: "The vicious Tory determination to make the poor suffer"

10am David T Breaker on CentreRight: We need house prices to go up

On ToryDiary Paul Goodman interviews Chief Whip Patrick McLoughlin: "There were two Conservative MPs who stood as independents at the general election - and they're not here now."

Matthew Offord MP on Platform: The settlements are not the defining issue of the Middle East peace process

Local government: Will Labour councils cash in on rent hikes - while blaming the Government?

Parliament:

• 22 Tory MPs support reduction in number of Government ministers
• Jeremy Hunt celebrates six year cash freeze in BBC licence fee

Thee opinion polls overnight show tightening

• ICM for The Guardian: Conservatives 39%, Labour 36%, Liberal Democrats 16%
• Populus for The Times (£): Conservatives 37%, Labour 38%, Liberal Democrats 15%
• YouGov for The Sun: Conservatives 40%, Labour 40%, Liberal Democrats 11%

Coalition pensions plan gets warm welcome

"After years of hearing about the pensions crisis, things may be changing. In 2015 the Government plans to increase our ludicrously low state pension to a flat-rate basic level of £140 a week. If only this had been done years ago, our pensions crisis might have been under control." - Ros Altmann of Saga in The Express

"The Coalition is not losing its capacity to surprise. The plan to introduce a flat-rate pension of about £140 a week by the end of this parliament was as unexpected as it was radical. There was no hint of the proposal in last week's Comprehensive Spending Review, which suggests that the details have not yet been nailed down; we suspect that doing so will be far from straightforward. Nevertheless, as a statement of intent, it is welcome." - Telegraph leader

> Yesterday's ToryDiary: IDS plans a citizen's pension of £140 for all

London firefighters ready to strike on bonfire night

"London firefighters are to strike on Bonfire Night as part of a dispute over changes to shifts. The Fire Brigades Union said last night that thousands of its members would walk out from 10am on November 5 until 9am on November 7 — the busiest period of the year for firefighters. The London Fire Brigade usually attends twice as many calls on November 5 than on any other night of the year. They put out twice as many serious fires and five times as many smaller fires than on other nights." - Times (£)

"Tory MP Nadhim Zahawi, a member of Parliament’s All Party Fire Safety and Rescue Group, said: "They are endangering the lives of people for the sake of a change to their shift patterns." He called for Ministers to impose no-strike laws on firemen. The police are already banned from striking. ‘I would support anti-strike legislation if it stops putting people’s lives in danger."" - Daily Mail

> Yesterday evening's ToryDiary: The Coalition should introduce emergency protections for users of essential public services

Is David Cameron diluting his pledge to cap immigrants? - Daily Mail

> Yesterday evening's ToryDiary: As long as Cameron reduces net immigration to the tens of thousands the Coalition should be flexible on economic immigration

Cameron willing to give Merkel new EU Treaty in return for budget freeze

"The prime minister will indicate in Brussels on Thursday and Friday that Britain is prepared to link Germany's demand for a new treaty to Britain's call for a freeze in the EU budget. Germany's Angela Merkel wants a new EU treaty to place the €110bn (£98bn) bailout for Greece and the wider €750bn bailout fund for others on a legally watertight treaty basis." - Guardian

> Last week's ToryDiary argued that Mr Cameron should use Mrs Merkel's demand for new Treaty as an opportunity for fundamental renegotiation of the UK-EU relationship

Liberal Democrat minister Andrew Stunnel defends housing reforms

"Stunnel, the Lib Dem minister inside the department of communities, has hit back, saying "most of what has been written about the plans is inaccurate", and telling party members "not to believe what the Labour party, and their friends in the media, want you to think we're doing". He promised the government would be "building more affordable housing units this year than in any year under Labour, and in the plans announced in the spending review we will be adding more each year than they did altogether"." - Guardian

The Government's plans to reform housing benefit may have created a poll tax-sized problem - Rachel Sylvester in The Times (£)

In The Guardian, Polly Toynbee sees the policy as a "final solution" for the poor.

The King's Fund warns of £6bn NHS budget shortfall - Independent

"The radical reorganisation proposed by Mr Lansley will drain more money from patient services – between £2bn and £3bn according to the independent think-tank, the Kings Fund. This is in addition to the inevitable diversion of management and clinical energy. Something has to give, and it will be the quality of front-line care, whether through rising waiting times, hospital closures or rationing of expensive drugs and treatments." - Philip Stephens in the FT (£)

The Express continues its assault on foreign aid spending

"Britain is dishing out more foreign aid than any other European country despite having to make the biggest spending cuts since the Second World War. Our colossal donations outweigh those of Germany and France and come as Britain’s economy is expected to show worrying signs of slowing down in growth figures due out today. Last night a Tory source said: “People will be rightly dismayed that they are forced to fork out more than people in countries whose economies have more financial clout. They are struggling as much as their European neighbours, yet they have to prop up the foreign aid budget for everyone else.” - Express

Vince Cable mocks his Tory Cabinet colleagues' failure to forecast the credit crunch and recession - Independent

Vince Cable issues warning over bankers' bonuses - Telegraph video

John Redwood: Tories called for better financial regulation in 2007 - Letter to The Guardian

Britain to invest in 70,000 jobs in wind energy - FT (£)

Lady Thatcher to stay in hospital as she continues to recover from flu - BBC

How will you celebrate when Margaret Thatcher dies? Sick question asked by 'vulgar' website is condemned - Daily Mail

George Osborne should introduce a 'Rooney tax'

"The lesson from Rooney's negotiations, according to my economics monographs, is that we would be quite entitled to levy a higher rate of tax – call it the Rooney rate – on superstars. It's hard to see what harm it would do. RPattz is unlikely to throw in his job to work at Tesco. Tevez is unlikely to retrain as a corporate lawyer. As for Rooney, it might even encourage him to spend more nights indoors with Coleen." - Aditya Chakrabortty in The Guardian

And finally 1... Tony Blair's wife Cherie flogged the ex-PM's autograph for £10 on eBay - The Sun

And finally 2... Scruffy Gordon Brown

"Catty Peter Mandelson has slagged off scruffy Gordon Brown — saying he couldn't even fix his own tie. Mandy also dubbed the former PM "a cross between a snowplough and a combine harvester". His comments were caught on film by a documentary maker during the election campaign. In one clip, Lord Mandelson discusses how to boost Mr Brown's image. He says: "I've given up. I'd settle for the tie being straight. I just cannot understand why he cannot tie a tie like anyone else and centre it like anyone else and have it remain there."" - 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.

Weblinks for Monday 25th October 2010

11.30am LeftWatch: Tories want "final solution" for the poor says Guardian's Polly Toynbee

9.15pm ToryDiary: As long as Cameron reduces net immigration to the "tens of thousands" the Coalition should be flexible on economic immigration

7.15pm ToryDiary: The Coalition should rush emergency union legislation through Parliament

5.45pm Local government: Is Bromley Council seeking to block school choice?

4.30pm WATCH: 'Vote for our dad' - Republican candidate for Senator enlists his children for cheesy video

2pm Robert Halfon MP on CentreRight: Should other economic think tanks receive some of the money the IFS gets from the taxpayer?

1.45pm WATCH: We must end Britain's "anti-manufacturing bias", Ed Miliband tells CBI

Noon LeftWatch: Labour MP writes of gruel, rotten bones and putrid horseflesh in childish attack on Cameron's "workhouse ethos"

11.45am ToryDiary: Cameron promises low interest rates, help for exporters and capital investment in 'dash for growth' speech to CBI

11am Lee Rotherham on CentreRight: The emergence of Europe's economic government

9.45am WATCH: Powerful anti-stimulus video looks forward to when China 'owns' America

ToryDiary: IDS plans a citizen's pension of £140 for all

Syed Kamall MEP on Platform: How to embrace the Big Society by rediscovering Mises and social co-operation

Parliament: ConservativeHome publishes its new regular league tables of the most and least rebellious Tory MPs

Local government: Labour muddle on shared council services

Melanchthon on CentreRight publishes his EU renegotiation shopping list: exemption from the obligation to seek "ever closer union"... in respect of the UK, conclusions of the European Court of Justice do not have independent legal force... withdrawal from the common criminal space,the common defence force, the common foreign service provisions of Lisbon... the UK shall not be bound by any measures under the passerelle clause of Lisbon... the UK is not part of the single legal entity, for international negotiations, created by Lisbon... Britain must become "outs" of the euro project, not merely "pre-ins"...

Cameron kickstarts two week emphasis on Coalition's growth strategy

"David Cameron is to announce £200m of funding for a network of German-style “technology innovation centres” as he seeks to convince critics that his government has a credible industrial growth plan. He is also promising more details on how to “unlock £200bn of public and private sector investment” in Britain’s infrastructure and will take aim at “uncompetitive industries”, with banks, food retailers and energy companies thought to be in his sights." - FT (£)

"The Government needs to be far smarter at setting out its growth strategy, not least because the impact of the cuts will be painful and people need to know there is light at the end of the tunnel." - Telegraph leader

> Saturday's ToryDiary: Cameron seeks to shift debate from spending to growth 

Education secretary admits £2.5bn for poorest children will come from existing budget despite David Cameron claim - Guardian 

Housing benefit cuts will force 82,000 families out of London into the suburbs, experts warn - Daily Mail

"Liberal Democrat Simon Hughes has warned the coalition that its planned housing benefit cuts might not be approved by Parliament. The party's deputy leader told Channel 4 News some of the proposals were "harsh and draconian"." - BBC | Watch the Channel 4 report

Charity Commission sounds alarm on 'Big Society funding'

"David Cameron has been accused of “pulling the rug from under” his own Big Society agenda by the chairman of the Charity Commission as the voluntary sector braces itself for billions of pounds of cuts to funding. Charities estimate that they could lose out on between £3bn and £5bn of yearly grants as budgets are slashed across Whitehall and local government, raising the prospect of many going out of business." - FT (£)

Daily Mail campaigns for extra aid funding to be spent on saving Navy's Harrier jets

"While most Government departments suffered savage cuts in last week’s Spending Review, foreign aid will rise by £3.1 billion by 2014. The amount is enough to keep the 80-strong Harrier jump jet fleet – which will be axed under the cuts – in the air for 20 years." - Daily Mail

A BPIX poll in the Mail on Sunday found little support for the Coalition's priorities.

NHS white paper proposals backed by only one in four doctors - Guardian

"Mr Lansley said: "Reform isn't an option, it's a necessity in order to sustain and improve our NHS. The reforms are far reaching but they also build upon existing designs. But we recognise with any significant changes, there may be concerns - that is why we have been consulting on the details."" - The Health Secretary quoted in The Express

Tuition fee increases will be capped, says Nick Clegg - BBC

"Successful graduates who wish to avoid being burdened with decades of debt could be hit with mortgage style redemption penalties if they pay off their student loan early." - Telegraph

The Deputy PM also used his Andrew Marr interview to call for an investigation into Wikileaks - Guardian

Annabel Goldie faces leadership speculation

"Ms Goldie's position has been repeatedly questioned since the party failed to improve on its solitary Scottish seat in the General Election. She has had to deny she intends to stand down after next year's Scottish elections and yesterday sought to brush off mounting speculation she will face a leadership contest. In a move that was seen as a challenge to Ms Goldie's leadership, Tory MSP Jackson Carlaw called at the weekend for reform of the way Holyrood operates. Mid Scotland and Fife MSP Murdo Fraser is also thought to be leadership contenders." - Scotsman | Daily Express

Ex-Tory treasurer and billionaire Michael Spencer leads the rush of donors to Lords - Daily Mail

UK needs green economics minister says Zac Goldsmith/ John Gummer-supported think tank - BBC

Boris Johnson: We give aid to India which can afford defences that we cannot

"It is a melancholy reflection of our changed status in the world that by aiding the Indians, as we must, we are effectively supporting them to achieve a nuclear independence that we cannot ourselves afford. If you don't invest in your own satellites, you end up as a satellite power – which is effectively what we are; and the best that can be said for the position is that it may be undignified, but it saves us a fortune." - Boris Johnson in The Telegraph

Yesterday's Christopher Booker column: Britain's £800m a year to India helps to pay for its space programme

The Tower Hamlets fiasco is localism at its very worst - Julian Glover in The Guardian

> Saturday's LeftWatch: Labour MP refers Ken Livingstone to Labour's NEC over his behaviour in Tower Hamlets

Sicknote culture in public sector costs £4.5 billion pa - Express

Lady Thatcher was up and about yesterday as she recovered from a severe bout of flu - The Sun

Number of Welsh MPs could fall from 40 to 30 under Coalition reforms - BBC

Former Militant supporter likely to win leadership of Unite - The Sun

And finally...

"The Prime Minister is planning to spend the Christmas period in Thailand with his family. Last night Government sources insisted Mr Cameron was paying for the trip himself and was not planning to conduct any official business while away. It is assumed Mr Cameron will be travelling with his wife, Samantha. It will be their first long-haul trip since the birth of daughter Florence in the summer. It is unclear whether the baby – or the couple’s two other children – will accompany them." - 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.

Weblinks for Sunday 24th October 2010

8.45pm WATCH: Simon Hughes: Parliament won't approve the Government's housing benefit plans - some of which I oppose

4.45pm ToryDiary: We know what politicians and journalists think about fairness.  We know almost nothing of what voters think about it

11.15am WATCH: Ann Widdecombe is winched from the roof wearing a pink top as she prepares to dance the tango with Anton DuBeke

10am LISTEN: Nick Clegg - my desert island luxury would be...the occasional cigarette

ToryDiary: Do Cameron and Osborne agree with Francis Maude that the Coalition should continue - even if the next Parliament has a Conservative majority?

Karl McCartney MP on Platform: It is time for a serious crackdown on uninsured drivers

Local Government: David Wedge and Colin Hilton offer tips on how to avoid outsourcing pitfalls

Steve Baker MP on CentreRight: This week at the LSE, Jesús Huerta de Soto will set out how to reform banking.

WATCH: David Lidington on the Government's view of Turkey's accession to the EU

Cameron attempts to shift the debate from cuts to growth...

"The Coalition will attempt to move the national conversation on to growth from tomorrow, with a fortnight of events designed to show what it is doing to help the private sector create more jobs. One aide tells me: ‘Everything now comes down to jobs, jobs and more jobs.’...It will start with speeches from Cameron, Clegg and Vince Cable to the CBI conference and a statement from George Osborne on the capital projects that are going ahead. The aim is to create a sense that Britain is, to use one of Osborne’s favourite phrases, ‘open for business’ again." - James Forsyth, Mail on Sunday

> Yesterday in ToryDiary: Cameron seeks to shift debate from spending to growth 

...As the Sunday commentators pick over the spending review

"The 2010 spending review is, in origin and immediate purpose, a response to a structural fiscal crisis. But it is also the fruit of the first systematic attempt since the late Seventies to construct a coherent and comprehensive Conservative theory of the state, society and the citizen. The fact that a group of smart Lib Dems is involved in the formulation of this new approach only adds to its singularity.  The intellectual heavy-lifting is far from complete. But what this is not – emphatically – is the completion of the Thatcherite revolution, a restorationist project to finish off the work rudely interrupted by the Iron Lady’s fall in 1990." - Matthew D'Ancona, Sunday Telegraph

"Still, much as the coalition would like to promote fairness, that concept means different things to different people. Conservatives and classical liberals within the Lib Dems believe that fairness is a negative virtue, like liberty. We should be free from constraints. If you knock down the barriers, intervene early to save the children of problem families, create equal opportunities for the poor in schools, then the deserving will prosper. Get rid of the welfare disincentives to work, then the enterprising will succeed. The idea of “social justice” is vague and arbitrary." - Marten Ivens, Sunday Times

"The political calculation is that the country will be prepared to forgive the pain if Britain is clearly gaining by the time the next election is in sight. One cabinet minister says: "I don't expect people to like us, but I hope they will respect us." For that to happen, they need to be right that this approach will lead to the sunny uplands of healthy and sustained growth. It is in this respect that the coalition is most ideological. They are making a leap of faith that the private sector is ready and able to expand as fast as the state will shrink." - Andrew Rawnsley, The Observer 

Nick Clegg: My desert island agony over budget cuts

  "Clegg will reveal on the BBC's Desert Island Discs tomorrow that he has struggled with his conscience over the budget cuts. "I have certainly searched long and hard into my own conscience," he says. "I find it morally difficult. It's difficult for the country." The deputy prime minister rejects Twitter suggestions for track choices – including The First Cut is the Deepest or Puppet on a String – put to him by presenter Kirsty Young...Clegg also confesses he texted a friend to find out if Cameron was trustworthy before forming the coalition." - The Observer   

Labour ahead in Mail on Sunday poll

"The poll shows support for Labour at 37 per cent, with the Tories at 35 and Lib Dems at a lowly ten. It puts Mr Miliband ahead of Mr Cameron for the first time since the lead he enjoyed in the afterglow of his Labour ­leadership victory last month. The poll highlights the risks for the Coalition: the public believes by a majority of four to one that the cuts increase the chances that the alliance will collapse. Yet Ministers will take heart from voters’ supportive reaction to benefit cuts. The only welfare proposal to provoke a negative response is that of raising the retirement age to 66 by 2020." - Mail on Sunday  

> Yesterday in ToryDiary: Conservatives hit 40% with ICM 

Cameron faces new row over Lisbon Treaty

"[Germany and France] will make a joint push at a summit in Brussels to amend the controversial treaty so it incorporates a permanent system for handling financial crises such as the one that gripped Greece this year.And last night the Prime Minister was urged by Eurosceptic Tories to use the proposed treaty changes to obtain new "opt outs" for Britain – including removing restrictions on the country's ability to trade with nations outside the EU. Douglas Carswell, the Conservative backbencher, told The Sunday Telegraph: 'France and Germany will use this to get what they want – we should use it to get what we want, such as free trade.' " - Sunday Telegraph

> Yesterday in ToryDiary: Why David Cameron's unlikely to push hard next week to freeze or cut the EU budget

Clarke ready to tear up prisons plan in secret deal with Osborne

"Ken Clarke has struck a secret deal with the Treasury to tear up his new budget if controversial plans to reduce reoffending rates do not work. The justice secretary has secured a private agreement from George Osborne, the chancellor, that he will not have to proceed with downsizing prisons and closing courts if his new sentencing policies fail to reduce crime rates. The deal comes amid mounting concern among Tory MPs that the ministry of justice is going soft on crime." - Sunday Times

Sayeeda Warsi barred by Cameron from sharing platform with extremists

"Warsi, Britain's first female Muslim cabinet minister, was told by the prime minister to cancel her appearance at the Global Peace and Unity Event...critics have pointed out that a number of speakers who are due to appear have justified suicide attacks and promoted al-Qaida, homophobia and terrorism.  Paul Goodman, the former Tory communities minister, said: "The aim of the organisers is to exploit politicians by using their presence to gain muscle, influence and credibility among British Muslims. Politicians shouldn't play their game." - The Observer

British aid projects to be branded with Union flag

"British aid projects abroad are to be ‘branded’ with the Union Jack in an attempt to stem growing public anger over the amount spent on international development...International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell has promised to show taxpayers what their money is buying by flying the flag over bridges, hospitals and other projects funded in poor countries. The move follows criticism that – unlike schemes paid for by the EU – British enterprises remain unmarked, a product of the ‘old school’ diplomatic belief that it would look crass and ostentatious." - Mail on Sunday 

Vince Cable in push for 'Cadbury law'

"The Government is to launch a major inquiry into "short-termism" and shareholder behaviour in the City. In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, Mr Cable said that he will reopen the "Cadbury's Law" debate – a suggestion following Kraft's £10.8bn hostile takeover of Cadbury that it should be harder for foreign companies to take over UK ones. The Business Secretary said that the consultation will also look at how remuneration levels push companies to make short-term decisions on investments and the role of short sellers and hedge funds." - Sunday Telegraph

Coalition 'plotting 44 new peers to foil Labour in Lords'

"David Cameron and Nick Clegg plan to flood the Lords with another 44 new Coalition peers to stop Labour sabotaging their policies in the Upper House, it was claimed last night. Mr Cameron reportedly intends to award 29 peerages to Tory donors and other political allies, with 15 for Mr Clegg's Liberal Democrats. By contrast, Ed Miliband will get just ten new Labour peers. It is the biggest influx from a governing party since Tony Blair handed out a record 47 peerages when Labour won power in 1997, giving his party a majority in the Lords for the first time." - Mail on Sunday

One senior Tory backbencher, Mark Field, labelled the prospective raft of new appointments 'a regrettable exercise of patronage'.... “The temptation to wield powers of patronage has become too much for the leaders of the coalition,” said Field. “It seems incongruous that while we seek to reduce the size of the Commons from 650 to 600, without any corresponding reform of the Lords, the upper house is packed with yet more political appointees.” - Sunday Times 

Spelman plans huge sell-off of Britain's forests

"Caroline Spelman, the Environment Secretary, is expected to announce plans within days to dispose of about half of the 748,000 hectares of woodland overseen by the Forestry Commission by 2020. The controversial decision will pave the way for a huge expansion in the number of Center Parcs-style holiday villages, golf courses, adventure sites and commercial logging operations throughout Britain as land is sold to private companies." - Sunday Telegraph

Cameron walks into human rights morass

"David Cameron is planning to leave the austerity of Britain behind and fly to Thailand for a luxury Christmas break that threatens to land him in a human rights row. Reports circulating in Bangkok claim the prime minister and his family have been invited on a private trip by Abhisit Vejjajiva, the Thai premier, who studied with Cameron at Eton...The two men have followed remarkably similar political trajectories — but only one of them came to power in a successful election.  Abhisit took charge of Thailand amid political turmoil and Cameron’s trip is expected to prompt scrutiny of allegations of human rights violations linked to his government." - Sunday Times

Our reforms give people on benefits the chance to show what they can achieve

"It's important that we ensure that the radical changes to our welfare state are fair. I think it's fair to set limits, so that people cannot receive more than the equivalent of the national average wage while living on benefits...I think it's fair to set limits on housing benefit, so that people on welfare do not end up able to live in better areas than those doing the right thing by finding work....It's also fair to limit the length of time that people with financial means can claim sickness benefits for, in just the same way that we do for people claiming Job Seeker's Allowance. But we also have to be fair to the most vulnerable people in our benefit system." - Chris Grayling, The Guardian

"Speaker John Bercow has blocked the release of documents that reveal his own role in the controversial appoint­ment of an outspoken vicar as Chaplain to the House of Commons. Mr Bercow, 47, has signed a binding parliamentary order, known as a certificate, which not only prevents the release of the material but also stops anyone from challenging his decision with the Information Commissioner.  His decision to issue the ‘veto’ certificate, in response to a request by The Mail on Sunday under the Freedom Of Information (FOI) Act, has infuriated civil liberties campaigners, who have accused him of trying to put the House of Commons ‘above the law’." - Mail on Sunday

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