Newslinks for Monday 27th December 2010

11.45pm LeftWatch: Five reasons why David Miliband is the wrong choice to be Britain's US Ambassador

11.15am ToryDiary: Cameron's U-turns

***

ToryDiary: Which was your Moment of 2010? The ConservativeHome team begin their Picks of the Year with their own choices...

Charles Tannock MEP on Platform: We must not tolerate the persecution of homosexuals by African countries receiving our international aid

Naming David Cameron their person of the year, The Times credits the Prime Minister with the most imaginative act of the post-war era

"For more than 30 years, the Left had been in a process of realignment, attempting to create a single strong progressive alternative to the Conservatives. Now the Tory leader took advantage of the Parliamentary arithmetic to make a generous, unexpected offer to the Liberal Democrats. In Nick Clegg he found a willing partner. With this act, the new partners changed the shape of party politics. Britain acquired its first coalition Government since the Second World War and, against all odds, it is on the centre Right rather than the centre Left. It is hard to think of a more imaginative political act in the post-war era." - Times leader (£)

Coalition continues to lose popularity

"After six months of Conservative-LibDem rule just 43% think coalition government was the right decision for Britain while 47% now disagree. In May, in answer to a slightly differently worded question, 59% backed the coalition while 32% disagreed with the decision to form it. Rising Labour support has cut into the government's popularity. Other results from the poll, published earlier this month, put Labour support at a three-year high of 39%. Lib Dem support was at a five-year low of 13%. The Conservatives were on 37%, up one point from November." - Guardian

• At PoliticalBetting Mike Smithson asks 'Are petrol prices driving the poll ratings?'
• Tim Montgomerie overviewed public opinion in yesterday's Sunday Telegraph

The Coalition faced fresh tensions yesterday after a top Tory accused the Lib Dems of trying to take the credit for the good things the Government has done - The Sun | John Redwood's original blog

The Independent profiles ConservatriveHome's Mainstream Conservatism project.

"Badly-designed" plan to strip child benefit from high taxpayers will cost £370 million

"The Government has now admitted that the cost to the taxpayer of creating the complicated new system of clawing back benefits from those on higher rates will be £130 million. Separate figures produced by the Government at the time of the Comprehensive Spending Review show that officials expect to lose another £280 million a year from “tax planning,” where people use loopholes to avoid losing the benefit, and £60 million from those who break the law." - Telegraph

Coalition in brief:

• Theresa Villiers: Government knew Heathrow was not prepared for snow - Telegraph | Yesterday's ToryDiary on laws to fine Heathrow
• Leaked memo warns NHS to accelerate efficiency savings or face £10bn shortfall - Guardian
• Wildlife charities oppose plan for them to run nature reserves - Independent
• Lord Freud warned yesterday that taxpayers lost £66million last year from fraudsters living abroad - Daily Mail

Michael Gove forced to offer continuing funding for Booktrust

"Michael Gove began performing a second emergency U-turn on education funding yesterday, hours after the Poet Laureate likened him to Scrooge. Carol Ann Duffy joined a chorus of protest at the Education Secretary’s decision to stop financing a programme designed to encourage a love of reading by giving free books to pre-school children." - Times (£)

But Bill Masters wonders why Philip Pullman and other rich authors don't fund the Booktrust themselves?: "Equally ridiculous is the idea that families cannot afford books. Not only are there libraries throughout the country but also you can pick up decent children’s books for under £1 in charity shops and discount stores. I suspect that the scheme, like so many government initiatives, was really a covert form of subsidy for the books trade and children’s authors. What we are hearing now is the squeal of a vested professional interest. If the literary world thinks Bookstart is so vital, why doesn’t it pay for the scheme instead of asking the taxpayer to meet the bills?" - Bill Masters in The Express

Scottish Conservatives want to divert money from free prescriptions into funding health visitors for new parents - The Herald

Is Clegg cracking up? Deputy Prime Minister risks having a breakdown, says LibDem - Daily Mail

Labour left the taxpayer a £245bn PFI bill - Daily Mail

William Rees-Mogg: The Telegraph was wrong to sting Liberal Democrat MPs without good reason

"The Daily Telegraph decided to adopt a policy of trapping Lib Dem ministers by a trick — passing off reporters as constituents. They did not do so in pursuit of any major impropriety, but simply in a random search for political copy. I do not think that the old Daily Telegraph would have done that. Nor would it have been tolerated when I set out in journalism. These methods inherently involve deceit. Sometimes deceit is an unavoidable part of a legitimate investigation, but the subject of the investigation must be sufficiently serious to justify methods that inevitably undermine trust." - William Rees-Mogg in The Times (£)

Other Comment:

• Sorry, Archbishop, but there IS a big difference between the deserving and undeserving poor - Melanie Phillips in the Daily Mail
• Pro-Europeans should fight to reform the Common Agricultural Policy - Julian Glover in The Guardian

Bishop of Winchester: legal system discriminates against Christians - Telegraph

The march of American conservatism - Rupert Cornwell in The Independent

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 26th December 2010

ToryDiary:

• Philip Hammond seeks new powers to fine Heathrow and other failing transport hubs
• Vote on repeal of hunting ban unlikely before 2012

LeftWatch: Conor Burns leads opposition to statue of Tony Blair being erected alongside Thatcher and Churchill

WATCH:

• Vince Cable's Strictly Come Dancing performance... he was judged to lean a little too much to the right | Independent on Sunday cartoon
• Hardship of economic adjustment must be shared, says Archbishop of Canterbury in Christmas message

The Archbishop of Canterbury today warns that Government welfare cuts could hit the 'honest, hardworking' poor as well as those who exploit the system - Mail on Sunday

Philip Pullman and Andrew Motion condemn decision to axe £13m grant to the Book Trust

"Leading writers have condemned a government decision to withdraw funding from a charity that provides free books to children to encourage reading. Booktrust will lose its £13m support for schemes in England from April. Author Philip Pullman called it an "unforgiveable disgrace", and ex-poet laureate Sir Andrew Motion said it was an "act of gross cultural vandalism"." - BBC

"The literary world has reacted with horror and has begun a campaign that has echoes of the one launched against the decision of the education secretary, Michael Gove, to axe funding for school sport, a plan revealed in the Observer. In fact, the decision to end Booktrust's funding is thought to have been taken to finance the education secretary's eventual U-turn on sport, which saw much of the threatened £162m cash for school sport partnerships restored." - The Observer

Britain to invest £40m in UN natural disasters fund

"The move has been announced on the anniversary of the Boxing Day tsunami that hit Asia six years ago. The permanent emergency response fund set up after the Tsunami is very short of money. The number of people affected by disasters is predicted to rise from 250 million a year to 375 million by 2015." - BBC

Senior unnamed Tory minister said to be relaxed about Coalition candidates at General Election

"Amid efforts to mend broken fences, the minister, often seen as one of a tight inner-circle of "Cameroons", went further than any member of the government yet has in endorsing joint candidates... "I would be relaxed to the idea of having some Coalition candidates at the next election."" - The Sunday Telegraph

"Exasperated Nick Clegg has told his Liberal Democrat MPs to stop treating their Tory Coalition colleagues like Nazi occupiers and start embracing them as allies." - Mail on Sunday

> On Christmas Eve we learnt that the Cabinet discussed helping the Lib Dem candidate in Oldham East win

David Laws may yet replace Vince Cable at Business - The Sunday Times (£)

Murdoch newspapers attack Cable...

• One fairly... "Mr Cable’s private comments showed his true colours in a way he hoped never to reveal in public. The nation’s favourite uncle, who in the absence of these revelations would have been known this Christmas as the cuddly politician on Strictly Come Dancing, is in truth an unreconstructed old class warrior and former Labour councillor who would have been far happier in coalition with Gordon Brown." - The Sunday Times leader (£)
• One unfairly... "Bigmouthed business secretary Vince Cable suffered another setback last night - being beaten into second place on Strictly's Christmas Special. Still reeling after undercover reporters recorded him slagging off the coalition government - Cable faced further humiliation when he was beaten to the top spot by camp entertainer John Barrowman." - News of the World (£)

An end-of-year overview of the opinion polls - Tim Montgomerie in The Sunday Telegraph

VAT set to knock 0.5% off retail sales - Sunday Express

Scottish CBI chief says tax system puts UK companies at disadvantage to rivals - Scotland on Sunday

Conservative-focused comment:

• The 'LibiLeaks’ actually show how robust this Coalition is - Matthew d'Ancona in The Sunday Telegraph
• In The Sunday Telegraph Peter Oborne celebrates the Coalition government's respect for religious faith
• David Cameron's two speechwriters - James Forsyth profiles Ameet Gill and Clare Foges in the Mail on Sunday
• If charities go bust during the cutbacks the cost to society will be enormous - Paul Vallely in The Independent on Sunday

If Alan Johnson had replaced Gordon Brown in January - John Rentoul remembers his AJ4PM campaign in the Independent on Sunday

The Scottish Labour leader has signalled a controversial strategy for next year's Holyrood elections that includes personal attacks on Alex Salmond - Scotland on Sunday

Multi-faith chaplains to make House of Commons more inclusive - Sunday Telegraph

Tesco builds £7m police station - in return for new giant superstore - Mail on Sunday

And finally... Ooops!

"One person unable to appreciate the Camerons' Christmas card featuring the couple cradling four-month-old baby Florence was Margaret Thatcher. She is still waiting to receive one. Surely, the Iron Lady cannot have dropped off the PM's list?" - Mail on Sunday's Black Dog

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 Christmas Eve 2010

12.30pm MERRY CHRISTMAS!

12.15pm Andrew Lilico on Comment seeks to define Conservatism: "There is a fairly well-defined set of traditional mainstream Conservative doctrines.  And with Whiggish ideas having come to dominate Conservative thinking in the 1990s and 2000s, it is unsurprising that most Party members, most right-leaning think-tankers, and most new MPs are Whiggish in outlook.  That doesn’t mean that the liberal Conservatives are wrong.  But it does mean that the mainstream Conservative alternative clearly represents a set of well-formulated traditional ideas of the Party."

11.30am WATCH: Political Scrapbook marks the demise of a number of political blogs over the last year

10.15am Martin Sewell in Comment: Congratulations to the BBC for finally recognising that most Britons hold an attachment to Christianity

ToryDiary: The Cabinet discussed last week how to help the Lib Dems win in Oldham East and Saddleworth

Seats and Candidates: Ten candidates will contest the Oldham East and Saddleworth by-election (but no Nick Griffin)

Peter Bone MP on Comment: What we can learn from the Philippines about how to tackle human trafficking

Local Government:

• Mid Sussex District Council cut allowances by 5%
• Independent candidate pips Tory to the post in final council by-election of the year

WATCH: Anti-cuts protester throws himself from a balcony onto the floor of the Romanian Parliament

The Telegraph concludes its sting operation against Lib Dem MPs by entrapping Jeremy Browne...

"Tory immigration policy is "driven by uncharitable instincts" and the party's political allies in Europe are "an embarrassment", the Liberal Democrat Foreign Office minister has said. Jeremy Browne described some of the Conservatives' partners in the European Parliament as "nutty". He said foreign diplomats were delighted that the Lib Dems had ensured the Government was "far more amenable and civilised" towards the European Union than a Tory administration." - Daily Telegraph

...as Vince Cable attacks the paper for its subterfuge

"Twickenham MP Vince Cable has hit back over the newspaper sting which left him clinging to his Cabinet job, saying that it undermined the work of MPs.In his first public comments since the story broke, he used an interview with his local paper, the Richmond and Twickenham Times, to express his anger at the way The Daily Telegraph obtained the story using undercover reporters posing as constituents. He said: "Thousands and thousands of constituents have been to see me, often on very difficult and highly confidential issues which have been respected by me and by them. Then somebody who isn't a constituent falsifies their name and address and comes in with a hidden microphone - it completely undermines the whole basis on which you operate as a local MP." - Press Association

• Nick Clegg aides admit he's irritated by moaning ministers - The Guardian
• How long before the Business Secretary is stuffed? - Jeff Randall in the Daily Telegraph
• Vince’s private words are not his public deeds - Philip Collins in The Times (£)
• The perfect job for Mr Cable - Bruce Anderson in the FT (£)

> Yesterday's ToryDiary: Cable won't sue, but will Parliament act?

> Wednesday's ToryDiary: The Telegraph has serious questions to answer about its sting operation against government ministers

Peter Lilley adds his voice to calls for extending the Coalition

"Yesterday Peter Lilley, the former Cabinet minister and a right-wing Eurosceptic, became the latest Tory to suggest the Coalition could be extended beyond 2015. He told BBC Radio 4: “I can conceive that we might fight [the next election] as a coalition. I think the process of being in government had produced a degree of realism, on the part of a lot of the Liberals that will make them better partners in future than they were a prospective partners when this Coalition started?.We might find even people on my wing of the party will say perhaps better have them in bed with us than fighting us in the election.” - The Independent

Downing Street policy team reorganised along similar lines to Blair

"David Cameron is reorganising the Downing Street policy unit along similar lines to Tony Blair's operation, as coalition ministers and officials seek to sharpen the government's performance. A series of advisers on key policy areas are being appointed, after the prime minister expressed frustration that the post-election structure meant No 10 was failing to keep abreast of thinking in individual government departments." - The Guardian

Cameron speaks of his anguish over the rights and wrongs of the conflict in Afghanistan

"In an interview with the British Forces Broadcasting Service, Mr Cameron said: "It is the biggest concern and worry I have. It's the most important part of my job. Every time you think of what they're doing in Afghanistan, every time you sit down and write a letter to a grieving wife or father or mother or partner, you think really hard - is what we're doing right? Can we succeed? Is it worth the sacrifice that we're making? My answer is 'Yes, it is,' because Afghanistan was the cradle of terrorism. I think very carefully about it but I do think what we're doing is right." - The Sun

• British Forces in Helmand face new threat from Iran - The Times (£)

Coalition ministers consider gay marriage plans

"New laws giving full marriage rights to gay couples could be introduced under reforms being considered by the Coalition, The Daily Telegraph has learned. Lynne Featherstone, the Liberal Democrat Equalities Minister, is expected to announce that same-sex civil partnership ceremonies will be allowed in churches and other religious settings for the first time." - Daily Telegraph

Record public borrowing is costing Britain £150m a day

"The coalition’s austerity plans suffered a pre-Christmas setback as government borrowing soared to a record high last month. Public sector borrowing surged to an unprecedented £23 billion as modest rises in tax revenues failed to offset a leap in spending, and interest payments on the national debt rose by 50 per cent to hit a record £4.5 billion — or £150 million a day." - The Times (£)

500 abusive pupils were excluded a day under Labour

"Statistics released by the Conservative Party show that during the 2008/9 school year, an average of four pupils were expelled in each day for physically assaulting a teacher or other adult in the classroom... Lord Hill, the Schools Minister, said: "These figures shine a light on Labour’s education legacy. Labour left our teachers without the support they needed to tackle bad behaviour in our schools for over a decade. These figures reinforce a deeply worrying picture of a teaching profession under fire and powerless to impose the discipline our classrooms need. That’s why our White Paper set out a range of measures to empower teachers to deal with bad behaviour and establish strong discipline in the classroom.” - Daily Telegraph

Poll blow to Cameron’s vision of "Big Society"

"Britons are far more reluctant to give up their time to help deliver public services than their US and European counterparts, an FT/Harris poll shows, dealing a fresh blow to David Cameron’s vision of a “Big Society”. - FT (£)

Other political news in brief:

• The Coalition's year in review - The Independent
• Bankers could be let off £7 billion bonus crackdown - Daily Mail
• Ministers accused of trying to silence children’s charities - The Times (£)
• Scathing report exposes DfiD's failure to record how it spends it money - Daily Mail
• Labour MP Andy Slaughter forced to pay back cost of parliamentary stationery he used for political campaigning - Daily Telegraph
• Plaid Cymru accuses Government of failing to apply Barnett formula to Wales properly - Western Mail
• Voters say MEPS are overpaid - Daily Express

Other comment:

• Cameron’s masterly inaction is putting us back on course - Peter Oborne in the Daily Telegraph
• Vince Cable's debacle is a clause IV opportunity for David Cameron - Martin Kettle in The Guardian
• Blair’s brave new world is falling to pieces - Ian Birrell in The Times (£)

Ex-Scottish Socialist MSP Tommy Sheridan convicted of perjury

"A disgraced but defiant Tommy Sheridan is facing years in jail and possible financial ruin after being convicted in a dramatic end to his perjury trial." - The Scotsman

> WATCH: Tommy Sheridan's solicitor reads his statement, and Gail Sheridan speaks, in the aftermath of his conviction for perjury

Queen to urge nation to be more sporty in Christmas message

"The Queen will pay tribute to the sporting life tomorrow in an upbeat Christmas Day message aimed at recharging the nation’s batteries. Barely a year away from the London 2012 Olympics, Her Majesty will focus on the positive aspects of playing games and taking exercise." - Daily Express

And finally... Vince Cable dons Santa outfit for Strictly Come Dancing appearance

“Going on Strictly was really quite scary,” he confesses. “You know if you break down you risk making a fool of yourself. I was extremely nervous beforehand. The atmosphere, band and flashing lights are quite extraordinary. Even if you have been in the House of Commons at Prime Minister’s Questions, it is still quite a challenge remembering the basic technique and keeping it all together. Strictly really is hard. The day before we recorded the show was particularly awful and it was at that point I started to ask the question 'why am I doing this?’ Erin, who is a great teacher, and I were having our final practice run-through and I completely blanked. I lost it and I didn’t really sleep that night. It was abject terror of it happening again on the day itself.” - Cable speaking (on the record) to the Daily Telegraph

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

Newslinks for Thursday 23rd December 2010

6.30pm WATCH: Tommy Sheridan's solicitor reads his statement, and Gail Sheridan speaks, in the aftermath of his conviction for perjury

3.30pm ToryDiary: Cable won't sue, but will Parliament act?

2.30pm WATCH: William Hague's Christmas message

Noon LeftWatch: Bad news for Miliband, worse news for Johnson and good news for Balls in Labour List's monthly poll

10.15am WATCH: The 'Yes to AV' campaign's upbeat end-of-year video

ToryDiary: The Conservative-Liberal Democrat relationship? We're united by "deep bonds of trust", Oliver Letwin tells the Guardian

Comment: Robert Leitch: There is no shame in loyally supporting the Government through thick and thin

Local Government: Ken's running mate and the tube strikes

ThinkTankCentral: Policy Exchange calls for universities to share services, help students and cut costs

WATCH: Northern England becomes a winter wonderland

Chris Chope says the Conservatives shouldn't prop up the Liberal Democrats

Mr Chope told the BBC's The World At One…'When we get into the new year, the Prime Minister will have to assess whether propping up the Liberal Democrats is in the long-term best interests of the Conservative Party and the country.  'Sometimes it can be more damaging to hang on to somebody, because it's a sign of weakness, rather than take the robust line and say the man's got to go.' - Daily Mail

The Liberal Democrats shouldn't prop up the Conservatives, blogs  Adrian Sanders MP

Shrunken Cable is lame duck

"Some business figures are already privately expressing concerns that Mr Cable may now be a “lame duck” business secretary.  Jon Moulton, the venture capitalist who founded Better Capital, said Mr Cable was “in the wrong place”. “Vince is basically very bright and knowledgeable about the facts and structures. The bit about actions is something he finds a bit tricky,” he said. “So far he’s done very little. The actions have been slight.” - Financial Times (£)

"Cowardly Vince Cable sent his wife to face the music yesterday as Tory MPs hit out at the decision to let him keep his job.  Dr Cable - who will appear in Strictly Come Dancing's Christmas Day special - was keen to dodge the spotlight….His wife Rachel…spoke to the media as Dr Cable skulked inside their home in Twickenham.   She said: "He's working from home. He's going to do exactly what's in his diary for the rest of the day. He has not anything further to say at the moment." - The Sun

Cabinet Secretary vets Hunt appointment...

"The Prime Minister approved the decision to transfer responsibility for the BSkyB takeover to Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, only after the Cabinet Office had taken legal advice.  As David Cameron and Nick Clegg decided the fate of Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, after he admitted “declaring war” on Rupert Murdoch, Sir Gus O’Donnell, the Cabinet Secretary, was ensuring that there was no “legal impediment” to handing the role to Mr Hunt." - The Times (£)

Conservative links to Murdoch under scrutiny as private meeting revealed - The Guardian

...As Miliband's new media team goes on the attack

"Mr Miliband said Mr Cable was only kept in his Business Secretary post “as a prop” for the Tory Prime Minister...[He] said that the Lib Dem ministers’ complaints about government policy was proof that the smaller party was powerless." - Daily Telegraph

Baldwin's blizzard - Guido Fawkes

Labour step on to the front foot - Peter Hoskin - Coffee House

The Financial Times attacks the Daily Telegraph

"But Mr Cable’s less than earth-shaking revelations do not justify breaching the assumptions of confidentiality that govern an MP’s conversations with constituents.  The Telegraph can scarcely claim to be inspired by public spirit. It neglected to publish the one revelation of any moment – the comments about Mr Murdoch – perhaps because it feared publication might make the Sky merger more likely." - Financial Times (£)

"Within the coalition, it is the responsibility of Lib Dems to fight for their own values and policies in the cabinet – as Nick Clegg and Vince Cable have consistently done – and in parliamentary questions and debate, but not to wreck it. Why? Because given the scale of the financial crisis, there must be a strong majority government. No other option currently exists." - Shirley Williams, The Guardian

Other Cable comment -

• Naive, vain and unfit for high office - Stephen Glover, Daily Mail
• Cable's rise was exaggerated.  So too has been his demise - Steve Richards, The Independent
• Vince Cable and co have to fight their corner – or walk away - John Kampfner, The Guardian
• What we knew about Cable, uncovered - John Lloyd, Financial Times (£)

Yesterday in ToryDiary -

• The Telegraph tapes are a Westminster Wikileaks. But the Government will survive. Entrapment will become more common. And politicians will turn even more timid.
• The Telegraph has serious questions to answer about its sting operation against government ministers

No Conservatives yet, but more Liberal Democrats on the Telegraph's latest tapes

• David Heath: George Osborne can "get up one's nose"
• Paul Burstow: "I don't want you to trust David Cameron."
• Norman Baker: "There are Tories who are beyond the pale." - Daily Telegraph

Other Coalition and Political News in Brief

• Bank dilemma as prices gain pace - Financial Times (£)
• Police told royal squad not to drive Prince Charles and Camilla on riot route after sergeant warned of 200-strong baying mob - Daily Mail
• Michael Gove offers to make a joint visit to Andy Burnham's old school with the Shadow Education Secretary - The Independent
• Prince Charles and David Cameron visit injured troops - Downing Street website
• Tenth MPs' expenses file passed to CPS - The Times (£)
• Tommy Sheridan verdict expected today - BBC
• Boris Johnson gives backing to Battersea Power Station development - Daily Telegraph

NHS Direct "at breaking point"

"The NHS Direct helpline is at ‘breaking point’ as parts of Britain experience the worst flu outbreak in a decade.  Patients calling the service are being forced to wait up to two days before they can speak to a nurse, and managers have launched an emergency recruitment drive.  GPs in the worst-affected areas are being paid up to £188 an hour to work over Christmas and help deal with soaring numbers of cases." - Daily Mail

Osborne misses regulation reform deadline

"George Osborne has missed his self-imposed deadline for shaking up Britain’s economic and financial regulation.  The Treasury promised in June to establish an interim financial policy committee in the Bank of England this autumn and appoint external members to it. But officials will now say only that the body will be established “soon”.  The delay in setting up the interim FPC is doubly embarrassing for the chancellor." - Financial Times (£)

Where did Labour's £1bn foreign aid go? There are no proper records, says scathing report

"Labour spent £1billion of taxpayers’ money on foreign aid to African and Asian schools without even monitoring whether it provided value, a damning report has found.  The Department for International Development failed to measure if the huge cash investment has made any difference to school attendance rates in the poorest nations…MPs on the influential Public Accounts Committee have now given the department a year to reform." - Daily Mail

John Redwood isn't happy with High Speed Two

"If we adapted the current rail network to more efficent operation for commuters, we could run more trains on existing track through improved signalling and lighter trains, increasing frequency and reducing overcrowding.  If we spent some money on providing branch and spur lines into the main trading and industrial parks, and the railway spent more on single waggon marshalling, they could offer a serious freight alternative to many more businesses. These might be better priorities than this expensive and contentious new track." - John Redwood's Blog

Other Comment

• Why, seven months on, don't we know about David Laws? - Matthew Parris, The Times (£)
• David Cameron didn't want an easy life, and he isn't getting one - Benedict Brogan, Daily Telegraph
• Chairman Mao and the Coalition's lunatic fixation with change - Stephen Glover, Daily Mail
• In defence of MPs and, yes, even bankers too - Anne Widdecombe, Daily Express

Clegg despondent in Oldham...

Mr Clegg said the by-election would not be a verdict on the coalition’s record, in remarks that suggest his Liberal Democrats are braced for defeat.  “By-elections tell you a lot of things about how people feel in the local area,” he said. “Sometimes people read too much into by-elections, sometimes they read too little.”

...While Kashif Ali signs clean campaign pledge

"…The Conservative candidate, has signed a “clean campaign” pledge and challenged his rivals to do the same. They include Nick Griffin, leader of the far-right BNP. “Signing this pledge will allow us to focus the debate on what really matters to people – issues of policy – rather than on unhelpful smears and personality politics,” said Mr Ali. - Financial Times

"Who is going break the news to David Cameron? The Conservative party’s chairman Baroness Warsi has been caught campaigning for the Tory candidate in the Oldham East and Saddleworth by-election. This picture proves it (hat-tip Tim Montgomerie). Warsi’s activities appear to be in direct contravention of the latest orders from Cameroon central." - Iain Martin, Wall Street Journal

And finally…The Daily Mail suggests that David Cameron is going bald…and that Ed Miliband is dyeing his hair (in the wake of Mark Wallace's story yesterday)

"Labour leader Ed Miliband's barber also appears to have been busy as his distinctive tuft of white hair appeared to have miraculously disappeared at a conference yesterday…the 40-year-old's complexion also looked remarkably smooth under the harsh glare of lights at Labour HQ.  A spokesman denied he had used hair dye, but added the hair had been cut. ‘I have spent the last ten minutes checking ... the grey is still there.’ " - Daily Mail

Has Ed been hitting the hair dye bottle? - Crash Bang Walllace

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