Deirdre Alden on LeftWatch: The hypocrisy of Labour MPs bleating about "glossy Conservative literature"
Tony Lodge on Platform: As Britain freezes, Labour's failure to pursue a balanced energy policy is more exposed than ever
Seats and Candidates Search for 100 Peers: Roger Scruton
Parliament: Not a single Labour backbencher yesterday spoke in favour of the "load of nonsense" that is the Government's flagship Fiscal Responsibility Bill
WATCH: President Obama admits there was an intelligence failure over the alleged Christmas Day bomb plot
Tories outline plans to police Budget
"George Osborne, the shadow chancellor, outlined plans on Tuesday to keep a future Tory government on a strict path to cutting the £178bn deficit, including the creation of a new three-person “budget responsibility committee” to police his plans... The Tory plan would see the creation of an office of budget responsibility, producing medium-term borrowing forecasts, making official recommendations for fiscal policy and assessing the UK’s fiscal sustainability over 50 years." - FT< /p>
Arctic weather brings Britain within hours of rationing gas supplies
"Britain brushed within 24 hours of national gas rationing yesterday as the cold snap sent demand soaring, industry figures have claimed... The Conservative Party claimed that Britain had only eight days’ gas supply left and Shadow Energy and Climate Change Secretary Greg Clark criticised the Government for having had “its head in the sand on this issue for 12 years”. - The Herald
> Yesterday's ToryDiary: Greg Clark warns that the UK has only eight days of gas storage remaining
> WATCH: Greg Clark expresses his concern in a BBC interview about the low levels of gas storage in the UK
Put criminals to work clearing icy pavements, say Scottish Tories - Daily Telegraph
Grayling accuses Government of treating intelligence in a cavalier fashion
"Gordon Brown's spokesman said on Monday that Britain had passed "security information about this individual's activities" to the United States, raising questions about whether U.S. officials failed to act on that intelligence. The opposition Conservative Party said the comments from Brown's spokesman risked damaging Britain's relations with the United States because they appeared to exaggerate the importance of the shared intelligence. Chris Grayling accused Brown's government of treating the intelligence in an "inaccurate and cavalier" fashion." - Reuters
> Yesterday in Parliament: Chris Grayling lambasts the Government for spinning intelligence
Gordon Brown "uses public money to spread the Labour word"
"Gordon Brown has been accused of misusing public money to boost Labour’s election prospects after spending more than £500,000 on regional Cabinet meetings in key marginal seats." - The Times
Peter Ainsworth to quit the Commons
"Another senior Tory announced he was to quit the Commons at the next general election today as the exodus of MPs continued... His decision to wait until the new year to make the announcement means his constituency will have a shortlist of three replacement candidates handed down by party HQ under pre-election rules introduced by Cameron." - The Guardian
"The first thing to watch for is whether the Tories go for an all women shortlist." - The Spectator's James Forsyth on Coffee House
> Yesterday in Seats and Candidates: Peter Ainsworth to step down as MP for Surrey East - the first MP to disenfranchise his local party under new selection rules
Cross-party group of MPs and peers sounds warning on immigration levels
"Gordon Brown and David Cameron were last night given an uncompromising warning not to ignore voters’ fury about soaring levels of immigration into Britain. Senior MPs and peers published a declaration urging all mainstream political parties to give manifesto commitments to slash the influx of newcomers by more than a quarter." - Daily Express
Mandelson's slap down of class warriors exposes tensions at the top of Labour...
"Lord Mandelson will admit today that Britain became too dependent on the City of London for its growth and tax revenue while Gordon Brown was Chancellor. The Business Secretary will call for proper rewards for risk-takers and entrepreneurs in a slap-down to ministers who want the party to wage a "class war" against David Cameron. Yesterday, Lord Mandelson warned that Labour could not win the general election by appealing to its traditional working-class supporters." - The Independent
“Lord Mandelson’s comments expose just how deep the tensions and divisions over Labour’s election strategy run in the party. We can’t have a party on the brink of civil war running the country. The only way to get out of this mess is to call a general election.” - Conservative Party chairman Eric Pickles quoted in the Daily Telegraph
...as there is further speculation about a plot against Brown
"Gordon Brown will face his first Question Time of general election year amid Westminster gossip about a plot to oust him as Prime Minister. But the rumours gained such a head of steam in the tea rooms of Westminster and in the blogosphere that Olympics minister Tessa Jowell was forced to put out a statement denying she was planning to quit." - Press Association
"The leader of the Labour Party after the next election both should be and probably will be David Miliband." - John Rentoul in The Independent
Tories complain about civil servant's anti-Cameron Facebook page - FT
Nick Clegg accuses Labour and the Tories of standing for "corrupt politics" - The Guardian
New MPs' expenses watchdog signals desire to increase their pay"MPs should be “properly remunerated” the head of the new Parliamentary expenses watchdog said last night last amid fears that they will receive a big pay rise after the election." - Daily Telegraph
BNP faces fine for submitting misleading accounts - The Times
Simon Heffer is not enamoured of this week's electioneering "As we have come to expect, the Government lies and blusters to conceal its incompetence and failure; and apparently, the bigger the failure, the bigger the lies. Meanwhile, the Opposition pretends it has a clue as to how to save the country. Four more months of this will ensure massive public uninterest and, quite possibly, downright hostility." - Simon Heffer in the Daily Telegraph
Iceland defies the world
"Iceland's president has blocked a Bill to pay Britain and Holland up to £3.4billion for Icesave depositors, acknowledging that popular feeling in the island nation is too strong to proceed without a referendum." - Daily Telegraph
"The last thing we need is for Britain, the IMF and the EU to push Reykjavik into total bankruptcy or nobody will get anything." - Allister Heath in City AM
UDA to confirm it has dumped all its weapons - BBC
Rabble-rousing Islam4UK chief on £25,000 benefits - The Sun
Posts
