New disclosures are made in the Fox-Werrity relationship, after the Defence Secretary issues a public apology
"Mr Werritty has labelled himself as an “adviser” to the Defence Secretary, something Dr Fox has described as “unacceptable”. Yet financial records seen by The Daily Telegraph show an economic relationship between the two friends. The papers disclose that in 2005/06, Dr Fox’s Commons office budgeted for a £690 National Insurance payment relating to Mr Werritty’s employment. The payment suggests that he had been employed by Dr Fox in the previous year. At the time, Mr Werritty was the director of a company called UK Health. Since Mr Werritty has never been issued with a House of Commons security pass, the payment will raise questions about what work he was doing for the MP’s office" - Telegraph
- Fox and Werrity: "an unlikely friendship" - Telegraph
- Libby Purves: 'No one ever profits from a pseudo-friendship' - Times (£)
- The Telegraph profiles Fox - Telegraph
- James Kirkup: "In a Cabinet heavy with English public school privilege and social liberalism, Fox stands out" - Telegraph
- Trevor Kavanagh: 'If Fox hasn't resigned by the time you read this, Cameron should sack him' - Sun
- Benedict Brogan: 'Foolish? Certainly. Weird? A bit. But not worth a resignation' - Telegraph
- Guardian Editorial: 'The defence secretary: Fox holed' - Guardian
Cameron will decide Fox's future in the Government today - Sky News
Private equity boss Harvey Boulter, paid £10,000 to lobbyists to arrange meeting with Fox - Guardian
- Boulter says he was told to "deny" the meeting by Werrity - Daily Mail
The Times claims Werrity was the "go-to guy" for defence lobbyists - Times (£)
Fox "grovels" to save his job with a "humiliating apology", according to the Mail
"In a desperate attempt to save his job, the embattled Defence Secretary admitted he had ‘blurred the line’ between his personal and professional life. Despite weekend speculation that Dr Fox would be cut adrift, David Cameron took the high-risk step of backing him last night. Senior sources said the Prime Minister was ‘determined’ Dr Fox should stay in his job barring further explosive revelations. But the Defence Secretary must still await the outcome of a report today into his dealings with self-styled ‘adviser’ Adam Werritty, his best man and former flatmate. And h e faces a torrid session in the Commons, where he will report to MPs on his recent trip to Libya" - Daily Mail
Fox is an example of "authentically working-class Conservatism" but would not be mourned by those effected by MoD cuts, according to the Times
"Were he forced to resign, though, it would be welcomed in parts of the Ministry of Defence where his attempts to end decades of overspending and incompetence have created enemies within the military and civil service. Dr Fox is Britain’s sixth Defence Secretary in a decade and has already been in the post for longer than his two immediate predecessors, offering a rare period of continuity for radical policies to be carried through. He oversaw last year’s Strategic Defence and Security Review, the blueprint for reducing the size of the military by tens of thousands, as well as cutting ships, jets and t anks, which met with much criticism" - Times (£)
Oliver Wright argues that if Fox were to return to the backbenches, he would be "free to channel unrest about the coalition"
"Later in the day the backing was increased and Downing Street said the two men had spoken and "David really doesn't want to lose Liam". But the fact remains the two men have never much liked each other and privately Mr Cameron would not be unhappy to see the departure of Mr Fox. But there's a catch: Downing Street can only force him out if he returns to the back benches under such a cloud that he can't cause trouble for the Coalition in the future. Mr Fox is the highest profile rightwinger in the Government. As a minister he is bound by collective responsibility, but if he were to leave office he would be free to speak his mind and emerge as the de facto leader of the anti-Coalition movement inside the Tory parliamentary party. That would spell trouble down the line for the Government" - Independent
- Peter McKay: 'Is Dave hunting the Fox?' - Daily Mail
In a speech on immigration today, Cameron set to announce proposals to criminalise forced marriages
"In a speech on immigration later, Mr Cameron will say: "Forced marriage is little more than slavery. To force someone into marriage is completely wrong and I strongly believe this is a problem we should not shy away from addressing." Last year a unit set up to tackle the problem dealt with 1,700 cases, but many more cases are thought to have gone unreported. The government says it is a breach of human rights to force someone to marry against their will for family advantage or to protect the perceived notion of a family's honour. However, in July the Home Office dismissed calls by the home affairs co mmittee to make it an offence as ministers said it would be hard to prove and could have a negative effect on victims" - BBC
- Cameron to stop sham marriages by increasing the time it takes for migrants to apply for a spousal visa - Huffington Post I Sky News
Cameron rewrites immigration speech after pressure from industry who were against the idea of publishing a list of immigrants working for them - Guardian
Aid to African countries with anti-gay legislation will be slashed, says Cameron - Daily Mail
- Melanie Phillips: 'An act of shameless cynicism on foreign aid not even the Yes Minister scriptwriters could've dreamed up' - Daily Mail
Cameron says that European leaders must take a "big bazooka approach" to the €urozone crisis, as "time is short"
Mr Cameron’s interview with the Financial Times increases pressure on eurozone leaders to act, including pressing Mr Sarkozy to agree a plan of action for the recapitalisation of Europe's banks. Separately, Mr Cameron wants Germany and others to accept the “collective responsibility” of euro membership and to increase the firepower of the eurozone’s €440bn bailout fund to stop financial contagion spreading from Greece. Although he refused to speculate on a Greek default – some British government ministers believe it is now inevitable – he said all uncertainty had t o be removed about the country’s economic future" - FT (£)
- Cameron's interview in the Financial Times- FT (£)
- Cameron urges "decisive steps" to solve €urozone crisis - Independent
- John Major says Britain can use the €urozone crisis to snatch back powers from Europe - Express
- Daily Mail Comment: 'Golden chance to win power back from EU' - Daily Mail
- Mary Ann Sieghart: 'They are all Eurosceptics now' - Independent
- Bill Emmott: 'Firewalls won't help Europe avoid the iceberg' - Times (£)
The Government says that Europe's budget increases, and EU spending are unrealistic
"With the stage set for a replay of last December’s budget fight in Brussels, the Government said that it was disappointed that the Parliament wanted the EU to spend even more than even the Commission had proposed in a budget that was then knocked back by the 27 national leaders. “In such challenging economic conditions, high growth in EU spending is unaffordable and out of kilter with the tough measures that many countries are taking to consolidate public finances,” a Government spokesman said. The European Parliament’s hunger for more money in hard times is grist to the mill of Eurosceptics in Britain and on the Continent" - Times (£)
Boris Johnson says that British businesses will be unable to compete with those in Europe without a new airport
"China's biggest airline, China Southern, does not serve the UK because there aren't enough slots at Heathrow – which is one of the reasons that it is not as easy for British business people to get to China as it is for our competitors on continental Europe. Every week, there are 17,500 seats on planes bound for mainland China from Frankfurt; 15,000 on planes from Paris; 11,000 from Amsterdam and only 9,000 from Heathrow. It will not be all that long before both China and India have bigger GDPs than the US – and yet we are making it harder for British business people to get to the future megacities from London than from our competitor airports" - Telegraph
Vince Cable argues that 'Made in Britain' is important, saying a "light-touch industrial policy will revive manufacturing and restore its role in our economy"
"A modern industrial policy has to work with the grain of the market, and intervention has to address genuine market failures. In any event, there is little choice, since heavy-handed intervention and protectionism would fall foul of EU rules. Intervention works best when depoliticised, operating through bodies such as the Technology Strategy Board (TSB). In this spirit the Government has established a regional growth fund to support private sector industrial (and other) projects in the regions and a green investment bank to develop large, relatively high-risk environmental projects" - FT (£)
Chris Huhne caught trying to smear both Theresa May and Phillip Hammond in one weekend
"Appearing on the BBC’s Politics Show, Mr Huhne was asked whether Mr Hammond was referring to him when he talked about “decent people” being caught out by the current limit. Mr Huhne replied: “Actually, apparently Philip has recently broken the speed limit and got some points so I mean I put my hands up, I lost my licence from speeding so I was in a very good position to say that I should assure that obviously we shouldn’t do that and we need to maintain the law” - Telegraph
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Alex Salmond tells the Guardian that "the days of Tory PMs telling Scotland what to do are over"
"I don't believe that the Conservative and Liberal coalition has yet come to terms with the fact that they've no mandate to run Scotland, no mandate whatsoever, not a scintilla of a mandate," he said. "This is the third and fourth parties in combination without a majority in Scotland. They're losing support; losing grip with reality. It's absurd for a prime minister to assume he has any legitimacy in instructing the Scottish parliament when they should hold a referendum on Scotland's constitutional future when we've got an impeccable mandate reinforced by a massive popular assent while they've no mandate whatsoever" - Guardian
Jonathan Djangoly forced to publically declare his shares in the insurance industry in the parliamentary register - Guardian
Andrew Tyrie seeks RBS account explanation - BBC
And finally ... Manchester artist didn't want Thatcher forgotten at the party conference, so created a life portrait of her in ceramic tiles, on display in a coffee shop - Manchester Evening News
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