Uk politics

Wednesday

Isabel Hardman

David Cameron visits Algeria for talks on ‘generational struggle’

The Prime Minister is visiting Algeria today to pay his respects to the victims of the hostage crisis. He will also hold talks with Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal, and The Sun reports that he will ask Sellal's permission for MI6 to hunt down the attack's mastermind, Mokhtar Belmokhtar. This will mark the next move in the 'generational struggle' he described in his Commons statement. One of the first big steps in this struggle took place yesterday, with Downing Street confirming the deployment of more than 330 troops to North Africa to help the French action in Mali. None of those troops will be in combat roles, with the majority training forces in neighbouring countries.

Tuesday

Isabel Hardman

George Osborne urged to drop Google boss as business adviser

Starbucks had a go at David Cameron on Sunday for his 'cheap shots' at the coffee chain's tax arrangements in the UK. The company felt it was being unfairly singled out in comments about companies legally avoiding tax needing to 'wake up and smell the coffee'. So what about other firms known to be avoiding tax? Coffee House has learned that the former Lib Dem Treasury spokesman Lord Oakeshott is writing a rather scathing pair of letters to David Cameron and George Osborne about the government's dealings with Google, which paid only £6 million in corporation tax in the UK in 2012 by funnelling £6 billion worth of transactions through the tax haven of Bermuda. Google's executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, currently sits on the government's Business Advisory Group.

Isabel Hardman

Boundaries vote: what next for the Coalition parties?

So the Lib Dems got their way in the end, teaming up with Labour and minor parties to delay the changes to constituency boundaries until 2018 by 334 votes to 292. There were Tory rebels, too, and here, thanks to the Press Association, are their names: John Baron Philip Davies David Davis Sir Richard Shepherd The minor parties also voted with the Lib Dems and Labour: only the Alliance's Naomi Long voted with the Tories. Nadine Dorries, who remains suspended from the party, also supported the Conservatives. Tempers ran high in the debate itself, with Tory Penny Mordaunt MP accusing the Libs of casting 'flirtatious glances' across the Chamber at Labour and of exchanging their sandals for flip flops. She didn't mention whether they'd also ditched their socks with the sandals.

Isabel Hardman

Backbenchers want a cost of living Budget

Aside from Ed Balls' attack on George Osborne for going 'on the piste' in Davos, Treasury question time in the Commons today was interesting not for what Labour did or didn't have to say, but for some of the pushes from the Tory backbench on helping those on low incomes. Sometimes it's the pattern of the questions that matters more than the individual answers. Many of the questions were pitches for the Budget, which also gave ministers the opportunity to not really answer them. Robert Halfon asked about reintroducing the 10p income tax rate, to which Greg Clark said he noted the MP's bid for the Budget, adding: 'But he will know that we have taken people out of tax, which has been important in restoring incentives and the rewards people have for going back to work.

Jonathan Jones

Briefing: Immigration from Bulgaria and Romania

What's changing? Bulgaria and Romania joined the European Union on 1 January 2007. This gave their citizens the freedom to travel unrestricted within the EU, but countries were allowed to impose transitional controls on their freedom to work for up to seven years. In 2004, when eight other east European countries (the 'A8') joined the EU, the Labour government decided not to impose such restrictions, but this time they did. Those controls must be lifted by 1 January 2014. What are the transitional controls?

Isabel Hardman

Truss’ truncated childcare announcement highlights mid-term review weaknesses

Controversial though her proposals to relax quotas for childminders and nursery staff may be, no-one disagrees with Liz Truss' central mission to reduce the cost of childcare. The opposition know affordable childcare will form an important part of their 2015 offer, and have also been visiting countries such as Denmark to pick up some tips. It's also worth noting that Truss is only relaxing quotas in so far as childcare providers can take on one or two more children per staff member: a nursery worker will be allowed to look after four babies instead of three, and six under-fives rather than four. Similarly, a childminder will be able to look after two babies rather than one, and four under-fives, rather than three.

Simon Hart

As the most persistent private prosecutor, the RSPCA has questions to answer

Parliament debating how laws are prosecuted is not a rare event, unless that is, MPs are pondering the role of the country’s most persistent private prosecutor. Alongside its role as a prosecutor, the RSPCA also campaigns for new legislation and changes to the existing laws it is prosecuting under what seems like an increasingly radical agenda. That is why I have sponsored a debate today about their role as a prosecutor to which the Attorney General will respond. This debate is not about the 95 per cent of the RSPCA’s work directly protecting animals which we all support and applaud, indeed I was a member of the RSPCA for many years.

Alex Massie

Morrissey and Johnny Marr Explain Scottish Independence… – Spectator Blogs

There are only 600 or so days to go until Scotland has its referendum on independence. The excitement is almost palpable. Fortunately The Smiths back catalogue is all you need peruse to have a keen grip on the defining stramash de nos jours. Morrissey has always fancied himself, I think, as a kind of prophet. Johnny Marr wrote the tunes. Astonishing as it may seem, all sides in this rammy are, essentially, taking their cues from The Smiths. A Scottish independence playlist-dialogue might run something like this: Nationalist: Is It Really So Strange? Unionist: Barbarism Begins At Home. Nationalist:  London. Unionist:  Paint A Vulgar Picture. Nationalist: I Know It's Over. Unionist: I Don't Owe You Anything. Nationalist: How Soon Is Now?

Monday

Isabel Hardman

Webb vs Byrne on the ‘bedroom tax’

One of the most frustrating things about being a policymaker must surely be when something that sounds so very sensible and straightforward in your ivory tower ends up being a bit messy in practice. Take the 'bedroom tax': it's not actually a tax, but Labour enjoy calling anything they don't like a 'tax' (odd, given their own penchant for taxation). This is a housing benefit cut for social tenants living in homes with more bedrooms than they need. It was announced in the 2010 emergency budget and comes into effect from April. Very sensible, you might think, especially when private tenants don't get extra housing benefit for spare rooms. The policy is in theory a no-brainer.

Alex Massie

Are High Speed Railways for the North or for London?

I used to think High Speed Rail was an excellent idea. Now I'm not so sure. I suspect the economic case for the proposals is weaker than its proponents allow. More importantly, I'm not at all sure the government's plans for fast trains linking London and Birmingham are the right or most useful possible idea for high-speed rail. Knocking ten minutes off the London to Birmingham route seems like relatively little gain that comes at quite a price. Eventually, of course, the plan is to extend high-speed rail to Lancashire and, perhaps, Yorkshire too. Sometime, one would guess, towards the middle of this century. You can't accuse modern Britain of rushing large-scale infrastructure projects. It is good that the government is paying some attention to northern England. About time too.

Isabel Hardman

Senior Tory mulls changes to secret courts bill

After publishing a paper highly critical of the Justice and Security Bill this morning, Andrew Tyrie is now considering making amendments to the legislation, I understand. MPs in a Bill committee will scrutinise the legislation line by line this week, and are expected to report to the House of Commons by mid-February. Tyrie, who also chairs the influential Treasury Select Committee, is considering tabling amendments to the Bill to be debated at that report stage. The Centre for Policy Studies paper which Tyrie has co-authored with Anthony Peto QC says that 'part 2 of the Bill should, preferably, be withdrawn, at least until the government can come back with more balanced proposals, accompanied by a more rigorous explanation of the need for them'.

Isabel Hardman

Grey launch day for Green Deal

The Tories in opposition were very keen on their 'Green Deal' for making existing housing stock energy efficient. It formed the cornerstone of their pledge when the Coalition formed to be the 'greenest government ever'. It had its big full launch today, with new loans available for homeowners to insulate their properties and pay back the money through their energy bills. The only problem is that the Green Deal isn't quite the big all-singing all-dancing deal the government envisaged. The idea was that big businesses would lead the way in providing the scheme, but one of the leading retailers who expressed initial interest in the scheme, Marks and Spencer, isn't involved.

Alex Massie

The government’s attitude to Romania and Bulgaria is contemptible – Spectator Blogs

Pity the staff at the British embassy in Bucharest. Only last month they were cheerfully banging the drum for Great Britain, telling Romanians what a swell country this rain-soaked archipelago is. You see: The GREAT campaign invites the world to take a fresh look at the UK, and is designed to promote Britain as one of the very best places to visit, live, work, study, invest and do business. Oh dear. Time to reverse ferret. Brother Forsyth reports that the government is so spooked by the appalling thought that plucky Romanians and enterprising Bulgars might think the United Kingdom a land of opportunity that they are considering a new advertising campaign targeting the EU's newest members: Britain is crap. Don't come here.

James Forsyth

Why is Adam Afriyie being touted for leader? Expenses.

The Adam Afriyie leadership stories this Sunday confirmed several things. First, there’ll be no shortage of candidates when David Cameron goes. A large tranche of backbenchers have become increasingly irritated at what they view as a magic circle of ministers, special advisers and journalists who, they claim, are deciding who is and isn’t considered a serious player in Westminster. A result of this will be a determined effort to bust this alleged cartel come the next leadership contest. The second, and more important, thing is that the whole issue of pay and rations for MPs is still shaping our politics. Many of those most hostile to Cameron are those who feel that he hung them — or their colleagues — out to dry during the expenses scandal.

Tim Knox

The secret courts bill won’t enhance justice or make us more secure

'That Britain allowed itself to be dragged into complicity in extraordinary rendition – the kidnap and torture of individuals by the state – is a disgrace. That, nearly a decade later, the extent and limits of Britain’s involvement are still unknown is almost as shocking.' So opens  a new report, Neither Just nor Secure, by Andrew Tyrie MP and Anthony Peto QC which shreds the Coalition’s Justice and Security Bill, a Bill which this week to go into Committee Stage in the House of Commons. The Bill has already had a rough ride through Parliament. Deservedly so, for it is damaging legislation that will neither enhance justice nor make us more secure.

Isabel Hardman

HS2 announcement ignores airport problem

George Osborne, Patrick McLoughlin and Simon Burns have been flying the flag for the second phase of High Speed Rail 2 this morning. Politically, Osborne and Co see rewards in a project aimed at closing the North/South divide, rewards clearly so great that the Chancellor doesn't mind the second half of the route zipping through his own constituency and irritating local councillors and campaigners. Osborne was careful to underline this when he appeared on breakfast television this morning, saying: 'Our country has become so unbalanced and for the last 15 years as a country we gambled on the City of London and its prosperity and look where that got us.

Fraser Nelson

See no crime, hear no crime and speak no crime

In the current issue of The Spectator, we put on the cover four words that sum up the coalition government's approach to crime: pretend not to notice. Today's Birmingham Mail offers a snapshot of what we mean: 'The data, released under the Freedom of Information Act, showed the crimes were committed by 11,422 lawbreakers – meaning on average each carried out three offences within 12 months of being released on licence or receiving a community sentence.' That's an astonishing 33,000 offences in West Midlands committed over two years by those on the alternatives to jail: suspended sentences or community sentences. Or by those released from jail early, in what's supposed to be a cost-saving strategy. The symbol of England's failure in the fight against crime is the tag.

Sunday

James Forsyth

Europe Minister won’t give renegotiation specifics

There’s ‘no secret plot to get Britain out of the EU’ declared David Lidington on the Sunday Politics. In an interview with Andrew Neil, the Europe Minister was determinedly vague on the issue of what powers the next Conservative manifesto will seek a mandate to repatriate. But he made clear that the free movement of people is not going to be part of the renegotiation nor will Britain seek the right to strike its own trade deals with other countries. Having given the speech, David Cameron and his team don’t want to give a running commentary on what they might or might not seek to change about Britain’s terms of EU membership. Indeed, I suspect that they would like to go into the next election seeking as vague as possible a mandate.

Isabel Hardman

Nick Clegg leaves door open to Lib-Lab coalition

Nick Clegg was careful in his interview on the Marr show today to leave the door open to a Lib-Lab coalition - which bookmakers regard as more likely (4-1) than another Con-Lab coalition (6-1). It was interesting that so much of his description of coalition referred to himself: He told Sophie Raworth: 'I’ve never, ever seen any of this as an issue about what one individual thinks of another individual. It is really all about what the British people think about the parties who are asking for their votes. David Cameron and I said lots of disobliging things before the last general election, disagreeing with things you’ve just highlighted. We still work together in a coalition government. That is coalition government.

Isabel Hardman

Adam Afriyie ‘coup’: a false start for the stalking horse

The camp supporting backbench Tory MP Adam Afriyie in a possible leadership bid have been busy, managing to get whispers of their planned coup into three Sunday newspapers (the Sun on Sunday, The Sunday Times, and the Mail on Sunday). Whether or not Afriyie is a popular backbencher who managed to soothe colleagues over toasted teacakes in the Pugin room, and whether or not he's the ideal person to lead the Tory party after Cameron, the timing for the Windsor MP of the plot appearing in print couldn't be worse. This time last week, it wasn't difficult to find a clutch of MPs who would gloomily mourn the direction their party was going in.