Peter Hoskin

Tuesday

Peter Hoskin

The Government fails the poor

From our UK edition

The Government’s latest poverty statistics were meant to be released back in April. But they’ve been delayed and delayed, such that they’ve only come out today. Now we know why. They record yet more failure from this multi-talentless government.  The amount of children living in poverty rose by 100,000 in 2006-07. Whilst pensioner poverty shot up by 300,000 – the first increase since 1998. Of course, alleviating poverty is an admirable political cause. Sadly, with this Government, it’s been reduced to a big statistical fiddle – spending £billions to get people from just below a (somewhat arbitrary) income level to just above it.

Peter Hoskin

Police lose their High Court challenge over pay

From our UK edition

So, the High Court has turned down the Police Federation's effort to get a 2.5 percent pay deal.  A good result for the Government, surely?  Well, yes.  But there's a caveat.  I suspect it may make the police so much more determined to get the right to strike.  If so, Jacqui Smith's problems have only just begun.  Watch this space.

Peter Hoskin

The public want a referendum on the Lisbon Treaty

From our UK edition

Conservative Home have an exclusive sneak peek of a Daily Politics / ComRes poll on the Lisbon Treaty.  Here are some of the numbers, which - to my mind - serve to further highlight how the Government has betrayed the British public on this: The ComRes survey of 1,010 UK voters finds that 64% of UK voters believe that the UK should hold a referendum and 26% think Parliament should decide. 33% say that they would vote to accept the Treaty if given the opportunity.  40% say that they would reject it.   27% don't know.

Peter Hoskin

Balls to get tough on failing schools

From our UK edition

In an interview with the Guardian this morning, Ed Balls pledges to crack down on failing schools: "We don't want to see excuses about poor performance, what we want to see is clear plans to raise standards in every school with a clear expectation that if by 2011 there are still schools stuck below 30% ... and there's not been a radical transformation at that point, our expectation will be that the school closes and reopens as a national challenge trust or academy." Ok, so a drive to improve standards is a good thing. As, in essence, is a quickening of the academies programme. But let's not forget that these are debased academies. Balls has done all he can to wed them more closely to central control, including imposing elements of the national curriculum.

Monday

Peter Hoskin

What do CoffeeHousers think about a Manchester congestion charge?

From our UK edition

What do CoffeeHousers - and particularly those based in Manchester - make of Ruth Kelly's plans to impose congestion charges in cities other than London?  You see, there are two factors making me reluctant to comment myself: 1) I don't own a car, and 2) I don't live in Manchester.  As far as the London C-charge is concerned, I think it seems expensive and I'm dubious about how "green" it turned out to be under the Ken regime.  At least, then, the Manchester charge is less costly and it's primarily being sold under a "growth" banner, rather than an environmental one.  But is it necessary in the first place?  Should these extra costs be imposed at a time when most people are struggling against rising inflation?  Do have your say below.

Peter Hoskin

Has Clarke found the answer to the West Lothian question?

From our UK edition

There’s an interesting debate fizzing between Iain Dale’s Diary and Three Line Whip at the moment. It’s all about the West Lothian question or, rather, Ken Clarke’s proposed solution to it. As the Telegraph reported this morning, Clarke’s plying this notion, which Cameron’s alleged to have signed up to: “…allowing all MPs to vote on English legislation at the initial second reading stage of parliamentary scrutiny. But only English MPs would get to vote during the detailed committee stage of the legislative process, where real changes can be effected.

Peter Hoskin

Dorries takes on the Beeb

From our UK edition

Nadine Dorries' latest blog post is a classic piece of telling-it-like-it-is.  Here's how she kicks off: "The frenzied attack against Conservative MPs and MEPs, orchestrated by and emanating from the left wing BBC and press has equalled that of an animal in its death throes. The more terminal the position looks for Labour, the more desperate the BBC and left wing press become." And she continues: "The incoming Conservative government has many big dragons to slay, the BBC has to be the biggest." It's a view that I'm sure many CoffeeHousers would agree with.

Peter Hoskin

Do the professionals want 42-day detention?

From our UK edition

One of the Government's loudest defences for 42-day detention is that it will help the intelligence services and the police catch more terrorists. Problem is, the professionals aren't exactly backing this claim up. CoffeeHousers who caught Jacqui Smith being interviewed yesterday will have heard her admit that MI5 haven't asked for an extension from 28 days. And, today, the Guardian reveals that certain senior policemen are set against the Government's proposals.

Sunday

Peter Hoskin

Brown’s a ditherer, says Straw

From our UK edition

Ok, so Jack Straw may not quite have used the word "ditherer", but here's what he has to say about the PM in a Channel 4 documentary, aired tomorrow: "[Brown is] someone who is cautious in his decision-making."  Apparently, that's in stark contrast to Blair, who was "a much more instinctive decision-maker". Jacqui Smith and the Labour deputy chief whip, Nick Brown, weigh in with their thoughts on the election-that-wasn't as well.  They're less than kind.  But Straw's words are the ones that will upset No.10 the most.  Until now, he's been largely supportive of our Dear Leader - at least in public.

Saturday

Peter Hoskin

Will Project Cameron be undone by expenses?

From our UK edition

Looking back over the past week's news cycle, I reckon it's the first one for some time that Labour have come out on top over the Conservatives. That's partly down to Jacqui Smith's rallying cry to the 42-day detention rebels, which – as the papers have it – could well have averted a disaster for Gordon Brown. But it's mostly due to that old problem: politicians and their expenses. The bad news for the Tories started with the finding that the Conservative MEP Giles Chichester had disgracefully pumped £thousands of EU money into a family company. Of course, Chichester stepped down swiftly enough, and many Tories must have hoped that, with that, the story could be swept under the carpet.

Thursday

Peter Hoskin

In the latest issue

From our UK edition

We've just uploaded the content from the latest issue of the magazine. And I'd strongly recommend you read Matt's interview with Jacqui Smith, on the hot topic of 42-day detention. Says Smith: “I don’t think the government could fall over this .... I think if it was turned into a vote of confidence there would be massive support of the government, I don’t think it would be a problem.” Do you agree? As always, have your say in the comments section.

Wednesday

Peter Hoskin

Boris stands down as MP for Henley

From our UK edition

So, Boris has formally announced he's standing down as MP for Henley. No surprise. But it's a welcome announcement nonetheless. As Stephen's already said, Boris should avoid cultivating the “part-time major notion”. And this should go some way to dispelling worries on that front. It also means that the Tories can get into by-election mode proper. We already know who their candidate will be – one John Howell – and now it's almost certain that the date will be 26 June. Now all Labour and the Lib Dems have to do is figure out how they can overturn a 12,793 majority in just three weeks... P.S. The Guardian has point-by-point coverage of Boris' press conference this morning. UPDATE: The by-election date has been confirmed as 26 June.

Tuesday

Peter Hoskin

A recommendation

From our UK edition

British cinema is renowned largely for its spirit of documentary realism. Think Ken Loach, think Mike Leigh, or – more recently – think Shane Meadows. The four-disc, forty-film box set 'Land of Promise: The British Documentary Film Movement, 1930-1950' (recently released by the British Film Institute, and available here) represents the primordial soup from which this tradition was birthed. This is not to say that the films within it are primitive. Far from it. They are poetic, lyrical and – in their own quiet way – revolutionary. This is especially true of those documentaries made by the leading lights of the movement – John Grierson, Paul Rotha and Humphrey Jennings – which are strongly featured here.

Thursday

Peter Hoskin

Are the Tories in landslide mode?

From our UK edition

We've just uploaded the content from the latest magazine on to the website, and I'd suggest you read Fraser's politics column ahead of the results from Crewe and Nantwich tonight.  In it, Fraser writes of how the Tories are unofficially shifting to a "landslide strategy".  They now regard a whole host of marginal seats as "in the bag", so party resources, cash and effort are being diverted to those seats which were considered "unwinnable" before Cameron took charge.  Crewe's something of a pilot for this approach, so the result is of extreme importance to Cameron & Co.  What do CoffeeHousers make of the strategy?  Is it a masterstroke?  Or a risk too far?  As always, have your say in the comments section.

Peter Hoskin

Brown losing friends. Rapidly

From our UK edition

You can add another entry to the list of those who don't like Gordon Brown: the unions.  Over the past few days we've been tracking growning union disgruntlement -and the possibility of a Summer of Strikes - over on Trading Floor.  And now that mood's been encapsulated in a speech delivered by Brendan Barber, the TUC's general secretary, last night.  He certainly didn't pull his punches - the Government needs to "reconfigure its DNA", as it "has not been clear about what it wants to be – and where it now wants to go". It's becoming increasingly difficult to see who Brown's allies are.  The unions don't like him; business doesn't like him; huge swathes of his party don't like him; and it seems voters aren't too keen either.

Wednesday

Peter Hoskin

Good luck United

From our UK edition

An all-English final it may be, but – as an avid Man Utd supporter – I can't help being partisan about this. So, good luck you reds. Bringing the European Cup back to Old Trafford will be the perfect way to commemorate those who lost their lives in the Munich air disaster, fifty years ago. And it will also seal a memorable evening for Ryan Giggs. He looks set to make his 759th appearance for the club, beating Bobby Charlton's record in the process – a remarkable achievement. Ok, so plenty of CoffeeHousers won't want the same outcome as I do tonight, but I'm sure we can unite in admiration of the Welsh Wizard – a model professional, and one of the beautiful game's enduring greats.

Peter Hoskin

Cameron delivers a PMQs message to Crewe and Nantwich

From our UK edition

The quick, capsule review of today's PMQs:  Brown was embarrassing.  Cameron tore him apart. Now for a bit more detail.  Cameron led on the humanitarian situation in Burma – the stories coming from that stricken country are getting worse by the day, and the Prime Minister gave his assurances that he's working to increase the amount of aid reaching the ground. Ok, so he doesn't seem to have achieved much so far, but Cameron rightly declined from engaging in political tittle-tattle over it. Next came Crewe and Nantwich, and Cameron brought it all back to the 10p tax issue.  Will Alistair Darling's compensation package only apply for one year?