Hazel Blears has declared that the prime minister has “full confidence in me”. Remember only yesterday Brown branded her guilty of “totally unacceptable behaviour” over expenses.
We’re wondering whether this is a first. Plenty of prime ministers have declared their full confidence in a minister before casting them off. But has any minister claimed to have the full confidence of a prime minister? We can’t think of another example. I can’t imagine it bodes well. Read more
The expenses reforms announced by the Speaker are pretty tough. MPs would have saved themselves a lot of trouble by unveiling them a few weeks ago. No more furniture claims, tax dodges, gardening, decorations or televisions. The future for expenses muckrakers looks bleak. But what about past claims? Surely some reforms should be applied retrospectively? Read more
| About this blog | Blog guide |
Jim Pickard is the FT's chief political correspondent, having joined the lobby team in January 2008. He has been at the FT since 1999 as a regional correspondent, assistant UK news editor and property correspondent.
Kiran Stacey is an FT political correspondent, having joined the lobby in 2011. He started at the FT as a graduate trainee in 2008, working on desks including UK companies and US equity markets before taking over the FT's Energy Source blog.
FT's latest UK politics & policy news