Category: Lib Dems

There will almost certainly be no EU referendum this parliament

December 5, 2011 6:07 pm by Kiran Stacey

A British protester burns an EU flag

Two sources who would know have told members of our political team that the chances of having a referendum on EU membership this parliament are very low indeed.

One ruled it out altogether, the other said the “number one priority” of coalition policy on Europe was not to have one.

David Cameron pretty much guaranteed that today when he said there would only be a referendum “if a new treaty passes powers from UK to Brussels” adding:

As Prime Minister, I do not think the issue will arise.

Continue reading: “There will almost certainly be no EU referendum this parliament”

Tags: EU referendum
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, David Cameron, Europe, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, UK politics | Permalink

Who will suffer from a cut in tax credits? The squeezed middle

November 28, 2011 5:40 pm by Kiran Stacey

Unless there is a last minute U-turn in Whitehall tonight, one of the ways which George Osborne will pay for the various jobs and infrastructure schemes in Tuesday’s growth review will be to squeeze tax credits.

This is a result of protracted bargaining – Osborne wanted to freeze benefits, but the combined efforts of the Lib Dems and Iain Duncan Smith put a stop to that. Eventually the compromise was made that credits would come under the axeman’s blade instead.

So who suffers if these are frozen or cut?

Continue reading: “Who will suffer from a cut in tax credits? The squeezed middle”

Tags: Benefits, George Osborne, Iain Duncan Smith, tax credits
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, Deficit, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, Recession, Tax, Treasury, UK economy, UK politics | Permalink

Lib Dem donor becomes Clegg adviser

November 28, 2011 5:22 pm by George Parker

Nick Clegg has moved to strengthen his team in Whitehall with the appointment of Neil Sherlock, a KPMG partner in charge of public affairs, as his “director of government relations”.

Mr Sherlock is one of a new intake of Liberal Democrat special advisers – Spads in the jargon – who have been brought into government to ensure that Mr Clegg’s influence is felt across all areas of government policy.

The KPMG man is the ultimate Lib Dem insider. A former parliamentary candidate, he has written speeches and provided advice for a series of Lib Dem leaders (except Charles Kennedy, with whom he enjoyed frosty relations). His wife, Kate Parminter, is a Lib Dem peer in the Lords.

Continue reading: “Lib Dem donor becomes Clegg adviser”

Tags: Neil Sherlock
Posted in Coalition, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, UK politics | Permalink

Exclusive: Byrne writes to Clegg to demand answers on jobs fund

November 25, 2011 3:43 pm by Kiran Stacey

The controversy over how Nick Clegg’s £1bn jobs fund is to be paid for has overshadowed the announcement itself, much to the annoyance of the Lib Dems. This morning, John Humphrys spent most of his interview with Clegg asking him whether tax credits were going to be squeezed to pay for his plan.

I should point out that no tax is hypothecated: we should not think the tax credits money is going directly into the jobs fund. However these things are true:

Continue reading: “Exclusive: Byrne writes to Clegg to demand answers on jobs fund”

Tags: Liam Byrne, Work programme
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, UK economy, UK politics | Permalink

No sign of end to political party funding impasse

November 22, 2011 8:00 am by Jim Pickard

Plans to reform the funding of political parties will be unveiled in a few hours’ time but already appear doomed amid continued infighting between Labour and the Tories.

Sir Christopher Kelly’s committee on standards in public life will hold a press conference setting out out proposals including a suggested £10,000 cap on donations, changes to union funding and £20m a year of state funding. It will also suggest that members of the public will be able to give up to £1,000 tax-free to political parties, just as they currently can with charities.

Yet dissent over the issue is reflected within the committee itself, which will produce two separate “notes of dissent” – effectively minority reports – at odds with the main recommendations.

Former minister Margaret Beckett, the Labour member, will argue against a proposal to

Continue reading: “No sign of end to political party funding impasse”

Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Labour, Lib Dems, UK politics | Permalink

Cable: Benefits will rise in line with inflation

November 13, 2011 3:58 pm by Kiran Stacey

We revealed earlier this month that George Osborne was considering slashing the benefits bill by linking them to earnings (which are stagnant), rather than inflation (which is rising fast).

Since then, the chancellor has been locked in a battle, not only with Nick Clegg, but also Iain Duncan Smith, the Tory work and pensions secretary, about whether the government should do this, having previously said benefits would rise in line with CPI.

If Vince Cable is to be believed, it looks like IDS and his Lib Dem allies have won this one. The business secretary told the BBC’s Politics Show:

Continue reading: “Cable: Benefits will rise in line with inflation”

Tags: Benefits, Iain Duncan Smith, Inflation, Vince Cable
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, Treasury, UK economy, UK politics | Permalink

It’s hard to draw up a growth review with no money

November 13, 2011 11:43 am by Kiran Stacey

We reported last week that George Osborne and Vince Cable were pushing for a new toll road scheme on the heavily congested A14 near Cambridge. Today, the Sunday Times suggests that road tolling will play a central role in the government’s growth review on November 29.

The paper says Osborne and Cable want £50bn from the private sector, mainly pension funds and insurance companies, to fund new infrastructure, including roads, homes and power stations. In return they will get a share of tolls, rents and energy bills.

The problem is that ministers can’t force private companies to spend their money on such schemes: all they can do is put the incentives in place for them to do so. But these carry their own risks.

Continue reading: “It’s hard to draw up a growth review with no money”

Tags: George Osborne, growth review, Vince Cable
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, David Cameron, Deficit, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, Treasury, UK economy, UK politics | Permalink

Letters published between minister and Southern Cross

November 10, 2011 1:00 pm by Kiran Stacey

Last month I revealed that Paul Burstow, the social care minister, refused to meet Jamie Buchan, the Southern Cross CEO, on several occasions before the UK’s biggest care home operator went bust. This was despite the fact that Buchan warned that his company was in financial difficulty.

Today the letters that I quoted from have been laid in the Commons library, along with a couple of other previously unseen messages, which show Buchan tried more often than we previously realised to secure such a meeting.

Continue reading: “Letters published between minister and Southern Cross”

Tags: Paul Burstow, southern cross
Posted in Lib Dems, UK politics | Permalink

Number 10 hints at repatriating powers from the EU

October 24, 2011 12:49 pm by Kiran Stacey

David Cameron appears to be trying to dangle some red meat in front of his restive backbenchers by holding out the prospect of using any imminent EU treaty change to try and repatriate powers back from Brussels to London.

Speaking after meeting fellow European leaders over the weekend, the PM said:

This is the right time to sort out the eurozone’s problems, defend your national interest and look to the opportunities there may be in the future to repatriate powers back to Britain. Obviously the idea of some limited treaty change in the future might give us that opportunity.

Continue reading: “Number 10 hints at repatriating powers from the EU”

Tags: eu
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, David Cameron, Europe, Lib Dems, Nick Clegg, UK politics | Permalink

Scottish boundary review hits coalition MPs

October 13, 2011 12:21 pm by Martin Stabe

The proposals for reducing the number of Scottish MPs in Westminster by seven seats, put out to consultation today by the Scottish Boundary Commission, does the Government no favours.

The FT’s initial analysis of the Boundary Commission for Scotland proposal (which can also be seen on our interactive map) suggests both Coalition parties are likely to lose out, with the only Scottish Tory and three of the 11 current Scottish Liberal Democrat MPs likely to lose their seats as a result of the boundary changes.

Among the Lib Dems, this could provoke a tussle between party grandees Charles Kennedy and Danny Alexander, whose adjacent constituencies could be merged into a new “Inverness and Skye” constituency. Alternatively Kennedy, Alexander and John Thurso could all compete for the new seat of “Caithness, Sutherland, Ross and Cromarty”, which has boundaries cutting across all three MPs’ existing constituencies.

Continue reading: “Scottish boundary review hits coalition MPs”

Tags: Boundary review, Scotland
Posted in Coalition, Conservatives, Labour, Lib Dems, UK politics | Permalink

Why has Paul Burstow not met Southern Cross?

October 13, 2011 11:39 am by Kiran Stacey

Paul Burstow

Back in the late summer/early autumn of last year, Southern Cross began trying to get in touch with the new social care minister, Paul Burstow. Jamie Buchan, the chief executive, wrote a letter in August warning Burstow the company was in trouble.

The language was careful of course – this letter could have become public under Freedom of Information rules, so Buchan would not have wanted to say anything that spooked investors and made the situation worse. But the message was clear: the company is in trouble and we need to talk to you about it.

Continue reading: “Why has Paul Burstow not met Southern Cross?”

Tags: Paul Burstow, southern cross
Posted in Lib Dems, UK politics | Permalink

How much will Balls’ growth plan cost?

September 26, 2011 4:38 pm by Kiran Stacey

Ed Balls’s flagship announcement at his party conference speech was a “five-point plan for growth”. Some of the policies were old, some were new. He said that if Labour was in power it would:

Repeat last year’s bank bonus tax, using the money to build 25,000 affordable homes and guarantee a job for 100,000 young people;
Bring forward long-term investment projects, such as schools, roads and transport;
Reverse the VAT rise now for a temporary period;
An immediate one-year cut in VAT to 5 per cent on home improvements, repairs and maintenance;
A one year national insurance tax break for every small firm which takes on extra workers.