Politics

This year more than ever, Nick Clegg is looking around for a policy to ensure he does not, to quote Nye Bevan, go naked into the conference hall when his party meets in Brighton. He does not have Lords reform to rouse his party ranks, the grassroots are nervous about the threat of an extra £10 billion in welfare cuts and there’s a row brewing on airports that will at some stage move from grumpy sniping to something rather uglier. So in his interview with the Guardian, the Liberal Democrat leader decided to talk tax, calling for a ‘time-limited contribution’ from the wealthiest in society. That this was a pre-conference

Every honours list throws up some controversy or other, such as whether a knighthood is linked to a political donation (a media favourite) or can be interpreted as some kind of political favour. Despite this, the Public Administration Select Committee took evidence which suggests that the honours system is broadly popular (81 per cent) and trusted by the public (71 per cent). This does not mean that the honours system is politically uncontroversial, with some MPs regarding it as corrupt and class-based, with others regarding the relationship with the Queen and the Empire Order as distinctly British and something to defend. (The present prime minister just restored the British Empire

‘I am the granddaughter of a Welsh coalminer,’ said Ann Romney, as she introduced herself to America last night,  auditioning for the job of First Lady. She did pretty well, and if she were the actual candidate then the Republicans would be home and dry. Whatever her roots, she is now the millionaire owner of an Olympic dressage horse and had to be accepted by a party grassroots which is more on the wavelength of the tea party. ‘I read somewhere that Mitt and I have a “storybook marriage”,’ she said. ‘Well, in the storybooks I read, there were never long, long, rainy winter afternoons in a house with five boys

The Tories’ shadowy donor-cum-puppetmaster has been given the cold shoulder, yet again. Taking full proprietor privileges at ConservativeHome, he’s taken aim at young Dave’s departed brain, Steve Hilton. It seems that the guru has left the Lord of Belize off his Republican National Convention party guest list: ‘Apparently, the event to be seen at is to be hosted by none other than Steve Hilton. Unreliable rumour has it that he has taken for the occasion an enormous house on Tampa Bay’s prestigious Harbour Island. What can he be up to? Clearly he is keeping his hand in. Unfortunately my invitation has not arrived so I can report no further for

Justine Greening will be relieved: Downing Street has just poured cold water on suggestions the government could U-turn on a third runway at Heathrow. At the morning lobby briefing, a Downing Street spokeswoman said: ‘Their stance is as laid out in the Coalition Agreement: that’s not changed. The coalition parties have made a pledge not to have a third runway and that is a pledge that we will keep.’ She added that the government did not ‘see an argument for a third runway’ but that there was a need to ‘look more broadly at aviation policy’. It was of course unlikely that Downing Street was going to turn round this

It was difficult not to feel sorry for Transport Secretary Justine Greening this morning as she twisted and turned to avoid questions fired at her by Jim Naughtie on a third runway. Each time Greening thought she had escaped having to tell Radio 4 listeners whether she could remain in the Cabinet should the Prime Minister decide he is indeed a man rather than a mouse and U-turn on expanding Heathrow, Naughtie kept returning to the question: Naughtie: Let’s be clear about the third runway: is your government open to argument about it, or not? Greening: No, the Coalition Agreement is very clear that we don’t support a third runway