Usually, the task of David Laws Watch is to judge just how close the former minister is to a return to government. But, today, his article for the FT is worth highlighting for a different reason altogether. Referencing George Osborne’s signals on the 50p rate in the Budget speech, Laws has this to say (my
“We understand how difficult it is for so many people across our country right now.” If you weren’t sure which direction George Osborne’s Budget was going to head in, then he clarified it right from the start of his speech. This was one to tackle the rising cost of living. And much of it —
1348, PH: And Ed Miliband comes to a close, still sounding the same note: that the growth downgrades prove the coalition is bad for the nation’s health. We’ll come to a close there, too. Thanks for tuning in. More Budget coverage on Coffee House all afternoon, starting with these graphs. 1244, PH: Ed Miliband is
1232: And that’s it. And here’s my quick verdict: a solid performance from Cameron is what was, on the whole, a sedate session. The Main Event starts now, follow our live blog here. 1228: More fire from Cameron on the NHS. “Do you want to save … lives,” he quivers,” or do you want to
George Osborne couldn’t really have expected a much better set of newspaper covers than the one before him this morning. Despite the dreary background picture – war, confusion, higher inflation, lower growth, the ruinous state of the public finances, etc – a handful of papers are leading on the goodies in his Budget, and specifically
It’s a point that I’ve made before, but here it is again: Budgets don’t tend to shift opinion polls, at least not the headline numbers. But opinion polls can give some insight into how Budgetary decisions will go down with the public. So by way of a catch-up with some recent polls, and ahead of
From rescue to recovery — that’s how George Osborne is selling his Budget ahead of its release tomorrow. But what might we see beyond the rhetoric? Here’s a five-point guide for CoffeeHousers: 1) Growth. It almost feels like a tradition now: a new Budget, and a new set of forecasts from the Office for
A gold star for Vladimir Putin, for providing us with one of the most extraordinary interventions of the day. While we knew that the Russian Prime Minister is opposed to military action in Libya — and also that he is no natural friend of the West — it is still striking to hear him talk
Call it the domino effect, if you like. After Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya, Yemen is the latest country to drag its rulers to the precipice — and it could push them over, too. The latest news is that several Yemeni generals have joined the protesters in calling on President Saleh to stand down. One source
Gingerly, gingerly — that’s how the Americans are approaching the presentational battle over Libya, if not the actual campaign itself. There is no bombast in the official broadcasts from Washington, nor categorical intent. Instead we have Robert Gates emphasising, as he did yesterday evening, that the US will soon handover “primary responsibility” for the mission
“There will be no mercy. Our troops will be coming to Benghazi tonight.” Perhaps it was the murderous threat contained within Gaddafi’s latest radio message that shocked the United Nations into action today — because shocked into action they have been. After sweating and toiling over the precise formulation of a resolution on Libya, the
Benedict Brogan’s latest post is built around an observation from Jo Johnson on the 50p rate, yet it is Brogan’s own observation that gets a place in our Budget scrapbook: “Some people I have spoken to think George Osborne might be sufficiently worried about the growing exodus of entrepreneurs to put down a marker on
Much excitement, today, about the fact that Ed Miliband is just as unpopular as Nick Clegg. A pre-Budget package by Ispos-MORI contains the finding that both party leaders are actively disliked by 51 per cent of the public. It’s a striking result, particularly after the tuition fee furore — yet, sadly, it isn’t new. It
George Osborne’s Budget — his plan to deliver us from “rescue to recovery,” apparently — is less than a week away, and the wildfire of speculation is taking hold. Perhaps the most intriguing titbit in today’s papers is one that also appeared in the Express last Saturday: that Osborne is considering merging income tax and
Last November, the OECD forecast — as it does — that the UK economy would grow by 1.7 per cent in 2011. Today, it has downgraded that figure to 1.5 per cent. I wonder, does this matter? Sure, it’s not an encouraging sign. And Ed Balls will be slathering at the thought of the OBR
It is almost a cliche to describe jobs figures as a “mixed picture” — and yet that’s exactly what today’s are. Beneath the headline finding that the number of unemployed people has risen above 2.5 million, are numbers that will fuel not only David Cameron’s happiest dreams, but also his most paranoid nightmares. Let’s start
VERDICT: A more evenly-matched PMQs that we have been used to, with both leaders parrying and thrusting to some effect. Miliband’s chosen topic — the NHS — was a surprise, particularly given today’s unemployment figures and the persistent flurry of bad news from abroad. Yet it did open up a clear divide between him and
And so it came to pass. After sniping at Andrew Lansley’s health reforms from the day they were announced — at one point describing them as a “slash and burn approach” — the British Medical Association has today voted to call on the Health Secretary to withdraw his Bill entirely. The speech that the BMA
What a difference a year makes. When Michael Gove spoke at a Spectator conference on schools reform twelve months ago, his policy ideas were just that: ideas, to be deployed should the Tories reach government. Today, at a follow-up conference, they are being put into practice in the fiery crucible of state — and doing
