by Paul Goodman The second reading of Harriett Baldwin's Legislation (Territorial Extent) Bill took place in the Commons yesterday. Beneath its unstirring title lurks an emotive subject – namely, how to right the wrongs inflicted on England by Labour's devolution settlement. Baldwin's solution is what she called "a lower-strength version of English votes for English […]
Highlights from the Prime Minister's remarks to the Commons about the treatment of terror suspects. Not verbatim. The reputation of the security services has been overshadowed by allegations of mistreatment of detainees in other nations. Terrorists and extremists are exploiting these allegations and undermining the UK's global reputation. The matter needs to be cleared up, […]
Michael Brown has written a thought-provoking piece for The Independent. One of his most interesting observations is this: "Assuming a Tory victory with an overall working majority, Mr Cameron will be faced with a parliamentary party numbering 350, or thereabouts, of whom only just over 100 will be previously sitting MPs. By comparison, when Margaret […]
Yesterday saw Foreign Office questions. Shadow Deputy Secretary of State for Wales David Jones and former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind both asked about Iran's nuclear ambitions: "The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (David Miliband): The International Atomic Energy Agency’s latest report of 19 February shows that Iran continues to refuse to […]
Defence Questions came around again yesterday. Conservative members dominated the session and exhibited excellent technical knowledge. James Arbuthnot (MP for North-East Hampshire) chairs the Defence Select Committee. He asked about Pakistan: "Does the Secretary of State accept that the events in Lahore today show that instability in Afghanistan and Pakistan extends far beyond the border […]
Former Foreign Secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind made a noteworthy observation about NATO during Foreign Office questions yesterday: "Sir Malcolm Rifkind (Kensington and Chelsea) (Con): Does the Foreign Secretary agree that an urgent priority for the Obama presidency—and, indeed, for that matter, for the British Government—is to ensure that we do not extend NATO membership to […]
Yesterday the House of Commons debated democracy and human rights. A number of Conservative MPs made interesting contributions. Tony Baldry, chairman of the International Development select committee, highlighted the desperate situation in Sudan: "Before we move on from Sudan, let me point out that Darfur shows the fragility of the international community’s ability to support […]
Sir Malcolm Rifkind: "Does the Foreign Secretary agree that if military action against Iran is to be discouraged, it is crucial for there to be a robust and effective alternative that cannot be scuppered by Russian or Chinese vetoes? As President Sarkozy of France—along with the United States—is enthusiastically calling for financial and banking sanctions […]
Sir Malcolm Rifkind was Foreign Secretary and Secretary of State for Defence in the last Conservative Government. Ever since the capture of 15 sailors and marines on the Shatt al-Arab waterway, there has been an unnerving sense of déjà vu. As history since the Islamic Revolution of 1979 shows all too clearly, the Iranians are […]