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| Politics live blog: Tuesday 29 May | Politics live blog: Tuesday 29 May |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| 11.09am: The Press Association has filed an early story from Theresa May's evidence to the Leveson inquiry this morning. | |
| Here's an extract. | |
| New guidelines that will bring "common sense" to relationships between the police and media have been drawn up, Theresa May told the Leveson Inquiry. The home secretary has received guidance from police chiefs that recommends officers should not accept gifts, gratuities or hospitality "except if it is of a trivial nature". May said it was important officers did not put themselves in a position where "people could feel that they are being influenced by the receipt of such gifts". The Acpo (Association of Chief Police Officers) new guidance will bring a "clearer" set of rules for meetings between the police and journalists, she added. "I think it's trying to apply common sense to the relationship the police should have with the media," she said. | |
| 10.55am: You can read all today's Guardian politics stories here. And all the politics stories filed yesterday, including some in today's paper, are here. | |
| As for the rest of the papers, here are some stories and articles that are particularly interesting. | |
| • Lance Price in the Independent says Tony Blair was wrong to tell the Leveson inquiry yesterday that Rupert Murdoch did not shape government policy. | |
| Mr Blair wanted Britain to join the euro; Mr Murdoch did not. We didn't join. Mr Murdoch thought a referendum on further European integration was essential as a matter of principle; Mr Blair did not. But he agreed to one. | |
| Mr Murdoch used any opportunity to speak out against the euro, and had his papers campaign to keep the pound. He didn't care what Mr Blair thought. Mr Blair spoke in favour of the euro only occasionally and very tentatively. He cared very much what Mr Murdoch thought. One man was unelected and didn't even have a vote in Britain; the other was Prime Minister with the largest majority in living memory. | |
• Rachel Sylvester in the Times (paywall) says Tony Blair is advising the government on public service reform. | |
| Ed Miliband recently let it be known that he meets the former Prime Minister "every so often" — the two men are due to appear together at a fundraising event in July. More interesting is the fact that Mr Blair — never a Labour tribalist — has also privately been advising the Government. His discussions with Mr Cameron often stray beyond the official agenda of the Middle East into more political territory. I am told that he has also met ministers and Downing Street strategists to discuss public service reform and Whitehall. The former heads of Mr Blair's policy unit, Matthew Taylor and Geoff Mulgan, have been consulted by the current No 10 team. The recent determination to stand up to the Civil Service is based in part at least on senior Tories' conversations with the Blairites. | |
| "His influence is very firmly felt," says a senior Tory. "He's like the footballer Cristiano Ronaldo — gone but still greatly admired." | |
| • Andrew Grice in the Independent says a poll suggests 72% of people want the government to adopt a "Plan B" on the economy. | |
| Seven out of 10 people want George Osborne to adopt a "Plan B" on the economy to give priority to growth rather than spending cuts, according to a poll for The Independent. | |
| ComRes found that 72 per cent of the public believe it is time for the Coalition to perform a U-turn so that its policy is focused more on promoting growth and less on cuts, while 17 per cent disagree and 11 per cent don't know. | |
| Significantly, 64 per cent of people who voted Conservative at the 2010 general election and 68 per of those who backed the Liberal Democrats want a change of course. So do 86 per cent of people who voted Labour. | |
• Kiran Stacey and George Parker in the Financial Times (subscription) say the Lib Dems will stick with the coalition for the full five years. | |
| Nick Clegg's closest allies have vowed the Liberal Democrats will stick with the coalition for the full five-year term, fearing a backlash from voters and the markets if the party backs out early. | |
| The deputy prime minister's team dismissed as "absolute madness" speculation that the party could bail out of the coalition months before the 2015 election and leave a minority Conservative government to struggle on until polling day. | |
| Interest in the party's intentions was heightened by comments over the weekend by Vince Cable, the business secretary, who talked about a process of "disengagement" with the Tories before the election. | |
• Jason Beattie in the Daily Mirror says the combined wealth of the cabinet is more than £70m. | |
| 10.41am: The People's Pledge, the campaign for a referendum on Britain's membership of the EU, has put out a statement in response to Kenneth Clarke's claim that having a referendum would be silly. (See 8.47am.) Here's an extract. | |
| [Clarke's] attitude on a referendum is unusually discourteous to his fellow citizens since polls show that 70% of us would like one. His colleague Jackie Doyle-Price MP, with her wafer thin majority of 92, won't thank him for his intervention either. In her constituency of Thurrock last month 13,111 people voted for a national referendum in the People's Pledge poll held there. The turnout was higher than the local council elections. Does Ken Clarke think all those people in Thurrock are "silly"? | |
| There are three categories of people on this issue. First, there are some Europhiles like Ken Clarke who are frightened that the British people will vote to leave the EU; second, there are some Eurosceptics who are frightened that the British people will vote to stay in the EU. And then there are the rest of us who want a referendum because we don't want to second-guess the British people. We want us all to have a say on this important, generational issue in order to gain popular consent for our relationship with our European neighbours, whatever that is to be. | |
| 10.10am: Here's the full statement from the CPS explaining the decision not to charge Amelia Hill and the unnamed police officer. | 10.10am: Here's the full statement from the CPS explaining the decision not to charge Amelia Hill and the unnamed police officer. |
| 10.06am: The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that it will not charge the Guardian journalist Amelia Hill and an unnamed police officer in relation to allegations about the leaking of information relating to the phone hacking investigation. | 10.06am: The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that it will not charge the Guardian journalist Amelia Hill and an unnamed police officer in relation to allegations about the leaking of information relating to the phone hacking investigation. |
| 10.05am: Theresa May is giving evidence to the Leveson inquiry now. You can follow the proceedings on our Leveson live blog. | 10.05am: Theresa May is giving evidence to the Leveson inquiry now. You can follow the proceedings on our Leveson live blog. |
| 9.48am: There are two polls around today. Here are the figures. ComRes in the Independent | 9.48am: There are two polls around today. Here are the figures. ComRes in the Independent |
| Labour: 42% (down 1 from ComRes last month) Conservatives: 34% (up 1) Lib Dems: 11% (no change) | Labour: 42% (down 1 from ComRes last month) Conservatives: 34% (up 1) Lib Dems: 11% (no change) |
| Labour lead: 8 points YouGov for the Sun | Labour lead: 8 points YouGov for the Sun |
| Labour: 44% (up 1 from YouGov in the Sunday Times) Conservatives: 33% (up 2) Lib Dems: 8% (no change) Ukip: 7% (down 1) | Labour: 44% (up 1 from YouGov in the Sunday Times) Conservatives: 33% (up 2) Lib Dems: 8% (no change) Ukip: 7% (down 1) |
| Labour lead: 11 points | Labour lead: 11 points |
| Government approval: -39 | Government approval: -39 |
| 8.47am: Kenneth Clarke (pictured) was on great form on the Today programme this morning. Not only has he earned the heartfelt gratitude of Westminster lobby journalists by getting the Tory Euro war (part 1,793) up in the headlines again on a slow news day, he has also provided (as usual) a masterclass in how to sound like a self-confident politician able to think independently and communicate clearly. (It should be easy, but most politicians are so pre-occupied remembering the "line to take" that they can't do it.) | 8.47am: Kenneth Clarke (pictured) was on great form on the Today programme this morning. Not only has he earned the heartfelt gratitude of Westminster lobby journalists by getting the Tory Euro war (part 1,793) up in the headlines again on a slow news day, he has also provided (as usual) a masterclass in how to sound like a self-confident politician able to think independently and communicate clearly. (It should be easy, but most politicians are so pre-occupied remembering the "line to take" that they can't do it.) |
| Ian McKenzie, the Labour former special adviser who now runs the People's Pledge campaign for an EU referendum, has taken to Twitter to express his admiration | Ian McKenzie, the Labour former special adviser who now runs the People's Pledge campaign for an EU referendum, has taken to Twitter to express his admiration |
| Ken Clarke is wrong about an EU referendum but my, what a class act! If the Tories could cloned him a dozen times, Labour would never win. | Ken Clarke is wrong about an EU referendum but my, what a class act! If the Tories could cloned him a dozen times, Labour would never win. |
| — Ian McKenzie (@iMcKenzied) May 29, 2012 | — Ian McKenzie (@iMcKenzied) May 29, 2012 |
| Here are the key points from the Today interview, and another interview Clarke has given to BBC News. I've taken some of the quotes from PoliticsHome. | Here are the key points from the Today interview, and another interview Clarke has given to BBC News. I've taken some of the quotes from PoliticsHome. |
| • Clarke said the government would lose an election if it were held now. But he did claim that government has suffered worse problems mid-term, and he claimed that the public understood the need for tough decisions. | • Clarke said the government would lose an election if it were held now. But he did claim that government has suffered worse problems mid-term, and he claimed that the public understood the need for tough decisions. |
| I have seen, mid-term, much greater turmoil than this. I've been in governments having much more trouble than this. I'm amazed that the government is retaining the support it is ... There's not a government in Western Europe could win an election at the moment. Strong governments have to do unpopular thing. I think it's a credit to the public, actually. They realise we have to do unpopular things. | I have seen, mid-term, much greater turmoil than this. I've been in governments having much more trouble than this. I'm amazed that the government is retaining the support it is ... There's not a government in Western Europe could win an election at the moment. Strong governments have to do unpopular thing. I think it's a credit to the public, actually. They realise we have to do unpopular things. |
• He said that holding a referendum on Britain's membership of the EU would be silly and a "total irrelevance". David Cameron is not proposing one now, but there is increasing speculation that he will propose one in the next Consevative manifesto. Clarke made it clear he thought this would be barmy. | • He said that holding a referendum on Britain's membership of the EU would be silly and a "total irrelevance". David Cameron is not proposing one now, but there is increasing speculation that he will propose one in the next Consevative manifesto. Clarke made it clear he thought this would be barmy. |
The idea that because we've having a rough old time ... that you turn to a total irrelevance, a referendum on our membership of the European Union, where you create turmoil on a great subject, you throw absolute confusion over our continued involvement in the European Union, I cannot think of anything sillier to do. | The idea that because we've having a rough old time ... that you turn to a total irrelevance, a referendum on our membership of the European Union, where you create turmoil on a great subject, you throw absolute confusion over our continued involvement in the European Union, I cannot think of anything sillier to do. |
| He said that Britain had a referendum in 1975 and that one problem with referendums was that those who lost - the anti-Europeans, in that case - just ignored the result. | He said that Britain had a referendum in 1975 and that one problem with referendums was that those who lost - the anti-Europeans, in that case - just ignored the result. |
| It would settle nothing. Particularly it would settle nothing with the more frenzied Eurosceptics who keep believing that European bogeys are under the bed every time we get into any problem. | It would settle nothing. Particularly it would settle nothing with the more frenzied Eurosceptics who keep believing that European bogeys are under the bed every time we get into any problem. |
| He also said there was no public support for a referendum. | He also said there was no public support for a referendum. |
| [If you were to consult voters] the idea that they are all demanding a referendum on the European Union would be regarded as ridiculous. It would be out of sight as a public demand, a public priority. It's a demand of a few rightwing journalists and a few extreme nationalist politicians. | [If you were to consult voters] the idea that they are all demanding a referendum on the European Union would be regarded as ridiculous. It would be out of sight as a public demand, a public priority. It's a demand of a few rightwing journalists and a few extreme nationalist politicians. |
| • He said it was silly to accuse the government of peforming U-turns on secret courts and the budget. | • He said it was silly to accuse the government of peforming U-turns on secret courts and the budget. |
| Public consultation is public consultation – I rather approve of it. We're going through a rather silly, cliché phase where every time the government modifies proposals it's been consulting on, it's accused of having a shambles and a U-turn ... Personally I rather like the process of going out and asking people and then modifying what you've done. | Public consultation is public consultation – I rather approve of it. We're going through a rather silly, cliché phase where every time the government modifies proposals it's been consulting on, it's accused of having a shambles and a U-turn ... Personally I rather like the process of going out and asking people and then modifying what you've done. |
| • He claimed that the changes to the secret courts bill amounted to a clarification. | • He claimed that the changes to the secret courts bill amounted to a clarification. |
What I've done is clarify what I've always argued, that this applies to spies and national intelligence. No country in the world allows them to give evidence in court; you'd have terrorists in the public gallery, lining up making notes. | What I've done is clarify what I've always argued, that this applies to spies and national intelligence. No country in the world allows them to give evidence in court; you'd have terrorists in the public gallery, lining up making notes. |
| • He said his secret courts plans would allow claims for damages against the intelligences services to be tested in court. At the moment the intelligence services often settle because they judge that preferable to having their intelligence revealed in open court. | • He said his secret courts plans would allow claims for damages against the intelligences services to be tested in court. At the moment the intelligence services often settle because they judge that preferable to having their intelligence revealed in open court. |
| The reason I'm on the side of the argument I am - and I think a few million pounds being paid out when the defendant is still saying these claims are unfounded is a bit worrying - is the reputational thing. I would like to know, like to see, the intelligence agencies clear their reputation and win a case. As a member of the public, I would like to know what the judge's opinion is. He's heard the plaintiff, and he's heard the intelligence services explanation. We can't have a massive judicial inquiry in every case; we can in some cases. And I'd quite like a court, a judge, in a civil action, to listen to what the argument for the defence is. | The reason I'm on the side of the argument I am - and I think a few million pounds being paid out when the defendant is still saying these claims are unfounded is a bit worrying - is the reputational thing. I would like to know, like to see, the intelligence agencies clear their reputation and win a case. As a member of the public, I would like to know what the judge's opinion is. He's heard the plaintiff, and he's heard the intelligence services explanation. We can't have a massive judicial inquiry in every case; we can in some cases. And I'd quite like a court, a judge, in a civil action, to listen to what the argument for the defence is. |
| • He joked about the picture of himself on the front page of today's Guardian apparently sleeping at Trent Bridge. "My young friends me tell me its callled chillaxing," he said, referring to the recent reports about Cameron's expertise at chillaxing. "I've not encountered that before." | • He joked about the picture of himself on the front page of today's Guardian apparently sleeping at Trent Bridge. "My young friends me tell me its callled chillaxing," he said, referring to the recent reports about Cameron's expertise at chillaxing. "I've not encountered that before." |
| 8.40am: Misfortunes come in threes, according to the old saying. And so to government U-turns. Over the last 12 hours, as the Guardian reports in its splash, ministers have announced a pasty tax climbdown, a concession on the caravan tax and a retreat on plans to include inquests in the secret courts bill. On his blog Guido Fawkes has helpfully published a list of those government U-turns in full. He's got it up to 27. | 8.40am: Misfortunes come in threes, according to the old saying. And so to government U-turns. Over the last 12 hours, as the Guardian reports in its splash, ministers have announced a pasty tax climbdown, a concession on the caravan tax and a retreat on plans to include inquests in the secret courts bill. On his blog Guido Fawkes has helpfully published a list of those government U-turns in full. He's got it up to 27. |
| As Nick Robinson pointed out on the Today programme, the latest U-turns don't just involve the dropping of unpopular policies. They also show the government openly kowtowing to the conservative tabloid press. The Sun describes the repeal of the pasty tax as "a spectacular victory" for its own campaign on the issue and quotes George Osborne, the chancellor, saying that he listened to Sun readers. And Kenneth Clarke, the justice secretary, has written an article for the Daily Mail saying that its campaign against his proposal for inquests to be included in the secret courts bill was "a service to the public interest". | As Nick Robinson pointed out on the Today programme, the latest U-turns don't just involve the dropping of unpopular policies. They also show the government openly kowtowing to the conservative tabloid press. The Sun describes the repeal of the pasty tax as "a spectacular victory" for its own campaign on the issue and quotes George Osborne, the chancellor, saying that he listened to Sun readers. And Kenneth Clarke, the justice secretary, has written an article for the Daily Mail saying that its campaign against his proposal for inquests to be included in the secret courts bill was "a service to the public interest". |
| Clarke was on the Today programme at 8.10 explaining his plans. It was vintage stuff, with Clarke admitting that the government would lose an election now and describing calls for a referendum on EU membership as "totally irrelevant". I'll post a full round up soon. | Clarke was on the Today programme at 8.10 explaining his plans. It was vintage stuff, with Clarke admitting that the government would lose an election now and describing calls for a referendum on EU membership as "totally irrelevant". I'll post a full round up soon. |
| Later today Clarke is publishing his justice and security bill. Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister, is speaking at a seminar on constiutional reform. And Michael Gove, the education secretary, and Theresa May, the home secretary, give evidence to the Leveson inquiry. | Later today Clarke is publishing his justice and security bill. Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister, is speaking at a seminar on constiutional reform. And Michael Gove, the education secretary, and Theresa May, the home secretary, give evidence to the Leveson inquiry. |
| As usual, I'll be covering all the breaking political news, as well as looking at the papers and bringing you the best politics from the web. I'll post a lunchtime summary at around 1pm and another in the afternoon. | As usual, I'll be covering all the breaking political news, as well as looking at the papers and bringing you the best politics from the web. I'll post a lunchtime summary at around 1pm and another in the afternoon. |
| If you want to follow me on Twitter, I'm on @AndrewSparrow. | If you want to follow me on Twitter, I'm on @AndrewSparrow. |
| And if you're a hardcore fan, you can follow @gdnpoliticslive. It's an automated feed that tweets the start of every new post that I put on the blog. | And if you're a hardcore fan, you can follow @gdnpoliticslive. It's an automated feed that tweets the start of every new post that I put on the blog. |