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LFAT | Is fear the Conservatives’ best election weapon?
- 08:19
- Letters from a Tory
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Brown will claim today we are thru recession. What? Debt is still rising, £ fall...
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Robert Peston | Rock recovery
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- Peston's Picks
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Morning Call: pick of the comment
- 08:00
- The Staggers Blog
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Archbishop Cranmer | The Tory Trinity: the ineffable theo-political Three in One
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Dizzy | Lord Paul to be investigated by peers for taking the piss
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- Dizzy Thinks
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Tom | Letter to the FT (Financial Times) – Amendment 120A Digital Economy Bill
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- Tom Watson MP
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Next Left | Winning the battle for gay rights in Uganda
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- Next Left
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George Pitcher | Tory climate bores will eat each other
- 07:39
- Telegraph politics blog
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Toby Young | Is Nicolas Sarkozy's "affair" a damage-limitation exercise?
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Gordon Brown to warn economic 'storm' not yet over
- 07:30
- The Daily Telegraph
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Back on the bus
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Dizzy | How Politics Works: Lesson Three
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BBC R4 Today confirms Michael Gove was right and Ed Balls wrong in spat over poo...
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Douglas Murray | Europe is not failing its Muslims. But Islam has failed Europe
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ConservativeHome | Alan Duncan MP: How a Conservative Government would not only reform prisons but ...
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Richard blogger | NHS more productive than private healthcare
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- Liberal Conspiracy
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Ben Bradshaw | The Tories' dangerous antics in Northern Ireland reveal Cameron's weakness and b...
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Jon Snow | Israel, India, and tea for my daughter
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Mike Smithson | Hung Parliament? Punters not convinced
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John Redwood | Have the Conservatives changed enough?
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- John Redwood's Diary
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Daniel Hannan | European Parliament set to vote for a Tobin Tax
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Richard | A multiple of insanity
- 02:17
- EU Referendum
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Steve Bell | Are you missing me? David Cameron tempts George Bush out of retirement
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- Comment is Free
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guidofawkes | Staggering Hypocrisy
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- Guy Fawkes' Blog
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Neil O'Brien | The Renewal of Government
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Ben Bradshaw | Exeter wins overwhelming support in a Commons vote tonight for its bid for unita...
- 23:08
- Ben Bradshaw
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Bob Geldof | Bob Geldof | My rage at this World Service calumny
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- Comment is Free
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Mike Smithson | All parties take a hit with Harris
- 22:56
- PoliticalBetting
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FactCheck | New on FactCheck: Is violent crime going up or down? http://bit.ly/b3dZde
- 22:45
- http://bit.ly/b3dZde
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Final discussions on manifesto at parliamentary party this evening
- 22:29
- John Leech MP
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Paul Waugh | Looks like poor old @edvaizey is in trouble for his candour/conjecture again. ht...
- 22:24
- http://bit.ly/djSBnP
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Does Cam's 'glutinous consensus' hide his real right-wing views?
- 22:22
- Paul Waugh
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#GameON RT @BenCooper86 After a couple of weeks at & above 6% this is the third ...
- 22:16
- BevaniteEllie
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Lack-of-Coverage Rebuttal Service
- 22:09
- John Rentoul
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Anthony Wells | YouGov daily figures – 36/32/20
- 22:06
- UK Polling Report
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Labour's Lord Ashcroft
- 22:01
- Subrosa Blonde
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Michael White | Dangerous dogs – a bone of contention since 1839
- 22:00
- Comment is Free
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ConservativeHome | Tory lead down to 4% in YouGov/Sun tracker
- 21:59
- ToryDiary
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Mike Smithson | Big boost for Nick Clegg in the daily poll
- 21:59
- PoliticalBetting
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Iain Dale | @arusbridger What a pity your journalists got so many things wrong in their arti...
- 21:31
- Iain Dale
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Stephen Glenn | Ulster [Unionists] Say No!
- 21:31
- Stephen's Linlithgow Jo...
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Iain Dale | Just been to a great @totalpolitics & @policyreviewtv launch event at Altitude. ...
- 21:13
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Douglas Carswell | Jack Straw defending Westminster old guard
- 21:13
- Douglas Carswell Blog
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Faisal Islam | As trade figures fall, is there an economic plan C?
- 21:08
- Snowblog
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Iain Dale | A Complaint From Geraldine Dreadful MP
- 21:06
- Iain Dale
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Donald Hirsch | A wage to live in dignity | Donald Hirsch
- 21:00
- Comment is Free
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Mark Wadsworth | I'd be a terrible Prime Minister
- 21:00
- Mark Wadsworth
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Norfolk Blogger | A hole in the ground and a very big lorry
- 20:55
- Norfolk Blogger
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Jessica Asato | Future, fairness and footsoldiers - the f words Harman says will be used a lot i...
- 20:36
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Kevin Maguire | The Cahcroft Effect: Guest at his Totalled Politics party says v thinly attended...
- 20:34
- Kevin Maguire
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Simon Jenkins | Straw has left justice to the tender mercies of the press | Simon Jenkins
- 20:30
- The Guardian
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Mark Pack | How good is Ashcroft’s marginal seats operation?
- 20:24
- Liberal Democrat Voice
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Rumbold | Gendercide dissected
- 20:22
- Pickled Politics
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Stewart J Lawrence | Latino voters can't wait till mañana | Stewart J Lawrence
- 20:17
- Comment is Free
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Another call from UK. The Tory skin is too thin and they should stop picking on ...
- 20:01
- Michael Wolff
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Penalising responsible dog owners is wrong
- 19:57
- The Daily Telegraph
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Mike Smithson | Let’s all pat ourselves on the back
- 19:39
- PoliticalBetting
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Faisal Islam | Fact of the Day on the Moronification of Britain. 4% of girls want to be enginee...
- 19:34
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Faisal Islam | Rebalancing Britain's economy - 'Reindustrialisation' -is now political consensu...
- 19:33
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Julian Glover | How do we know which opinion poll to believe?
- 19:30
- The Guardian
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Pete Baker | “underpinning the devolution of policing and justice matters”
- 19:26
- Slugger O'Toole
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Alex Barker | Perot, Clegg and the election debates
- 19:18
- FT Westminster Blog
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admin | WHO OWNS THE FALKLANDS?
- 18:58
- Socialist Unity
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Ed Davey | Ministers being attacked from all sides! Tory frontbench done total U-turn from ...
- 18:56
- Ed Davey
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Councils furious at Gordon Brown's £250m Social Care Burden.
- 18:48
- Daily Referendum
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Gary Gibbon | Northern Ireland: where does Cameron go now?
- 18:35
- Snowblog
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Janice Small | The battle for a Yorkshire marginal | Janice Small
- 18:30
- Comment is Free
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MSPs fail to turn up for work during strike
- 18:25
- The Daily Telegraph
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Why is Germany talking about a European Monetary Fund?
- 18:25
- Charlemagne's notebook
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Perry de Havilland | The splendiferous Dave Cameron poster generator
- 18:23
- Samizdata.net
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Helen Duffett | Parties select their “star performers” for General Election campaign
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Look at him
- 18:09
- John Rentoul
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Faisal Islam | Big Gordon Brown speech on the economy tomorrow morning, clearly have to announc...
- 18:09
- Faisal Islam
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Telegraph Opinion | Seven Ages of Britain: Let me learn from an expert, not a newsreader
- 18:05
- Telegraph blog
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Iain Martin | Vaizey Headed for the Salt Mines
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Fraser Nelson | Tough on dangerous dogs, blind to the causes of dangerous dogs
- 18:03
- The Coffee House
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Colin Horgan | Canada's seal debate, dead in the water | Colin Horgan
- 18:00
- Comment is Free
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Gerald Warner | Climategate: George Monbiot despairs of the AGW cause – 'There goes my life's wo...
- 17:57
- Gerald Warner Blog
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Ed Davey | In debate on London's NHS - MPs from all parties expressing concerns about their...
- 17:53
- Ed Davey
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Iain Dale | Election Night Counts: The Electoral Commission Drags Its Feet
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- Iain Dale
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Janet Daley | Latest twist in my debate with Danny Finkelstein over polling
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Janet Daley | Latest twist in my debate with Danny Finkelstein over polling
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- Telegraph politics blog
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David Blackburn | The prospect of another EU treaty is a huge problem for reformer Brown
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- The Coffee House
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Iain Dale | Quote of the Day: Graham Stuart MP on Lord Paul
- 17:30
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Simon Tisdall | Is the tide turning in Somalia? | Simon Tisdall
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- Comment is Free
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Mark Devenport (BBC News) | Executive vetoes
- 17:26
- The Devenport Diaries
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Dave Hill | Uncertainty about Olympic legacy continues
- 17:22
- Dave Hill's London blog
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Mark Devenport (BBC News) | 1969 and all that
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- The Devenport Diaries
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David Miliband | Iceland referendum
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- David Miliband FCO
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Jim Pickard | Adonis abandons plans to beat UK rail speed record
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Jan Gerhard | Analysis: The Populus/Times poll
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Luke Akehurst | Losing is not such a good idea
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Paul Waugh | Chris Huhne is Jesus Christ. Well, according to BBC News Channel. http://bit.ly/...
- 16:51
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Kevin Maguire | Others have linked to Sky but Cameron's hairy moment's so funny I couldn't resis...
- 16:44
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Paul Waugh | Further to my earlier Tweet re Cameron's 'hairbrush' moment, here's the video. E...
- 16:44
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Jim Pickard | The union influence over Labour is paramount: no need to exaggerate it further
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- FT Westminster Blog
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Mark Devenport (BBC News) | The Vote
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- The Devenport Diaries
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matthewtaylor | Is e-harmony.com killing the Conservative Party?
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- Matthew Taylor's blog
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Paul Waugh | Patrick Wintour n Nick Watt have a new blog. With Tom Bradby too, this blogging ...
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Downing Street | No10: PM and the Home Secretary presented with football shirts from @kick4life i...
- 16:32
- http://bit.ly/cv0Zf0
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Adam Boulton | Kampfner Defection Should Worry Labour
- 16:30
- Boulton & Co.
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Kevin Maguire | @charliewhelan basking in Labour's Lord Cashcroft tag, sipping cappuccino in pre...
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- Kevin Maguire
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Next Left | A portrait in Vanity
- 16:25
- Next Left
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Mark Wadsworth | R&D Tax Credit Fun
- 16:22
- Mark Wadsworth
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Sally Bercow | Security staff are on strike again today. Boys not happy: "Strikes are silly mum...
- 16:19
- Sally Bercow
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Austin Mitchell | is proud to have just received an 'Honoury #robinhoodtax award' from the Forum f...
- 16:17
- Austin Mitchell
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Guido Fawkes | Quote of the Day: Ed Vaizey’s second foot-in-mouth-moment of the week while talk...
- 16:16
- http://bit.ly/aTt3NT
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Justine Greening to run Tory London election campaign
- 16:14
- Paul Waugh
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So Cameron is being warned by Bush not to mess up peace deals (?!) & can't quite...
- 16:09
- BevaniteEllie
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Alex Deane | UN Official warns against "ineffective" body scanners
- 16:08
- Big Brother Watch
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Political Scrapbook | Because he’s worth it? David Cameron uses Sky News camera lens to style his hair
- 16:07
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James Macintyre | The Sun, Jon Venables and lethal double standards
- 15:51
- James Macintyre
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Police must be able to monitor sex offenders on social network sites
- 15:50
- Liberal Democrats
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admin | Taking the lead in high tech goods and services
- 15:47
- The Blue Blog
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Peter Hoskin | Vaizey drops Cameron in it (again)
- 15:39
- The Coffee House
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Export figures are deeply alarming says Cable
- 15:32
- Liberal Democrats
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Harriet Baber | Should religious leaders tell us how to vote? | Harriet Baber
- 15:30
- Comment is Free
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George Eaton | There is no comparison between the trade unions and Lord Ashcroft
- 15:26
- The Staggers Blog
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James Macintyre | Exclusive: Tories to launch another poster campaign
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Tory Bear | How Quickly The Guardian Unravels
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Where did the Labour hard left go?
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- John Rentoul
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Paul Waugh | Looks like John Major (who sd Brown trip to Afghstn was 'unbecoming') has form r...
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Evan Davis | @CharlieElphicke The Grayling coverage was about statistics, not about crime. If...
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Jason Deans | BBC licence fee to increase by 2% to £145.50 from April 1
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Michele Hanson | Let's get draconian on the dog problem | Michele Hanson
- 15:06
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Adrian Michaels | A new EU treaty is a nightmare for everyone
- 15:05
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Glen Oglaza | Ulster unionists struggling to explain their isolated opposition to devolving p...
- 14:55
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Next Left | 'A giant step for the emancipation of women'
- 14:55
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Tim Montgomerie | A reaction to Labour's dog tax idea from @NickHerbertMP http://twitpic.com/17jmh...
Dashboard
Latest from The Green Box
Today's Storys
- 1
- Crime rehab failure 'costs £10bn'
- Expand panel
The failure to rehabilitate tens of thousands of serial criminals is costing the country up to £10 billion a year, according to a report by the National Audit Office.
Selected Sources
- 2
- US hid torture, says ex-MI5 head
- Expand panel
Former MI5 head Baroness Manningham-Buller has claimed that American spy agencies had deliberately concealed their mistreatment of terror suspects.
Selected Sources
- 3
- PM hails economic 'turning point'
- Expand panel
Gordon Brown will say in a speech today that Britain's economic recovery is at a "turning point", and that he is best placed to secure the recovery.
Selected Sources
- 4
- Social care row reignites
- Expand panel
Hopes of reaching a cross-party deal on funding social care appear to be over after fresh rows about policy differences erupted.
Selected Sources- 5
- Darling set to reveal budget date
- Expand panel
Chancellor Alistair Darling is to announce the date of the budget this morning, the Treasury has disclosed, leading to speculation it will be held on March 24.
Selected Sources
- 6
- Tory poll lead at 8 and 4
- Expand panel
Two polls tell slightly different stories today, with a Harris poll in the Metro giving the Tories an 8 point lead over Labour and the YouGov daily tracker showing the lead down to 4 points.
Selected Sources- 7
- 'Inadequate' training led to soldiers' deaths
- Expand panel
A coroner has ruled that four soldiers who died in Helmand province, including the first female to die in Afghanistan, were given "inadequate" training.
Selected Sources
- 8
- Northern Rock shows 'good progress'
- Expand panel
Northern Rock claims to have made "good progress" after it report 2009 losses of £257.4m. The nationalised bank had losses of £1.3bn in 2008.
Selected Sources
Ones to watch
- Miliband urges action from Karzai
- Expand panel
Foreign Secretary David Miliband will use a speech in the US to put pressure on the Afghan government and President Karzai to do more to achieve a political solution in the country.
Selected Sources- UK protests US response to Falklands
- Expand panel
British diplomats have made at least three protests to the US over the country's response to the row over the Falkland Islands, the Times reports.
Selected Sources- Tories would be 'highly active' in EU
- Expand panel
William Hague has said a Conservative government would be "highly active" in the EU and that the Tories had a made a strategic decision not to pick a fight in Europe.
Selected Sources- BA strike deal hangs in the balance
- Expand panel
Reports suggest it's "touch and go" whether a deal to head off industrial action will be reached between BA and the union Unite after a deadline to reach an agreement was extended.
Selected Sources- Brown will take us back to 70s - Hague
- Expand panel
Shadow Foriegn Secretary William Hague will today claim that a re-elected Labour government would take Britain back to the economic and social chaos of the 1970s.
Selected Sources
Other stories today
- More on NI agreement
- Expand panel
The Northern Ireland Assembly yesterday voted overwhelmingly to take control of its own police and justice powers, cementing the latest hard-won agreement between the province's divided communities.
Selected Sources- Johnson criticises Facebook security
- Expand panel
Home Secretary Alan Johnson and the mother of murdered schoolgirl Ashleigh Hall have condemned the social network website Facebook for refusing to implement anti-paedophile measures.
Selected Sources- Biden condemns Israeli homes plan
- Expand panel
Talks between the Israeli leadership and US Vice-President Joe Biden were "undermined" yesterday by an Israeli pledge to build 1,600 homes in East Jerusalem.
Selected Sources- Lord Paul urges Lords tax transparency
- Expand panel
The Labour peer Lord Paul has suggested that all members of the House of Lords should be made to publish full details of their tax returns dating back 20 years.
Selected Sources- Tories plan defence review
- Expand panel
The Conservatives would conduct a major review of UK foreign and defence policy within the six months of forming a government, the Financial Times reports.
Selected Sources- Calls to halt NHS patient database
- Expand panel
The British Medical Association has called for a halt in the development of the NHS patients database in England, which they say is being establish with "break-neck speed" and sometimes without the patient's knowledge.
Selected Sources- Venables was 'trivial' risk, says report
- Expand panel
A psychiatric assessment of James Bulger killer Jon Venables compiled prior to his release said he posed only a "trivial" risk to the public, according to reports.
Selected Sources- Banking fraudsters switch to online
- Expand panel
Banking fraudsters are switching "to raiding online accounts", a new report has warned. Fraud attacks on online accounts increased by 16% in 2009.
Selected Sources- BBC Trust boss hits back at critics
- Expand panel
BBC Trust chairman Sir Michael Lyons has hit back at the body's critics, saying it should not be replaced by a "glorified complaints office".
Selected Sources- Millions will have to wait until 4pm for post
- Expand panel
Millions of householders will have to wait until 4pm to receive their mail under a controversial new contract for postmen.
Selected Sources
- 'Jihad Jane' charged over terror plot
- Expand panel
A US woman dubbed 'Jihad Jane' has been charged over a terror plot in which deadly attacks were planned for Europe and South Asia.
Selected Sources
- Cost of potholes 'could run to billions'
- Expand panel
One of the coldest winters in decades means that the cost of fixing Britain's potholes problem could reach billions of pounds, the Local Government Association have said.
Selected Sources- Tories could face EU referendum pressure
- Expand panel
A new Tory government could come under pressure to hold a referendum on a new EU accord being proposed by Germany, which would create a monetary fund to help crisis-hit eurozone members.
Selected Sources- Minister attacks Lumley over Ghurkas silence
- Expand panel
Defence minister Kevan Jones has accused Joanna Lumley of a “deathly silence” over Gurkhas’ rights as he announced an inquiry into donations solicited in Nepal.
Selected Sources
PoliticsHome News
Live as it happens
Thursday 2nd July 2009 | 16:49
Osborne: There has been absolutely no impropriety
George Osborne has rejected claims of impropriety in his use of the second home allowance, and said he is relaxed about an investigation by Standards Commissioner John Lyons.
John Lyons is to look into the shadow Chancellor's change of designation of his second home, following a complaint from the Chairman of the Labour Party in his Tatton constituency.
The shadow Chancellor said there has been "absolutely no impropriety and any suggestion of such is wrong".
In a statement Mr Osborne denied ever having switched the designation for personal advantage, and said "his arrangements have always sought to minimise the interest costs to the taxpayer".
Osborne Statement in full
”This is a political complaint by the local Labour party. We note that one has been made against Alistair Darling as well.
“George is relaxed about it and has always been very open in answering questions about his expenses.
"George has never switched designation for personal advantage. There has been absolutely no impropriety and any suggestion of such is wrong. His actions have been entirely reasonable as all the costs are associated with his need to have a second home in Cheshire, and his arrangements have always sought to minimise the interest costs to the taxpayer.
”To recap information given out previously.
”When George Osborne became an MP in 2001 he sat down with a representative from the Fees Office. He explained that Harrop Fold Farm in Cheshire was his second home but that he had increased the interest-only mortgage on his existing home in London to cover the cost of purchasing and moving into it. The representative of the Fees Office advised him to claim the ACA against that mortgage until he could change the mortgage arrangements. In 2003, when he was able to change the mortgage arrangement without incurring penalty charges, he secured a mortgage against Harrop Fold Farm – and from then on claimed ACA against it.
”Since he became an MP, George Osborne has always made it clear to the House of Commons Authorities and the Inland Revenue that he regarded his home in Cheshire as his second home.
”In 2003 the House of Commons introduced the ACA1 form which required MPs to explicitly designate a ‘main home’ and a ‘second home’. George Osborne completed that form making clear the Cheshire home was his second home.
”Thanks to the tracker mortgage deal he is currently on, the monthly interest costs on his Cheshire home charged to the parliamentary allowance are now close to zero.”
"The cost of moving in and doing essential repairs was in excess of £480,000."
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