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Government

Government

Government

• Householders will face a new tax on rubbish from next year under proposals to be announced by David Miliband next month, The Times has learnt. The Environment Secretary will disclose much tougher targets to recycle waste and will give councils new powers to levy charges on nonrecyclable rubbish. New regulations are expected to be attached to the Climate Change Bill to be introduced in July. The new proposals are likely to aggravate a public outcry over fortnightly collections of domestic waste brought in by cash-strapped authorities. Some councils, particularly those facing town hall elections, have changed back to weekly collections.

Government  

• A plan to help improve the training and development available to school teachers and contribute to raising school standards in England is published today by the Training and Development Agency for Schools (TDA). The new national strategy for serving teachers' Continuing Professional Development (CPD) will ensure that effective, high quality training is available in the areas that need it most. Schools will be able to make better, more informed decisions about the training in which they invest.  
• A consortium of leading charities and a top London university have won a £30m grant to provide a new academy for parenting practitioners, following an announcement by Children's Minister Beverley Hughes today.
  

Government

• Home Information Packs (HIPS) will cause chaos because of a lack of qualified inspectors, experts said yesterday as the Government faced increased pressure to delay the scheme. The Tories said they were planning a last-ditch attempt to block the introduction of the packs, which become compulsory on June 1 and could cost sellers between £600 and £1,000. "If we can stop them we will," said Michael Gove, the shadow housing minister, claiming that the project was nothing but "expensive and deficient red tape". The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said last night that the regulations surrounding the packs were "impenetrable, unclear and contradictory" and warned that they could be detrimental to the housing market and the wider economy. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;jsessionid=WZ1Q5FGCYALHFQFIQMGCFGGAVCBQUIV0?xml=/news/2007/04/25/nhip25.xml
• Almost one in five private finance initiative projects are still not making their owners money, a survey of almost 100 of them has shown. Profitability has improved since 2005, when the study was last conducted. Eighty-three per cent of contracts are profitable, with a quarter reporting "better than ex-pected" profits. But the survey found almost 20 per cent still did not make money, with almost 40 per cent saying they were making less money than expected. "Those sorts of figures give the lie to claims that the private sector is ripping off the public purse through PFI," said Mike Stevens, head of UK support services for KPMG, the consultants, which carried out the study with the Business Services Association, whose members provide cleaning, catering and similar services to schools, hospitals and other projects under PFI contracts. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/d5af9e3e-f2c8-11db-a454-000b5df10621.html
• Senior ministers are backing a controversial bill to exempt parliament from the Freedom of Information Act as a second attempt is made on Friday to push the legislation through the Commons. The bill has the support of several ministers, including Tessa Jowell, the culture secretary; Tom McNulty, police minister; Andy Burnham, health minister; Ian Pearson, climate change minister; John Healey, financial secretary to the Treasury; and Keith Hill, parliamentary private secretary to Tony Blair. http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,2064856,00.html
• Ministers have been accused of "nationalising the family" with plans for the first national college for parenting. In a move designed to crackdown on yobbish behaviour, the Government has earmarked £30 million for the new academy to coach parents on how to control tearaway children. It forms part of Tony Blair's "respect agenda" to tackle persistent anti-social behaviour, problem families and young offenders. The new academy - based at King's College, London - will act as an "international and national hub" to promote the latest ideas on how to raise children and implement recent Government reforms, including new courses designed to improve the bond between fathers and their children and catch-up lessons for parents with literacy and numeracy problems. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/25/nparent25.xml
• Thousands of patients risk contracting potentially deadly superbugs because NHS hospitals are not taking basic steps to stop the spread of infection, research for The Daily Telegraph reveals today. An independent study of 167 NHS hospital trusts in England found that infection control was in a state of disarray, with hospitals unable to reassure the public that they are screening and isolating enough infected patients. Only 10 of the trusts surveyed could provide data showing that they had isolated more than 90 per cent of individuals with MRSA - a standard that infection control experts regard as fundamental in the battle against hospital-acquired bugs. The findings, provided by Dr Foster Research, the independent health information company, raise serious questions about the Government's promise to make infection control a top priority. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/25/nmrsa25.xml
• Employees who smoke must be given time to attend clinics to help them to quit during working hours without loss of pay, new public health guidance recommends today. The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) claims that the proposal will cut the £5 billion annual cost of lost productivity, absenteeism and fire damage caused by smoking. It believes that a business with five smokers could spend just £66 on providing advice, including the cost of lost employees' time, and see an overall saving of around £350 in improved productivity. It is the first time that NICE has issued guidance that applies beyond the NHS, effectively including every workplace in England. The recommendations come as all workplaces, from offices to factories and pubs, prepare to go smoke-free on July 1. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article1701528.ece

Conservatives

• George Osborne, the Shadow Chancellor, will meet President Bush in the White House today in a significant boost to the Conservatives' international credibility and a thawing in their frosty relations with Washington. Mr Bush invited Mr Osborne to join him at an event on tackling malaria across the developing world after he had his first meeting with Gordon Brown, the Chancellor, at the White House a few weeks ago. Mr Osborne is the first senior Conservative politician to meet Mr Bush since before the last election, when Michael Howard, the then leader, angered the US administration by distancing himself from the Iraq war. His successor David Cameron has also kept his distance from the unpopular Bush Administration, and has not visited Washington since becoming leader. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1701549.ece

G8  

Government  

Government  

• Tony Blair will today put his personal stamp on a reorganisation of the Home Office when he chairs a new cabinet committee on terrorism and security. But with only two weeks to go before the department is due to be officially split into an interior and a justice ministry, crucial questions remain unresolved and the overhaul is fuelling tensions in Whitehall. The slimming down of the Home Office, championed by John Reid, home secretary, has been rushed forward to take effect on May 9, a day before Mr Blair is likely to announce his resignation. Mr Blair is expected next month to undertake his final government reshuffle, transferring portfolios from the Home Office to a new Ministry of Justice and cutting ministers at the Northern Ireland Office following the anticipated establishment of a devolved administration on May 8.

Government  

• A major new campaign that aims to help individuals cut their personal CO2 emissions has today been backed by Prime Minister Tony Blair and Environment Secretary David Miliband.  The Climate Group's We're In This Together Campaign brings businesses, Government and communities together, and provides practical ideas for how individuals can reduce their CO2 footprint. Steps the Government is taking to help individuals reduce their CO2 footprint include:  A new CO2 calculator - due to be launched later this spring, it will enable individuals to calculate their personal CO2 footprint and provide suggestions for the action they need to take to reduce it. The Climate Group will help trial the calculator. Assistance to help people in fuel poverty insulate their homes and install more energy efficient boilers - 1.3 million households have been helped with this so far. £3 billion in energy improvements for households since 2001 - through the obligation for energy companies to provide efficiency improvements for their customers, including low-energy light bulbs, insulation, and high-efficiency appliances and boilers.  
• London's mayor has launched a new drive to encourage people to walk around the capital, claiming this can improve health, reduce congestion and help tackle climate change. The campaign, run in association with Transport for London (TfL), comes as the mayor announces £126m of investment to improve conditions for pedestrians. Part of the climate change action plan, it will focus on the school run and the commute to work and will urge people to walk rather than take the car on short journeys.  

Conservatives  

Government  

• Some of the UK's most senior arts and sports administrators yesterday united to warn that cuts in lottery funding to pay for the Olympics would undermine the future of their institutions and actually reduce participation in sport. They spoke out as it emerged that four of the country's main voluntary organisations are demanding a Commons debate on the scale of the cuts. At the moment, the proposals are likely to be rubber-stamped before the end of this parliamentary session by a special ad hoc committee. Tessa Jowell, the culture, secretary, insisted yesterday that the Olympics were a "once-in-a-lifetime good cause". But the government's plans to divert an additional £675m from the National Lottery to fund the event has galvanised the cultural and sporting worlds. http://www.guardian.co.uk/olympics2012/story/0,,2063338,00.html  
• However, nearly £2bn of National Lottery money earmarked for good causes is languishing in banks, according to figures seen by the Financial Times. Lottery distributors had promised to speed up distribution of the proceeds from ticket sales, but the latest recorded figure of £1.9bn in unspent cash at the end of January is £400m higher than they promised three years ago. Among the worst offenders are the Arts Council and Sport England. The money sitting in lottery distributors' acc-ounts threatens to undermine their argument that they are suffering from the government's decision to divert funds from the lottery to pay for the 2012 Olympics. The National Lottery Distribution Fund passes on cash raised in ticket sales to 15 distributors for allocation to good causes. But three years ago the National Audit Office accused them of holding onto the cash, and taking years to pay grants. Distributors had promised ministers in 2001 that balances, then standing at £3.4bn, would fall to £1.5bn by 2004. But progress has been slow, with the amount piled up in banks falling to only £2.7bn. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/ad18f3e6-f136-11db-838b-000b5df10621.html
• Increasing numbers of patients are paying for private "top-up" treatments alongside NHS care, meaning the health service is no longer free, a report by leading doctors warns today. The doctors have written to all three main political parties, and the Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt, outlining their concerns that the idea of a free health service is a "political mirage". The study was written by three doctors, including Karol Sikora, professor of cancer medicine at Imperial College School of Medicine for the group Doctors for Reform, which has nearly 1,000 members, all working for the NHS. It says that patients are developing "sophisticated approaches to purchasing upgrades to their care", including in key areas such as cancer and heart disease. http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/health_medical/article2474429.ece
• Increasing numbers of children with learning difficulties are being sent to education "sin bins" - to be taught beside badly behaved and often violent pupils. Figures from the Conservatives show that the number of children with physical and emotional problems who are schooled in so-called "pupil referral units" has more than doubled since 1997. It comes despite warnings from Ofsted, the education watchdog, that the units - which normally educate children expelled from mainstream schools - are the worst possible settings for children with special educational needs. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/23/nedu23.xml
• Hundreds of thousands more homes will be blighted by low-flying aircraft when flight paths are redrawn to deal with 1 million extra flights a year over Britain by 2015. The airspace to be redesigned is the most complex in the world, involving aircraft that use Heathrow, Stansted, Luton and smaller airports such as London City, Northolt, Southend and Biggin Hill. Several new flight paths will be introduced and National Air Traffic Services (Nats) will create new stacks, in which aircraft circle while waiting for landing slots. Some of Heathrow's present four stacks are likely to be moved. Hundreds of thousands of homes in London and the Home Counties will be affected by the changes, which are due to come into force by 2009. The changes are being made because Terminal Control North airspace has almost reached its capacity. Nats handled 2.4 million flights last year and, on the present trend of 4 per cent growth a year, will handle 3.4 million by 2015. The Government is supporting the expansion of dozens of airports to allow passenger numbers to double by 2030 to 470 million a year, an average of eight flights per person. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1690728.ece
• An American-owned education company is to take over the senior management of a London comprehensive school in what is thought to be the first case of its kind for a local authority school. Part of the three-year £1m package for Edison Schools will depend on pupils at Salisbury school in Enfield, north London, achieving better GCSE grades and scores in national tests for 14-year-olds, as well as ensuring there are fewer exclusions and making school popular with parents. The decision to contract out the posts of head teacher and two deputies for a school that is not even failing marks a new departure for the state system, where such outside management has so far been a feature of academies which are independent of local authorities. New trust schools will also soon have freedom to form partnerships with private companies. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2063220,00.html
• The state now has 266 powers to draw upon when its agents want to enter homes, according to research. A report from the Centre for Policy Studies says that an Englishman's home is less his castle and more "a right of way'' for police, local government officials and other bureaucrats. In the 1950s just 10 new powers of entry were granted by statute. In the 1980s and 1990s an extra 60 were added. For the first time, Harry Snook, a barrister and the author of the study, Crossing the Threshold, has drawn together the full list of entry powers in the state's possession. Force can be used in most cases. The research comes at a time of heightened concern over the lengthening arm of the state, with ID cards around the corner and more sophisticated surveillance equipment being used to watch people. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/23/nhome23.xml

Conservatives

Government

• New proposals to protect the victims of forced marriages are to be introduced to Parliament today. Lord Lester of Herne Hill's bid to empower family courts to use civil remedies as part of a crackdown received cross-party support in January. And constitutional affairs minister Baroness Ashton, who will introduce the Forced Marriage (Civil Protection) Bill to the Lords, said the changes would be a "powerful and useful new tool" in protecting victims. They would stop short of making forced marriages a criminal offence, but would provide courts with new powers to impose injunctions to prevent the practice, and order arrests where these are breached.  
• NASA and the British National Space Centre (BNSC) have signed a historic agreement to jointly study how the two space agencies might work together on future planetary explorations to the Moon and beyond. A joint team is to be established to conduct a study into specific areas of US-UK potential collaboration involving lunar science and exploration. Science and Innovation Minister Malcolm Wicks said: "During my recent meeting with NASA's Administrator Dr Michael Griffin, I was keen for the USA and UK to co-operate on exactly this sort of exciting endeavour."  
• The development of casinos across the UK could cause health problems for serious and novice gamblers alike, doctors have warned. The government had said Manchester would have the first "super casino", and 16 other cities would have casinos of a smaller scale. But those plans are currently on hold after they were rejected by peers. The British Medical Journal paper says the health effects of gambling must be considered if new casinos do open.

Other

Government  

• Renewables firms are laying off staff because the government has shut its grant scheme that helps households adopt green energy technologies such as solar panels. The grant suspension means not a penny has been committed to any household since March 1, leading to accusations that it has made a mockery of the government's green credentials. The Department of Trade and Industry has tried to support the fledgling renewables industry in recent years with a series of grant schemes designed to make technologies such as solar, wind and ground source heat pumps cheap enough to appeal to domestic users. http://environment.guardian.co.uk/energy/story/0,,2061739,00.html
• One of the UK's most senior police officers has called for new laws that would compel the public to give information to the police about gun crime - whether they want to or not. In an interview with the Guardian, Bernard Hogan-Howe, the chief constable of Merseyside police and a contender to be next commissioner of the Met, said it was clear that more and more young people were getting involved in gun crime and that they were being protected by a wall of silence. He said the only way to address this was to adopt laws similar to those in Australia "where people have a duty to report information about gun crime to the police". He also believes the laws should extend to victims of gun crime who survive being shot but refuse to make a complaint because of fears of reprisals. http://www.guardian.co.uk/gun/Story/0,,2061735,00.html
• Some of Tony Blair's most radical plans for privatising welfare services will not be implemented in the short term, a confidential leaked letter from the Treasury shows. The schemes have been hailed by the prime minister as a way of getting single parents and the long-term unemployed back into work, included a controversial proposal for the private, voluntary and charitable sector to be given state contracts to find such people jobs. However, a Treasury memo leaked to the Guardian shows that it has no "immediate plans" to work up the initiative, which were outlined on behalf of the government by the businessman David Freud.  http://www.guardian.co.uk/guardianpolitics/story/0,,2061863,00.html  
• David Miliband's ambitious target for a "carbon neutral" Whitehall by 2012 and to cut emissions by 30% by 2020 will be impossible to achieve unless changes are made to the £3bn a year spent building and refurbishing government offices, to make them more environmentally sustainable, the National Audit Office warns today. The report says that fewer than one in every 10 Whitehall projects commissioned in the last financial year met all the required new environmental standards, and departments did not commission environmental assessments for two out of three new buildings or five out of six refurbishments. http://environment.guardian.co.uk/ethicalliving/story/0,,2061654,00.html  
• Bernard Matthews will be paid almost £600,000 compensation for the compulsory slaughter of turkey chicks after the avian flu outbreak. The figure, published yesterday by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, angered MPs of all parties after official veterinary reports identified flagrant breaches of biosecurity on the poultry company's premises at Holton, Suffolk. Jack Straw, the Leader of the House, showed sympathy with MPs when he told the Commons: "All of us are uncomfortable about the reports of high levels of compensation to Mr Matthews's firm." http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1680187.ece  
• Tony Blair will mount a strong attack on David Cameron today in which he will dismiss the idea that the Tory leader is his natural successor. In a speech in his Sedgefield constituency, the Prime Minister will admit the Conservatives have "learnt the tactics of opposition" but insist they do not have a "strategy for government". He will try to steady Labour's nerves by arguing that the Tories are "beatable" at the next general election. Mr Blair will make Labour's most detailed analysis of "the Cameron effect" in an attempt to halt the Tory leader's bandwagon ahead of next month's elections to the Scottish Parliament, Welsh Assembly and English councils. His assault follows criticism by Gordon Brown's allies that Labour has let Mr Cameron off the hook during Mr Blair's "long goodbye". Blair aides are frustrated by sniping from the Brown camp and claim the Chancellor's allies have not pulled their weight in mid-term elections campaign. http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/politics/article2465955.ece  
• Plans for the local elections in two weeks have been thrown into chaos and the results could be delayed for days because of widespread problems with new postal voting software. Up to 100 councils are experiencing difficulties with software to scan millions of postal votes after new anti-fraud legislation. In some areas the systems have not even arrived. The problems could lead to votes being discarded in error or false votes counted because the scanning equipment failed to work properly. Most town halls are sending out postal ballot forms today. Electoral staff said they were crossing their fingers that they could read them electronically when the results start coming in after the ballot on May 3. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1680426.ece  

EU

Government  

• Ministers are planning new powers to detain terror suspects for longer before charge, and to allow the police to question them after they are charged. In an interview in the Guardian newspaper Lord Goldsmith said the government is looking at allowing the police to question suspects after they are charged with terror offences. The attorney general said that the proposals, to be included in the new terrorism bill, were aimed at dealing with cases that require investigation of masses of evidence often contained in encrypted computer files. He also disclosed that the Crown Prosecution Service is considering whether to bring the first prosecution of a terrorism suspect who is currently under a control order, using intercept evidence obtained abroad.

Government  

• A £17bn overhaul of the London tube is under threat after a shareholder in the project said the operation's finances were "under increasing pressure". The crisis in the public-private partnership (PPP) contract to renew the creaking London Underground is embarrassing for Gordon Brown, who imposed the arrangement on the London mayor, Ken Livingstone, despite warnings that it would transfer a vital asset to a private firm with no power for local government intervention. The Guardian has learned that shareholders in Metronet could abandon the 30-year contract to upgrade three-quarters of the tube because of a £750m cost overrun caused by maintenance blunders that could undermine transport plans for the 2012 Olympics.

Government  

• Immigration Minister Liam Byrne, today unveiled the timetable for introducing the UK's tough new Australian-style points based system for migration, during a fact finding visit to Sydney. According to GNN, the new scheme, which will be phased in from early 2008, will enable the British Government to manage migration to the UK more effectively, tackle abuse and attract the most talented workers into the UK economy.  
• Most first-time buyers purchasing a home with a 'E, F or G' energy rating could benefit from grants to help improve the energy efficiency of their homes. Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) - A-G energy ratings for homes similar to consumer friendly fridge ratings - will be part of Home Information Packs (HIPs), which will be required for all homes being marketed from 1 June. Subsidies of between £100 to £300 are typically available from energy suppliers to help fund the costs of insulation, and other energy efficiency improvements. In addition some first-time buyers could be eligible for Government grants of up to as much as £2,700. The Government is now thinking of linking grants for energy efficiency measures to new EPCs. In a speech on HIPs, Housing Minister Yvette Cooper said she will be hosting a major meeting of energy suppliers, local authorities, and the Energy Savings Trust (EST), to develop new measures to help home owners implement the recommendations in EPCs.  
• The government has defeated Labour rebels over calls to give more help to people whose occupational pension schemes have collapsed. Ministers saw off an amendment to the Pension Bill, also backed by Tories and Lib Dems, by 22 votes. Ministers said the government should not write a "blank cheque", but Tories argued more help was needed with "heart-breaking" pension cases. About 30 Labour backbenchers had been thought likely to back the amendment.  
• Leaders across central government made a commitment that every eligible employee will be helped to gain basic skills and a level two qualification (broadly equivalent to 5 GCSEs at grades A* -C). This commitment covers over 475,000 people working to deliver public services in nineteen departments. Permanent Secretaries from fourteen of the departments joined Sir Gus O'Donnell, Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Civil Service (who made the skills pledge on behalf of the Cabinet Office), at a signing ceremony organised by Government Skills, the sector skills council for central government.  

Conservatives  

Government  

• Tax dodgers who kept their money in Britain are to get a similar amnesty to those who hid money offshore. A long-awaited deal unveiled on Tuesday offers a reduced penalty to anyone who comes clean over unpaid tax. People who evaded tax and kept their money in Britain will be offered a deal similar to the "offshore disclosure facility" announced by Revenue & Customs for people who hid money overseas. They have until June 22 to tell the Revenue that they intend to pay their tax, and until November 26 to pay a penalty of 10 per cent of the tax due, along with unpaid tax and interest. The small print of the deal suggests that someone with irregular tax affairs in the UK "can expect the same treatment" as someone with an offshore account. Revenue & Customs said it had felt obliged to offer the same terms to everyone. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/dd973606-ed24-11db-9520-000b5df10621.html
• Labour's immigration minister has conceded that the record inflow of immigrants could be harming the worse off and has ''deeply unsettled the country''. Liam Byrne admits in an article today that the issue is now near the top of the list of voter worries - and could cost Labour power. He says it is ''not racist'' to debate immigration - even though Labour attacked the Tories for raising it during the 2001 general election. Mr Byrne's comments, in a pamphlet published by the Policy Network think-tank, marks the latest milestone in a staged Labour retreat from the immigration policy it has embraced since 1997. A few years ago, David Blunkett, the former home secretary, said there was ''no obvious upper limit'' to the numbers that could come legally to Britain. But Mr Byrne says: ''We have to accept that laissez faire migration risks damaging communities where parts of our anti-poverty strategy come under pressure. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/18/nmigrants18.xml
• It appeared inconceivable last night that David Miliband, the environment secretary, would run against Gordon Brown for the Labour leadership, after he stated that he was "not a candidate" for the job. In a BBC interview, Mr Miliband once again fell short of categorically declaring that he would not run against the chancellor in any circumstances. But with three weeks to go before Tony Blair's expected resignation announcement, Mr Miliband's repeated insistence in public that he will not put himself forward as a candidate is killing off any sensible speculation that he will run for the job. In his first public comment on the issue after the Easter break, Mr Miliband res-ponded to questions: "I've meant what I said, I am not a candidate. "We've got an ex-cellent prime-minister-in-waiting in Gordon Brown, and I'm getting on with my job as environment secretary." http://www.ft.com/cms/s/5ab80588-ed49-11db-9520-000b5df10621.html

EU

Government  

• Tony Blair has urged his successor to retain his "unique foreign policy" in order to maintain international influence. At his monthly press conference on Tuesday, the prime minister unveiled his policy review on 'Britain in the world'. He said it was a description of the principles that have guided the government in foreign affairs in the past 10 years and a prescription for action in the future. Blair argued that three elements had characterised his international attitudes. "Firstly we have been prepared in a way that few other countries have, to combine what you might call 'hard and soft power'," he said. "Secondly it has been a foreign policy that has been underpinned by two alliances," he added, referring to relations with the US and EU and saying he had "eschewed" demands to choose between them. And "the third thing is that it has been to a considerable degree driven by values", the prime minister argued.  

Conservatives  

Government  

• Gordon Brown faces an unprecedented vote of no confidence in the Commons today over his handling of the pensions crisis. While the Conservative motion is certain to be voted down by Labour MPs, the Tories said it would be the first time in nearly a decade as Chancellor that Mr Brown had been forced to the Commons to defend his actions. He faces further embarrassment tomorrow when the Government faces possible defeat over a cross-party attempt to secure improved compensation for the victims of collapsed occupational pension schemes. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/17/npension17.xml  
• Millions of patients are "unlikely" to see any "significant clinical benefits" from the National Health Service's £12.4 billion national computer system by the time all of the money has been spent in 2014, MPs warn today.
  

Government  

• As the government's controversial Mental Health Bill is considered in the Commons, campaigners have called on MPs to amend the legislation. The Bill has been criticised by professionals in the field and ministers suffered a string of defeats on the legislation when it was considered in the House of Lords. Ahead of the debate, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are taking part in a joint press conference at which they will be expressing their concerns about the plans. And before Monday's parliamentary vote, mental health charity Mind criticised plans to allow compulsory treatment of patients after they are released back into the community. It said the far-reaching powers would specify a treatment regime which patients would be obliged to comply with in their own home.  
• Health should be the top priority for government, a survey has suggested. A poll of nearly 2,400 people by the Royal College of Nursing found that health was ranked above law and order, defence, education and the environment. And nearly half of those questioned agreed ministers should introduce a dedicated NHS tax. It comes as the government is predicted to reduce the record increases in funding the NHS has been receiving in recent years. The NHS budget will have trebled by 2008 after rises of over 7% a year in real terms since 2002. Many predict the spending review in the autumn is likely to lead to increases of about half that from 2008-9. Critics have said if this does happen it will actually feel like a budget cut.  

Liberal Democrats  

Government  

• Motorists will be offered incentives to take part in road-pricing experiments, under government plans to rescue its policy of reducing congestion by charging vehicles by the mile. Rather than forcing drivers to install a black box, to track their cars' movements, ministers hope to encourage volunteers by making the system financially attractive. The Government was taken by surprise by the strength of feeling against road pricing in the petition opposing the idea on the Downing Street website. It attracted 1.8 million signatures, compared with 5,000 for a petition supporting road pricing. The Department for Transport is developing an approach where drivers will be offered a choice: carry on paying motoring taxes or switch to a road-pricing meter in the car that could save money. Drivers could be offered a discount on fuel duty in return for agreeing to pay a distance-based charge, which would vary according to the level of congestion. DfT officials are studying an American trial in Oregon in which drivers who agree to pay a mileage charge have duty deducted from fuel bills. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1658091.ece  
• Tony Blair plans to push through big education and health reforms in his final days in office in an effort to secure his legacy. Once the local election campaign is over, the Prime Minister will make a string of announcements in May and June, including the creation of up to 300 trust schools and an expansion of private treatment centres for the NHS. The self-governing trust schools, pushed through Parliament with the help of the Conservatives, and the network of private centres contracted to work on NHS patients have been deeply unpopular within the Labour Party. But Mr Blair, who accepted yesterday that he has only weeks to go, has earmarked dates in May to set out the plans, as well as fresh proposals on policy for the family. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1657873.ece  
• Every new secondary school will be "green" under a radical initiative being planned by the Government. The Education Secretary, Alan Johnson, has won £100m from Chancellor Gordon Brown's comprehensive spending review to ensure all new secondary schools are designed to be carbon neutral or at the very least substantially reduce carbon emissions. Ministers are planning to refurbish or rebuild every secondary in the country by the end of the next decade. The programme will start with £110m to ensure that 200 new schools that are to be built over the next three years are designed to reduce carbon emissions. School designs that include such features as wind turbines, solar panels, insulated windows and low-emission light bulbs will account for £72m. In addition, £10m will be spent on twinning the schools with schools abroad to learn how to tackle issues such as rainforest preservation and planting new forests. http://education.independent.co.uk/news/article2452382.ece  
• The cost of seeing a lawyer is expected to rise with the disclosure that estimates for setting up a new legal complaints scheme have soared to nearly £50 million. The Lord Chancellor is proposing new machinery to regulate the legal profession and handle thousands of complaints from the public a year. But the estimated cost of creating the new system for policing lawyers has nearly doubled. On top of this, it could cost another £25 million a year to run the proposed new office for legal complaints. The increased cost, which would be passed to consumers in higher legal fees, is likely to fuel a revolt against the reforms in the Legal Services Bill when they come before the House of Lords today.  http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1658039.ece  
• Parents could save £200 million a year if the Government scrapped a tax on school uniforms, according to the leaders of a growing campaign to abolish the duty. Campaigners argue that the tax is unjust, especially after the Department for Education and Skills began a campaign against overpriced school kit earlier this year. Graham Minelli, a committee member of the Schoolwear Association, which represents the industry, said: "It does seem a nonsense. The Government argues that school uniforms stop brand wars and stop bullying, and yet they tax secondary school uniform." Parents have to pay the full 17.5 per cent VAT on clothes for children aged 14 and over, including school uniform. However, children's clothes that are larger than certain sizes are taxed so that petite adults cannot avoid the duty. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/04/16/nkids216.xml  

Conservatives  

Government  

• The Labour Party's website is likely to play a pivotal role in the battle to be its next leader, it has emerged. MPs' leadership nominations will be published on the site, although party sources denied reports the list will be updated hourly to boost interest. Nevertheless, opponents of Gordon Brown reportedly plan to use it to show growing support for David Miliband, in an effort to persuade him to stand. MPs can nominate a candidate even if they have not entered the race. If the candidate gathers 45 nominations, or 12.5% of the parliamentary party, they will be entitled to take part in a leadership ballot. They will have until noon on the day after nominations close to decide whether to enter the race or not.  
• A detailed action plan which will help to increase job opportunities for newly qualified healthcare professionals is published today. The plan, which has been put together jointly by the NHS trade unions, the Department of Health and NHS Employers through the Social Partnership Forum, makes a series of practical suggestions as to what NHS, social care, local government, independent and voluntary sector employers and higher education institutions can do together to identify employment opportunities for newly qualified healthcare professionals.  
• The Department of Health today announced an agreement that will enable approved industry-sponsored clinical trials to start sooner in NHS Primary Care. A standard form has now been agreed for the pharmaceutical industry to use in seeking permission from NHS Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) for clinical trials to start in GP practices, simplifying the administration of clinical research. This will mean that industry-sponsored clinical trials involving patients in primary care in the NHS can start sooner. It follows the model Clinical Trials Agreement (mCTA) for hospitals announced last year.  

Conservatives