22 October 2015

Week In Brief: UK

TAX CREDIT:  The Chancellor’s plan to withdraw tax credits from next spring has come under fire from members of his own party who are concerned at the effect on low-paid working families.  Those members include Lord Tebbit and the Bow Group.  Since the changes are being introduced by statutory order rather than in the Finance Bill, it would be technically possible for the House of Lords (where the Government does not have a majority) to sink them by way of a motion, justifying their intervention in a finance matter on the grounds that it was not in the Tory manifesto.  If that happened, the Government would have to take the proposals back to the Commons where new Tory MPs including Heidi Allen and Johnny Mercer have called for something to be done to ease the effects of the cuts.  One possibility is that the Lords will call for the government to consider the report of the Institute of Fiscal Studies which analyses the issue.

GRAMMAR SCHOOL:  The Department of Education has approved the opening of a new grammar school in Sevenoaks.  That does not, however, reflect any change in government policy.  The new school, which is to be an annex of the Weald of Kent Grammar School in Tonbridge, is legally the extension of an existing school and the government would not have been able to stop it.  It remains Government policy to increase academic standards by setting up academy schools, where selection does not depend on examination success.

SURVEILLANCE:  It is understood that the Investigatory Powers Bill, to be published next month, will give intelligence agencies the right to hack computers, smartphones, etc.  The power is needed because encryption is reducing the amount of information which can be harvested by intercepting communications.  Hacking allows the agencies to secretly “takeover” computers and use them as surveillance tools.  David Anderson QC, who independently reviews terrorist legislation, says that a debate is needed into when hacking is appropriate.

HEALTH:  The Care Quality Commission’s 2014/2015 report on the state of health and adult social care in England rates various parts of the health service.  Top of the class are GP practices where 85% were good or outstanding.  Social care services did well too with a 60% good or outstanding level, but hospitals let the side down with 65% being rated as either inadequate or as requiring improvement. In 13% of them there were safety concerns.

The report identified the difficulty of dealing with an ageing and changing population against the background of efficiency savings, although getting the right mix of staff was considered to be as important as having the right numbers.  It also stressed that one of the major differentiators is quality of leadership, with a premium on an open culture which enables mistakes to be identified and remedied.

The NHS is to be permitted to recruit foreign nurses to make up a domestic shortage. Overseas recruitment is necessary to avoid the risk of a winter staff crisis and to allow the government to implement its strategy of reducing the amount spent on agency staff.  The Home Secretary has included nurses on the “shortage occupation list” on a temporary basis but the Government’s advisers are to review the issue.

EU REFORMS:  Mr Cameron has agreed to set out the four vital areas in which he needs reform of the EU before the referendum, by the end of November.

SUGAR:  Alison Tedstone, Public Health England’s director of diet and obesity, has told the Commons Health Select Committee that a report by PHE recommends a sugar tax to reduce obesity, pointing out that the introduction of a tax on fizzy drinks in Mexico reduced their sales by 6%.  So far Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, has refused to publish the report, saying that a full child obesity strategy will be released in January.

HACKING:  The £15 million investigation into hacking by journalists has come to an end with the acquittal of Chris Pharo and Jamie Pyatt of the Sun of aiding a police officer to commit misconduct in a public office.  Overall two journalists have been convicted, as have eleven police officers and staff.

Culture Secretary John Whittingdale has indicated that proposals suggested in the Leveson report, under which newspapers which do not sign up to a compliant regulatory body may be responsible for both sides’ costs in libel and privacy cases, may be dropped. Such newspapers will, however, be exposed to penal libel damages from November.

BBC:  Staff at the BBC have been told that cutbacks in expenses will involve a ban on taxi journeys in central London, a requirement to use public transport where possible and a ban on first-class train tickets.  They will also have to pay for their own lunches and drinks.

KIDS COMPANY:  The enquiry by the Metropolitan Place into sexual misconduct at the charity Kids Company has been widened.  It has also been suggested that the charity had a policy of suppressing criminal offences by students, something which is denied by Mrs Batmanghelidjh, its founder.  Kids Company collapsed on the 5th August after government funds were withheld because of financial irregularities.  In a hearing before the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Select Committee, Alan Yentob, formerly chairman of the charity, claimed that its closure has led to the death of a teenager, as well as stabbings and suicide attempts.

STATE BANQUET:  The Prince of Wales did not attend a state banquet given by the Queen for Chinese Premier, Mr Xi, who is currently on a state visit to the UK.  He did, however, welcome Mr Xi at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel on his arrival.  The banquet was attended by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.  Prince William will also take part, with veteran broadcaster David Attenborough and explorer Bear Grylls, in a programme devoted to conservation issues which will be shown on Chinese state television.

BIG BEN:  The Commons Finance Committee is considering a report into repairs required by the clock on the Elizabeth Tower which houses Big Ben.  Apparently refurbishment could take up to a year with the clock being stopped for up to 4 months.  Total cost, including the provision of a visitors’ centre and a lift up the tower, could be as much as £29 million.

GARDEN BRIDGE:  The proposed new garden bridge across the Thames may not now be built following the withdrawal by Lambeth from negotiations to secure land at the southern end.  Sadiq Khan, the Labour candidate for mayor, has indicated that, if elected, he would not support the project.

JIHARDI:  Mr Cameron has unveiled the government’s plans for attacking extremism, stating that this must be done at the kitchen table, on the University campus, online and on the airwaves.  His proposals include mandatory deradicalisation programmes, the confiscation of passports from older teenagers, a register of extremists and a plan to tackle housing ghettos.  Mr Cameron has also indicated that he wishes to increase the surveillance powers of the security services, enabling them to monitor communications with terrorists.

NOISE POLLUTION:  The British Museum has turned off the pan-pipe music which they previously inflicted on those attending their exhibition “Celts”.

BRIDGE: Mr Justice Dove has ruled that Sport England were entitled to take the view that bridge is not “physical training and recreation” for the purposes of the 1937 Physical Training and Recreation Act.  His Lordship did not, of course, say whether he actually agreed with that view.

COURT FEES:  Rules under which guilty defendants may be charged a fee for the use of the courts are being reviewed by the Department of Justice following disquiet among magistrates.  According to a survey by the Magistrates Association, 70% of magistrates had seen cases where sentences have been deliberately reduced to mitigate the charge.

POWER STATIONS:  There is concern in military and intelligence circles that allowing Chinese companies to take a major role in building nuclear power stations at Hinkley Point and Sizewell gives them scope to introduce features enabling China to cut off the power at moments of international tension.  It has been noted that China National Nuclear Corporation, one of the companies responsible for implementing the project, is under Chinese government control.

LABOUR PARTY:  Mr McDonnell, the shadow chancellor, has admitted to embarrassment at his U-turn over whether to support the government’s deficit reduction rules.  Originally he had said that the party would support them but a last-minute change of heart saw Labour MPs being ordered to vote against.  The names of the 21 Labour MPs who refused to do so without party consent has been published by the whips’ office, exposing them to online abuse from left wing activists.  Mr Corbyn is believed to have approved publication.

Lord Warner, previously health minister under Tony Blair, has resigned the Labour whip on the basis that Labour is no longer credible as a future government.

SCOTTISH NATIONALISM:  60% of Scottish voters oppose the use by the Scottish Parliament of new powers to increase income tax from 2017/18 to fund extra expenditure or tax cuts.  At the SNP Conference, Nicola Sturgeon has said that the SNP remains the party of independence but is also concerned about local issues.  Ms Sturgeon said that the party would not seek another referendum until there was strong evidence that a significant number of those who voted “no” had changed their minds.

The SNP has told the government that the price for its support for a third runway at Heathrow will be an increase in the number of flights to Scotland and also that some 10% of the amount spent on the airport is spent on Scottish infrastructure under the Barnett formula.

RUGBY:  Wales, Scotland, Ireland and France have all been eliminated in the World Cup quarter-finals, leaving, as the only semi-finalists, four southern hemisphere teams. The Australia/ Scotland game was particularly close with Australia’s victory by 35 points to 34 being the consequence of a much debated penalty in the closing minute.

CRICKET:  England drew with Pakistan in the first test match played in Abu Dhabi.  The flat wicket, which offered nothing to the bowlers, allowed Pakistan to amass a first innings total of 523; that was then exceeded by 598 for England.  England were twenty-five runs short of victory when play was suspended for bad light.  It has been suggested that a different colour of ball would enable play to continue later in future.