Tackling unemployment
‘An emergency package of measures to combat unemployment among young people will be drawn up by the Cabinet this week in an attempt to prevent a “lost generation” being created by the recession.’ – Andrew Grice, The Independent
‘Nissan has revealed plans to create hundreds of new jobs in a £200m investment to build batteries for electric cars.’ – Sky News
‘Universities must do more to end elitism in Britain by admitting thousands more students from poorer backgrounds, according to a new report commissioned by Gordon Brown.’ – Patrick Wintour, The Guardian
Purnell interview
‘”We took the electoral furniture to be too fixed. We didn’t think about creating a new coalition and I think that’s what we need to do now. To be honest I think we were too conservative about our means, so it was easier to take on arguments on the left, not the right. So what I want to try and do now is be as radical on the left as on the right.’ – James Purnell speaks to Allegra Stratton, The Guardian
’Over time, New Labour became too much of a sect – we went from big-tent politics to small-gazebo politics. Perhaps in response, the left has become balkanised into smaller groups, based on small differences. If we recognise that our common goal is a more equal society, we may be able to remember that there is more that unites us than separates us. And where there are differences, we may just see that as an inevitable but manageable pluralism, rather than a reason for division.’ – James Purnell, The Guardian
McBride speaks out
‘Damian McBride, the senior No 10 adviser who resigned after smearing senior Tories, has revealed that Gordon Brown was so angry when he learned about the slurs that “he could barely even speak to me”.’ – James Robinson, The Guardian
’Coulson finds himself under pressure after the Guardian’s revelations about phone hacking at the News of the World, of which he was previously the editor. He will be questioned by MPs tomorrow. McBride says he “likes Andy” – but when pushed he adds: “What this comes down to is whether he genuinely didn’t know what [Glenn] Mulcaire [the private investigator who was on the News of the World’s payroll] was being paid this money for, which is what he told David Cameron at the time.’ – James Robinson, The Guardian
Unrest in Iran continues
‘The former president of Iran, Mohammad Khatami, has called for a referendum on the legitimacy of the government, following June’s disputed elections.’ – BBC
’The controversy surrounding the recent elections in Iran has greatly damaged the legitimacy of Ayatollah Khamenei’s administration. Gone are the days when even those opposed to the current regime grudgingly admitted that unlike other pro-US regimes such as Saudi Arabia, in Iran, the public do have some say over who occupies the presidential office. This loss of legitimacy is likely to affect the way many Iranians judge government policies on important issues; an important one being the nuclear programme.’ – Meir Javedanfar, The Guardian
Trident debate
’Britain decided two years ago that it would spend £20bn on a programme to build four new submarines that can launch the Trident nuclear missile. The government had always intended that the first expenditure on this programme – the so-called “initial gate” investment decision – should take place this September. Initial gate will reportedly involve billions of pounds being spent on design plans for the new submarines. Yet Mr Brown has now decided that this opening phase of the programme will be delayed until after next year’s UK general election. This is an excellent move.’ – Editorial, The FT