Afghanistan presidential election
‘The two leading contenders for Afghanistan’s presidential election have both claimed victory.’ – BBC
‘Millions of Afghans defied Taliban threats to cast their ballot in the country’s second-ever presidential election yesterday but the turnout looked to be well down on the poll that brought Hamid Karzai to power, hinting at turbulence when initial results are announced in a few days time.’ – Kim Sengupta and Jerome Starkey, The Independent
‘Gordon Brown has paid tribute to British forces in Afghanistan who have helped ensure elections have passed off without any major violence so far.’ – BBC
Incoherent policies
‘Over the past few months, the Conservatives have claimed to be the party of progress and berated Gordon Brown for failing to hit Labour’s child poverty targets. On the other hand, they have pledged to take the axe to the budget deficit and reduce the size of the state. The Conservatives believe in market economics yet want to clamp down on City bonuses. They want to hand financial regulation to the Bank of England but are opposed to breaking up the banks. They want a bigger state when it suits, and a smaller state when it doesn’t. They want to both concentrate power and devolve it. This is not a policy; it is an incoherent mishmash of ideas designed by focus group.’ – Larry Elliott, The Guardian
Car scrappage scheme
‘The decline of car production in the UK slowed sharply last month, helped by the government’s cash-for-bangers scheme.’ – Philip Stafford, The Financial Times