Group items tagged

Scotland is a small, closed society, a bit like North Korea only less democratic

"My nightmare is that in 2010 the Tories win big, then Salmond has a referendum on independence, and we've lost the possibility of progressive politics for a generation."

For the Conservatives, the move could be seen as a way to broaden the party's appeal outside England, whilst the Ulster Unionists would hope it might help them recover some of the ground they have lost to the DUP.

“I am looking at all sorts of ways which we could encourage business and it is just not sustainable to have an economy which depends on over two thirds of its GDP effectively depending on public

The Tories must now commit to working through it - exclusively - and resist the temptation of unilateral proposals or bilateral deals.

Mr Woodward has been tipped to take over as Defence Secretary — one of the plum Cabinet jobs. It is a proposed move that has caused dismay and resentment in some sections of the Labour Party, since Mr Woodward has been in their ranks for less than a decade. He defected from the Tories as an MP in 1999 and was given a safe Labour seat two years later. And the current Defence Secretary, former NIO Minister Des Browne, is being weighed up for a return to Belfast as the head of the new department.