He says Harris has even persuaded Hugh Grant to attend a fringe on phone hacking (it's tomorrow) - "at least that's what Hugh Grant said on his voicemail".6.48pm: More jokes from Foster, this time at the expense of Chris Huhne, the environment secretary who is being investigated over claims he put pressure on his estranged wife to take his driving penalty points. He's moved quickly, and shown a lot of drive. He certainly gets his points across, he says.His next target is George Osborne, the chancellor. Foster says he considered asking Osborne for jokes, as he knows a lot about gags, but he didn't want to get up his nose about it. He certainly sticks to his lines, Foster says. Those were all references to these claims.
Proposals, to be outlined in a consultation document this summer, will include consulting on the feasibility of introducing independent medical panels.The independent medical experts, who would have no direct links to either claimants or defendants, would replace the current assessment of whiplash injuries by either GPs or doctors employed by medical reporting organisations.Doctors can currently receive a fee of up to ￡195 to process these claims and some have a regular client base of solicitors.Other proposals include raising the limit for personal injury cases in the small claims court from ￡1,000 to ￡5,000.The government will also "strongly encourage insurers to pass on the savings back to their customers", Clarke said.
At the time, the Sri Lankan government was being accused of committing war crimes during the civil war against Tamil separatists. But the arrangements made by Mr Werritty, and subsequent work by him, are said to have paved the way for the Defence Secretary's official visit to the island three months ago. ? The Daily Telegraph says Werritty was paid to work as Fox's parliamentary researcher.Mr Werritty has labelled himself as an "adviser" to the Defence Secretary, something Dr Fox has described as "unacceptable".Yet financial records seen by The Daily Telegraph show an economic relationship between the two friends.The papers disclose that in 2005/06, Dr Fox's Commons office budgeted for a ￡690 National Insurance payment relating to Mr Werritty's employment.
(See 12.22pm.) Given that the government is already committed to curbing tax avoidance and cutting tax loopholes,
kate spade outlet, it sounds as if the "tycoon tax" could just end up a label to cover those initiatives.? Clegg has triggered a slanging match with one of his party's most high-profile peers. In today's Observer Lord Oakeshott, a former party Treasury spokesman, is quoted saying that Clegg's "tycoon tax" idea "falls apart on serious scrutiny". In his speech Clegg referred to Oakeshott, describing him as one of the party's very-own tycoons. (At the time I did not think Clegg was meant to imply that Oakeshott was opposing the tax out of self-interest, but colleagues are convinced that that is exactly what he meant.
10.59am: What book do MPs most want to read for Christmas? According to one survey, it's the latest volume of Chris Mullin's diaries, A Walk-On Part. My colleague Alison Flood has more on the survey at Guardian Books. 11.15am: Here's Rachel Reeves, the shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, on the revised growth figures. (See 10.14am.)These revised figures show an unchanged picture over the last year. The British economy has been flatlining over the last 12 months, when we need strong growth to get unemployment and the deficit down.Only a complacent chancellor would take comfort in figures showing just 0.5% growth in the year since his spending review. This compares to an upwardly revised figure of 3% growth in the previous 12 months when government policies were supporting rather than undermining the economic recovery.
The UK's economic weakness was "a damning indictment of the way our economy had been run", he says.An economy that became closed, elitist, driven by vested interests, where we prized recklessness and short-term gains, and undervalued stability and hardwork.11.07am: The economy needs to be rebalanced,
cnnhkids, he says. And that includes a rebalancing of the tax and benefit systems.Both need to be rebuilt with work at their heart, restoring some sense to the assistance and rewards the state provides.11.09am: On benefits,
kate spade bags, Clegg says those who cannot work must be protected.That is precisely why, in the Autumn Statement last year the coalition committed to the full uprating for pensions and out-of-work benefits from April - 5.
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