Osborne plans a direct link between London and Shanghai stock exchanges
‘Chinese investors are to be given a direct link to Britain’s stock exchange despite warnings the move could inject ‘volatility’ into our economy. Chancellor George Osborne, on a five-day tour of China, said he wanted to create a unique link between the London and Shanghai stock exchanges, to allow funds to flow in both directions more easily. The move comes despite fears about the fragile state of the Shanghai stock index which prompted a global crash last month dubbed the ‘great fall of China’.’ – Daily Mail
- Is this wise, George? – Alex Brummer, Daily Mail
- It’s a high stakes gamble – Rafael Behr, The Guardian
- We need a debate about the strategy – The Guardian Leader
- Concerns about the relationship are justified – FT Leader
- New money for children to learn Mandarin – Daily Telegraph
- Hancock promotes the ‘digital state’ – Daily Telegraph
>Today: ToryDiary: Nixon – sorry, Osborne – goes to China
>Yesterday: Cllr Thom Goddard on Comment: Let’s introduce on-shore corporation tax havens
Migration 1) First of 20,000 Syrian refugees arrive – as councils fret about the cost
‘A group of Syrian refugees arrived in England yesterday, the first since David Cameron pledged to help 20,000 of those who have escaped to camps in the Middle East. Local councils are preventing many more from travelling pending the outcome of negotiations with the Home Office over funding. The Home Office said yesterday that “a number of people” had arrived in the UK as part of the vulnerable persons resettlement scheme for Syrian refugees. A spokesman refused to say where in the country they would live.’ – The Times (£)
- Refugees are welcome, but they must integrate – Daniel Finkelstein, The Times (£)
- Don’t leave, join us instead, urges ISIS – The Times (£)
- One million migrants are headed this way – The Sun (£)
- May maintains tough stance on economic migration – The Guardian
Migration 2) This crisis shows the need for renegotiation, declares Hammond
‘Britain will use the migration crisis plaguing Europe to achieve its aim of restricting the number of people coming to this country, the Foreign Secretary said last night. But Philip Hammond said serious negotiations would not now start until the New Year – limiting the chances of an EU referendum in early 2016.’ – Daily Mail
- Denmark ditches support for treaty change – The Times (£)
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: Ruth Davidson backs EU membership – which should worry Brexit supporters for two reasons
Migration 3) EU quota scheme forced through on majority vote
‘EU interior ministers on Tuesday imposed a plan to relocate 120,000 refugees across the EU, outvoting four eastern European countries strongly opposed to the scheme. The use of majority voting to push ahead with the burden-sharing scheme — regarded as politically unacceptable in some capitals — is a rare move in a bloc that typically acts by consensus on sensitive issues. It is certain to amplify tensions over the migrants crisis.’ – FT
- Hungary, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Romania are over-ruled – Daily Mail
- Europe cannot escape this crisis – Martin Wolf, FT
- Le Pen faces racial hatred trial – Daily Mail
Ashcroft and Oakeshott: What does the ‘chillaxing’ Prime Minister believe in?
‘Another former aide has never forgotten his willingness to deliver a keynote speech he knew was not up to scratch. ‘His fingernails are not bitten down,’ he sighs. ‘I remember him going to bed the night before one party conference speech and saying: “It’s not that good, but it will do.” ’ There is something disquieting about Cameron’s willingness to settle for second best. Literally and figuratively, he sleeps easily, whatever is going on in the world.’ – Lord Ashcroft and Isabel Oakeshott, Daily Mail
The revelations:
- As a young adviser, he pledged loyalty to all three of Thatcher’s would-be successors – Daily Mail
- The KGB’s verdict: ‘Young man, likes drugs, he won’t go too far.’ – Daily Mail
- Boris secured a taxpayer-funded windfall through Party conference ‘mischief’ – Daily Mail
- Cameron sought a lefty mayoral candidate to thwart his old rival – Lord Ashcroft, Daily Mail
- His prep school days, and ‘two silver spoons’ – Daily Mail
And the criticism:
- Who is the real swine? – Allison Pearson, Daily Telegraph
- Most people don’t care about youthful indiscretions, finds YouGov – Daily Telegraph
- It’s prudishness – Brendan O’Neill, Daily Telegraph
- Friends of Lord Richards claim his views have been ‘distorted’ – Daily Telegraph
- ‘Little pr**k’ jibes exchanged – The Sun (£)
>Yesterday: ToryDiary: It’s about time Piers Gaveston stopped causing trouble
A new right to be left alone by charity fundraisers
‘Members of the public will be given the ‘right to be left alone’ by charities under proposed changes to fundraising rules. Those who do not want to be contacted by charities would be able to join a register called the ‘Fundraising Preference Service’ – which would be set up by the proposed new regulator. Charities would be banned from contacting those on the list – even if they are existing supporters, or if the charity believes they have ‘opted in’.’ – Daily Mail
- Victory for the Mail – Daily Mail
- Now act swiftly – Daily Mail Leader
Fallon: No more cuts to military manpower
‘The MoD is in the midst of another root and branch review of the Forces five years after the last Strategic Defence and Security Review saw thousands axed. But in welcome news to Our Boys, Mr Fallon confirmed this review would not bring the same sort of culls that saw the Services drop to their smallest in over a century. He said: “There are not going to be any more cuts to the number of the regulars. That applies overall to Army, Navy and Air Force, you are not going to see any more cutting.”’ – The Sun (£)
- He had better mean it – The Sun Says (£)
- Russia is complicating the Syrian conflict, the Defence Secretary warns – Daily Telegraph
- We should ally with Putin to defeat ISIS – Con Coughlin, Daily Telegraph
The purge begins: Danczuk warns Corbynite knives are out
‘The long-feared purge of moderate Labour members is already under way – just days after Jeremy Corbyn’s victory, an MP claimed . Simon Danczuk said a ‘concerted effort’ by the new leader’s far-left supporters had now begun to ‘silence’ people like him and ‘drum’ them out of the party.’ – Daily Mail
- Fifty MPs could go – The Sun (£)
- Every sensible MP ditched is a nail in Labour’s coffin – The Sun Says (£)
- Shadow Energy Minister launches further attack on the national anthem – Daily Telegraph
>Today: Sunder Katwala on Comment: Corbyn may offer the Tories a new opportunity with minority voters – but that’s no cause for complacency
Trident debate makes it onto the Labour conference agenda
‘The simmering dispute at the top of Labour over the Trident nuclear deterrent is set to burst into the open next week when the issue is discussed at the party’s annual conference. Jeremy Corbyn, the party’s new leader, is a pacifist who favours scrapping the fleet of submarines and their ballistic missiles, but many of his MPs believe it is a vital part of Britain’s military capabilities.’ – FT
- Disarmament would cost 40,000 jobs – The Sun (£)
- Lord Sewell won’t be charged over drugallegations
- The Met is a laughing stock – The Sun Says (£)
- The Sun is rightly outraged – Roy Greenslade, The Guardian
Lib Dems go nuts: Right to Buy is like Mugabe’s land grabs, ex-minister claims
‘Tim Farron, the party’s new leader will tomorrow say he will not allow the Government to ‘destroy’ social housing, by extending Margaret Thatcher’s flagship Right to Buy policy. Another Lib Dem, former energy secretary Ed Davey, told an event on the fringes of the party conference that the plan was ‘shameful’ and compared it to the land grabs of Robert Mugabe.’ – Daily Mail
- They made a horrible mistake when picking their leader – Matthew Parris, The Times (£)
- Farron would join another coalition with the Conservatives – The Guardian
Addenbrooke’s hospital placed in special measures
‘One of Britain’s most renowned hospitals has been branded “inadequate” by inspectors in a sign of the pressures facing the National Health Service. That Addenbrooke’s in Cambridge should have been found deficient and placed in “special measures” symbolises the service’s struggle to cope with what has been the tightest five-year financial settlement in NHS history.’ – FT
- The BBC ignores privately run Trust’s excellent record – Daily Mail
- One state behemoth protects another – Daily Mail Leader
- Young doctors should repay taxpayers before emigrating – Tom Tugendhat MP, Daily Telegraph
- How the seven-day NHS won round consultants – The Sun (£)
- Care visits should last 30 minutes, says NICE – The Times (£)
- British women die earlier than Continental counterparts – The Times (£)
A majority of Palestinians support a new war with Israel
‘More than half of Palestinians no longer support the creation of an independent state alongside Israel, according to a new poll. A solid majority is in favour of a new war against Israel. The survey found that 51 per cent of Palestinians rejected the notion of a two-state solution, the highest proportion on record against what has for decades been regarded as the established goal of peace talks.’ – The Times (£)
>Yesterday: Rebecca Coulson’s column: A letter from Israel
News in Brief
- Volkswagen admit fitting vehicles with technology to con diesel emissions tests – Daily Mail
- Predictions of losses for North Sea Oil – FT
- Road works to be capped at two miles – The Sun (£)
- Pope Francis visits America for the first time – Daily Mail
- The story of the youngest man to win the George Cross – Lord Ashcroft, Daily Express
- RSPCA could lose prosecution powers – The Times (£)
- Call time on ‘Bad Scouser’ TV characters – Jane Merrick, The Independent
- Happy Birthday To You is officially out of copyright – The Times (£)
- Earthquake hits Rutland – The Sun (£)
- Young Tory activist may have been bullied before his suicide – The Guardian