I could reveal how it was made available to me, but I’d have to shoot you were I to tell you.
When Ken Livingstone was London Mayor you were more likely to see honours for Hugo Chavez or some suicide-bomb-justifying-cleric. Fortunately Boris is now Mayor. Marking Barack Obama’s Inauguration, the man who put a portrait of The Queen up in City Hall, has the Stars & Stripes flying outside today. Boris issued this statement: "This is […]
Most of today’s papers mock both David Cameron and Gordon Brown for having fallen over themselves to associate themselves with Barack Obama at Prime Minister’s Questions yesterday. David Cameron certainly came up with the best line when he asked if the Prime Minister had used his "no time for a novice" line when he spoke […]
European leaders like to talk about the exercise of soft power but perhaps Europe is simply just soft? The Telegraph is reporting that the EU is preparing to start negotiations with Moscow on a special partnership deal. Yesterday Peter Mandelson heralded a thawing of Britain’s own relations with Russia. All so soon after Russia invaded […]
The BBC is reporting that Shadow International Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell will tell the Party Conference that a Conservative Government will end aid to China. Britain currently gives £38m pa in aid to China although the communist state spent £20bn on this summer’s Beijing Olympics. We hope that Mr Mitchell will also look at Britain’s […]
We covered the speech yesterday but the FT is one of a number of newspapers to major in on David Cameron’s attempt to distance himself from "neoconservatism": “We should accept that we cannot impose democracy at the barrel of a gun,” he said in Islamabad. “We cannot drop democracy from 10,000 feet and we should […]
Speaking in Islamabad, David Cameron will today outline five steps for dealing with modern foreign policy threats. In his speech, he also discusses Pakistan and Russia at length, calling on Pakistan to bear down on extremists, and on Europe to work out an agreed approach to Russian aggression. A liberal conservative foreign policy: “My starting […]
After his visit to Afghanistan (where CentreRight contributor and TA soldier Lee Rotherham is serving) David Cameron arrives in Pakistan today for talks with political leaders. It is very timely that the Conservative leader is making this visit. He visits a very troubled nation. Richard Holbrooke and the New York Times have argued that Pakistan […]
London Assembly Member Brian Coleman has launched an extraordinary attack on Britain’s Olympic winners. This is the report over at the BBC website: "Conservative Brian Coleman criticised the winning athletes in a column for newspaper North London Today. "If you are looking for young heroes and role models, forget the highly paid athletes who leave […]
Today’s Scotman reports both William Hague and John Redwood as among those Tories disconcerted by David Cameron’s strong support for Georgia against Russia. "It has been pointed out by sources that William Hague, the shadow foreign secretary, had given a more muted response in the immediate aftermath of the incursion. In fact, the normally outspoken […]
Dylan Jones’ new book Cameron on Cameron is a series of interviews with the Conservative leader. Previous ToryDiaries focused on highlights discussing the economy and taxation and other politicians. Below are some highlights of Cameron’s responses relating to foreign policy. Europe: “[I]t’s exciting that there are strong centre right leaders across Europe now – Sarkozy, […]
This decision to reconsider the Conservative Party’s membership of the European Democratic Group on the Council of Europe was announced today. Labour’s Denis MacShane has for some time criticised the Conservative Party for being part of the group, mainly composed of representatives from United Russia, the party of Vladimir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev. These criticisms […]
Earlier today David Cameron met with Georgian President Saakashvili during a flying visit to Tbilisi. He issued this statement: "I’m here as a politician representing one of the world’s oldest democracies to show support for one of the world’s newest. We are absolutely right to stand by a country, its democracy and its territorial integrity […]
A very bronzed David Cameron has just completed his monthly press conference. Highlights are posted below. The summer grid: Mr Cameron noted that the Tories were continuing to fire on all cylinders over the summer. He noted initiatives by Chris Grayling on cities, Michael Gove on education and by Nick Herbert and Dominic Grieve on […]
But some of the reforms listed above would improve the quality of healthcare, save money and set the service on a more long-term footing.