Wednesday 9th June 2010: 8:00am – 9.30am

Weber Shandwick, Fox Court, 14 Gray’s Inn Road, London, WC1X 8WS

The new Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government has published its joint policy agreement, outlining where each Party has made concessions over the past few days. Liberal Democrat Ministers and MPs are now under a duty to support the Conservative-led programme in word and deed.

As a result, the two big implications for those pressing the arguments of businesses and organisations are:

• the new, blended politics we will undoubtedly see; this is a new shade of blue/yellow which has significant implications for the reflexes of government the mechanisms of government and parliament are significantly adjusted by the mere fact of combination and a narrow majority;
• the scope for lobbying interventions and significant reverses on a routine basis is dramatically increased

Weber Shandwick is hosting a breakfast seminar on the morning of Wednesday 9th June to discuss the impact of these implications.

Led by Jon McLeod, Weber Shandwick’s UK Chairman of Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, guest speakers will include:

• Charles Walker, Conservative MP for Broxbourne

• Peter Riddell, Assistant Editor of The Times and Chairman of the Hansard Society

• Julia Goldsworthy, former Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesperson

Breakfast will be served at 8.00am for a 8.30am start.

Proceedings will close at 9.30am.

For further information and to confirm your attendance, please contact Nicola Pallett on 020 7067 0899 or npallett@webershandwick.com

CABINET

Prime Minister, First Lord of the Treasury and Minister for the Civil Service

• The Rt Hon David Cameron MP

Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council (with special responsibility for political and constitutional reform)

• The Rt Hon Nick Clegg MP

First Secretary of State, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs

• The Rt Hon William Hague MP

Chancellor of the Exchequer

• George Osborne MP

Lord Chancellor, Secretary of State for Justice

• The Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke QC MP

Secretary of State for the Home Department; and Minister for Women and Equalities

• The Rt Hon Theresa May MP

Secretary of State for Defence

• Dr Liam Fox MP

Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills

• Dr Vincent Cable MP

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

• The Rt Hon Iain Duncan Smith MP

Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change

• Chris Huhne MP

Secretary of State for Health

• Andrew Lansley CBE MP

Secretary of State for Education

• Michael Gove MP

Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government

• Eric Pickles MP

Secretary of State for Transport

• Philip Hammond MP

Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

• Caroline Spelman MP

Secretary of State for International Development

• Andrew Mitchell MP

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland

• Owen Paterson MP

Secretary of State for Scotland (and providing ministerial support to the Deputy Prime Minister in the Cabinet Office)

• Danny Alexander MP

Secretary of State for Wales

• Cheryl Gillan MP

Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport

• Jeremy Hunt MP

Chief Secretary to the Treasury

• David Laws MP

Leader of the House of Lords, Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster

• The Rt Hon Lord Strathclyde

Minister without Portfolio (Minister of State) *

• Baroness Warsi

ALSO ATTENDING CABINET MEETINGS:

Minister for the Cabinet Office, Paymaster General

The Rt Hon Francis Maude MP

Minister of State – Cabinet Office (providing policy advice to the Prime Minister in the Cabinet Office)

The Rt Hon Oliver Letwin MP

Minister of State (Universities and Science) – Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

David Willetts MP

Leader of the House of Commons, Lord Privy Seal

The Rt Hon Sir George Young Bt MP

Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Chief Whip

The Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP

Also invited to attend Cabinet meetings when required:

Attorney-General

Dominic Grieve QC MP

DEPARTMENTAL APPOINTMENTS

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

• Minister of State – David Lidington MP
• Minister of State – Jeremy Browne MP
• Minister of State – The Rt Hon Lord Howell*
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Henry Bellingham MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Alistair Burt MP

HM Treasury

• Financial Secretary – Mark Hoban MP
• Economic Secretary – Justine Greening MP†
• Exchequer Secretary – David Gauke MP†

Ministry of Justice

• Minister of State – The Rt Hon Lord McNally
• Minister of State – Nick Herbert MP (jointly with the Home Office)
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Crispin Blunt MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State –  Jonathan Djanogly MP

Home Office

• Minister of State (Minister for Security) – Baroness Neville-Jones
• Minister of State (Minister for Immigration) – Damian Green MP
• Minister of State (Minister for Police) – Nick Herbert MP (jointly with the Ministry of Justice)
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Equalities) – Lynne Featherstone MP

Ministry of Defence

• Minister of State (Minister for the Armed Forces) – Nick Harvey MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Gerald Howarth MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Andrew Robathan MP

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

• Minister of State (Minister for Universities and Science) – David Willetts MP**
• Minister of State – Mark Prisk MP
• Minister of State – John Hayes MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Edward Davey MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – John Penrose MP (jointly with the Department for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sports)
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Baroness Wilcox

Department for Work and Pensions

• Minister of State – Chris Grayling MP
• Minister of State – Steve Webb MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Maria Miller MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Welfare Reform) – Lord Freud*

Department for Energy and Climate Change

• Minister of State  – Charles Hendry MP
• Minister of State – Gregory Barker MP

Department of Health

• Minister of State – Paul Burstow MP
• Minister of State – Simon Burns MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Anne Milton MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Earl Howe

Department for Education

• Minister of State – Sarah Teather MP
• Minister of State – Nick Gibb MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Tim Loughton MP

Department for Communities and Local Government

• Minister of State  – Greg Clark MP
• Minister of State – Grant Shapps MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Andrew Stunell OBE MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Bob Neill MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Baroness Hanham CBE

Department for Transport

• Minister of State – Theresa Villiers MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Norman Baker MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Mike Penning MP

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

• Minister of State – James Paice MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Richard Benyon MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Lord Henley

Department for International Development

• Minister of State – Alan Duncan MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Stephen O’Brien MP

Northern Ireland

• Minister of State – Hugo Swire MP

Scotland Office

• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – David Mundell MP

Wales Office

• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – David Jones MP

Department for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport

• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – John Penrose MP (jointly with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills)
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – Hugh Robertson MP
  Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – The Hon Ed Vaizey MP

Office of the Leader of the Commons

• Parliamentary Secretary (Deputy Leader) – David Heath CBE MP*

Cabinet Office

• Parliamentary Secretary – Mark Harper MP
  Parliamentary Secretary – Nick Hurd MP

Law Officers

• Solicitor General – Edward Garnier QC MP
• Advocate General for Scotland –  The Rt Hon Lord Wallace of Tankerness QC

Whips – House of Commons

• Deputy Chief Whip (Treasurer of HM Household) – John Randall MP
• Deputy Chief Whip (Comptroller of HM Household) – Alistair Carmichael MP
• Government Whip (Vice Chamberlain of HM Household) – Mark Francois MP

Whips – House of Lords

• Lords Chief Whip (Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms) – The Rt Hon Baroness Anelay of St Johns DBE
• Lords Chief Whip (Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms) – The Rt Hon Baroness Anelay of St Johns DBE
• Deputy Chief Whip (Captain of The Queen’s Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard) – Lord Shutt of Greetland OBE

* Unpaid

**      attends Cabinet

†       paid as a Parliamentary Secretary

The Scottish Liberal Democrats’ manifesto has been launched.  Carefully burnishing their federalist credentials, it replicates the UK-wide manifesto on matters reserved to Westminster but on devolved matters, lays out what the party in Scotland would like to see happen.

Scottish Party leader Tavish Scott and Westminster Scotland spokesperson Alistair Carmichael put the emphasis on ‘fairness’ at the manifesto launch in target constituency Leith.  Carmichael said the party’s manifesto “highlights the opportunities there are for Scotland with a Liberal Democrat government at Westminster”.

He went on to comment on the recent Liberal Democrat opinion poll surge, saying, “the people in this election have taken control of the agenda away from the political parties, away from Labour and Conservative, and said, ‘no, actually, we’re the ones who will call the shots’.”

The Scottish Liberal Democrats describe their key pledges as ‘four steps to a fairer Britain’.  These include:

• Exempting the first £10,000 of earnings from tax, which they say would free half a million low earners and pensioners in Scotland from tax completely,
• To pay for this, closing tax loopholes and more tax on polluters,
• Ensure children get the individual attention they need with more teachers and one-to-one tuition, made possible by investing extra money in schools, targeted to help struggling pupils,
• Cut student debts and make a degree affordable for all,
• Break up the banks and get them lending again to protect real businesses,
• Honesty about the tough choices needed to cut the deficit,
• Green growth and jobs that last by investing in infrastructure,
• Put trust back into politics by giving people the right to sack corrupt MPs,
• Restore and protect hard-won British civil liberties with a Freedom Bill,
• Overhaul Westminster completely: fair votes; an elected House of Lords; all politicians to pay full British taxes.

SNP Party Leader and First Minister Alex Salmond today launched the SNP manifesto for 2010 with the promise of ‘more nats, less cuts’.

Mr Salmond said that this election, and the growing prospect of a balanced parliament, offered a great opportunity for Scotland.

Mr Salmond added: “Running through this manifesto is the SNP vision of a new future for Scotland.

“A Scotland that is independent, socially just and economically secure.”

Key pledges are:

• 60,000 new green jobs by 2020
• A fair deal for pensioners with pensions rising in line with earnings and a guarantee to protect free personal care and concessionary travel
• A new phase of capital acceleration
• Press for the scrapping of Trident nuclear missiles and a halt to their replacement
• Demand a fair fuel regulator
• Work to make sure Scotland is part of the first phase of the UK high speed rail network.
• Scrap the ID card project, the House of Lords and Scotland Office
• MPs will work to ensure that Scots get the opportunity to be consulted on our own constitutional future.
• Every SNP candidate will sign a pledge of accessibility, accountability and openness – it will be their Community Commitment.

The document, Invitation to join the Government of Britain, is described as “work in progress” for the 2011 Scottish Parliament elections, and includes several policies on which the Scottish Conservatives would campaign from opposition in Holyrood.

Ms Goldie claimed that the manifesto is a credible plan to get Britain working again and is “brimming with ideas, policies and visions for the future”.

Key pledges are as follows:

• Campaign to freeze the council tax for a further two years
• Increase health spending to protect the NHS from budget cuts
• Create a national high speed rail network between Scotland and London
• Pilot walk-in GP centres so people can see a doctor when it suits them
• Introduce “Second Chance Centres” for unruly school pupils
• Cut the cost of running the Scottish Parliament
• Minimum sentence of two years for anyone caught carrying a knife without a reasonable excuse

http://emailyourcandidates.heroku.com/

Liberal Democrat Leader Nick Clegg launched their 2010 manifesto in London today.

The four main themes in the booklet are fair taxes, more chances for children, a fairer and greener economy, and cleaning up politics.

Mr Clegg said the manifesto would ‘hard-wire fairness into British society’.

He then went on to say: “Only Liberal Democrats have the big ideas for fundamental, structural changes in the way our country works to make it fair.”

Pledges include:

Fair taxes, including the promise to raise the income tax threshold to £10,000
A shake-up of the education system
Economic reform, including breaking up the giant banks investment in infrastructure and “honesty” about the “tough choices” to cut the deficit
Constitutional change including the power to sack corrupt MPs, reform of the voting system and an elected House of Lords

Conservative Leader David Cameron launched their 2010 manifesto today.

At the launch, at Battersea power station, Mr Cameron said the manifesto is a “plan to change Britain for the better”.

He invited people to ‘join the Government of Britain’ and promised that his party would offer a different kind of government.

Pledges include:

Community ‘right to bid’ to run post offices
Eliminate bulk of structural deficit over a parliament
Cut £6bn ‘wasteful’ spending in 2010/11
Cut number of MPs by 10%
Annual limit on non-EU economic migrants
Give parents power to save local schools due to close
Give voters power to sack MPs for “serious wrongdoing”
Scrap ID cards
MPs to get vote on repealing hunting ban
Raise stamp duty threshold to £250k for first-time buyers

Prime Minister Gordon Brown launched Labour’s manifesto for the General Election today.

At the Birmingham launch Mr Brown said that this manifesto sets “out plans to address the main future challenges we face in our economy, our society and our politics.”

He then went on to say: “Labour will be restless and relentless reformers. Reformers of the market and reformers of the state.”

Pledges include:

• No rise in income tax rate
• New global banks levy
• No stamp duty for first time buyers on homes below £250k
• Raise minimum wage in line with earnings
• Right to recall MPs
• Referendums on democratic House of Lords and changing voting system

Click here to view a copy of the Weber Shandwick General Election Guide 2010.