Press briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Passport Fraud, Lord Turnbull, Open Skies, Northern Ireland, Sexual Orientation Regulations and Police Inquiry
Passport Fraud
Put that it had been revealed that there were more than 10,000 false applications for passports last year, and did the Prime Minister have confidence in the passport service, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) said that first of all, people should recognise the huge progress that the Passport Agency had made in recent years. Secondly, it was not just a matter of saying that there were 10,000 false passports out there and then doing nothing about it. Rather, each and every one was being followed up to ensure that those responsible were caught. Thirdly, what this underlined, was that adults would now have to have face-to-face interviews, and that procedure was being brought in from May for people over 16. The other answer to this problem was biometrics, which was why the ID card was relevant in this regard as well. Therefore, there was clearly an issue here, but it was not an issue that was being ignored, as it was being actively engaged on, both at policy level and in terms of recalling these fraudulent passports.
Lord Turnbull
Asked whether Lord Turnbull should apologise for comparing Gordon Brown to Stalin, the PMOS replied that the Prime Minister had made his admiration for the Chancellor’s record as Chancellor very clear yesterday. In terms of who had said what, in the interests of good government, it was a wise rule that said that civil servants should not become the story.
Asked if we thought that there was a principle for civil servants that once they left Government, they behaved and acted in a certain manner, the PMOS said that there were good reasons for rules that said that civil servants did not air their views in public. Those good reasons were so that Ministers could have confidence in the confidentiality of their discussions. That was the accepted convention, and it was a wise one.
Asked if Lord Turnbull had suggested to the Prime Minister before he retired, that he (Lord Turnbull) would be a good person to undertake a review of nuclear energy, the PMOS said that he was not aware of any such discussion, and even if there had been one, it would be part of the confidential nature of the discussion not to reveal it.
Asked if the Prime Minister shared concerns about Gordon Brown’s character, the PMOS said that the Prime Minister had expressed his view better than the PMOS yesterday.
Asked if there was a view about what might lie behind this, i.e. other senior civil servants were either "telling it like it was" or that they had some bitterness at the way they perceived they had been treated, the PMOS replied that Lord Turnbull knew what he meant; the PMOS said that he did not, and therefore, he was not going to speculate.
Asked if the Prime Minister agreed with Lord Turnbull, the PMOS replied that the Prime Minister’s view of the Chancellor was set out yesterday. End of story.
Put to the PMOS that perhaps, for clarity’s sake, the Prime Minister could "find it within himself" to back Gordon Brown as his successor, the PMOS replied that the Prime Minister had said all he was going to say on the subject for the moment. The PMOS added that he was sure that the Prime Minister would be very grateful for the journalist’s invitation, and he said he would pass it on.
Asked if the Prime Minister had a similar regard of admiration for Lord Turnbull’s work as Cabinet Secretary as he did for the Chancellor, the PMOS replied that the Prime Minister made clear his view of Lord Turnbull’s work when Lord Turnbull retired.
Put that Sir Stephen Wall had now given an interview saying similar things to Lord Turnbull, and did we deplore people who did that, the PMOS replied that he had stated what we believed the convention was, and why we believed that it was important. The PMOS went on to say as he had not seen Sir Stephen Wall’s alleged comments, he would not comment on them.
Open Skies
Asked if we recognised the Financial Times report about "open skies", and was the Prime Minister going to talk to President Bush about it, the PMOS replied that as the Prime Minister had said in Brussels recently, there were discussions going on with our European partners, as well as with the US in the interests of trying to open up markets on both sides of the Atlantic. However, it was better that those discussions continued in private.
Asked to confirm that the Prime Minister would be raising the issue with President Bush this week, the PMOS said that the Prime Minister had regular discussions with the President, and this was a matter which we talked about with both the Europeans and the Americans.
Northern Ireland
Asked for an update on Northern Ireland, the PMOS replied that next Monday 26th remained the deadline. The PMOS told journalists that over the weekend, there had been an Army helicopter crash in Crossmaglen, and there had been some disturbances with local youths who had attacked the ambulance crew, and then the police around the helicopter. This morning, the local MP, who was a Sinn Fein MP, had not only condemned the attacks on the police and ambulance crew, but he had also said that local people should go to the police with any information. The PMOS said that if anyone had sketched out that scenario in Crossmaglen even six months ago, it would not have been believed. There was real progress, and the electorate recognised that there was real progress, and therefore, what we were waiting to see was whether that translated into a devolved Government as the public clearly wanted by 26th.
Asked if the Prime Minister would be meeting with Gerry Adams as well as Ian Paisley this week, the PMOS said that there were no plans to do so at this stage.
Asked for any gut feelings about it all, the PMOS replied that the results of the election were very clear; people wanted devolution. However, it was for parties to make their own minds up, and they would do so, but they should do so in the knowledge that we had been serious all along in saying that the deadline was the 26th March. That deadline was set down in legislation, and it was the deadline set down by the Prime Ministers when they had announced the election. It was the basis on which people voted. Therefore, everyone knew the basis on which they voted, and we would follow it through.
Asked when did we except the parties to say if they would devolve, the PMOS replied that as he understood it, there would be a DUP Executive meeting on Saturday.
Asked if the Prime Minister would say anything about it tomorrow, the PMOS said that tomorrow was a listening exercise and he would talk in private to Dr. Paisley.
Put that there some DUP representatives who were asking for an extended period, and what was the Government’s view on that, the PMOS replied that the view was unequivocal: the deadline of the 26th remained. That was the basis on which the election was called, and it was the basis of the legislation. There was no room for manoeuvre.
Sexual Orientation Regulations
Asked to respond to criticism that there had not been enough Parliamentary debate about the Sexual Orientation Regulation legislation, the PMOS responded that lack of debate was not how he would characterise this subject. As many of the journalists who had sat through lobbies at the time could recall, debate was one thing that was not in short supply at the time. The issue had been well aired, and everyone knew the issue and they recognised that the Prime Minister and the Government had tried to come to a reasonable situation in which people could work through the difficulties. That we had done.
Police Inquiry
No
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