Briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Downing Street Press Office, National Grid, Athletics, Education, Iraq and PM’s Press Conference.
Downing Street Press Office
Asked when an announcement would be made about the restructuring of the Downing Street Press Office, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) said that it would depend in part on developments at the Hutton Inquiry. It went without saying that we were anxious not to do anything which might get in the way of the proceedings. We had said on Friday that an announcement would be made at some point this week. That remained the case. Asked if he was implying that no announcement would be made while the Inquiry was sitting, the PMOS said he was simply making the point that it was important to look carefully at what was happening at the Inquiry to make sure that it did not appear insensitive to be talking about other matters. Asked if the Prime Minister would announce the changes himself, the PMOS said no. As he understood it, the announcement would be made in a different way. Journalists needed to exercise a little patience. Asked if he, the PMOS, would remain in his post, the PMOS said that he was here this morning and he expected to be here next week as well.
Questioned as to whether the Phillis Review on Government Communications would be published to coincide with the changes to the Press Office, the PMOS said he did not think it would be helpful to pre-empt either what No 10 would announce later this week or the conclusions of the Phillis Review. He pointed out that although he was a member of the Phillis team himself, he was not their spokesman - and it would be wrong of him to act as such. Asked about press speculation regarding the role of Peter Mandelson, the PMOS said that it was important for people to understand that Mr Mandelson was not a member of the independent Phillis Review group.
Questioned as to whether David Hill and Alastair Campbell were both at work today, the PMOS said that Mr Hill would be spending some time winding down his current job before starting his new one, as would Mr Campbell. Put to him that Mr Hill had been spotted going into Downing Street, the PMOS said that he hadn’t seen Mr Hill this morning, so it appeared that journalists were one step ahead of him for a change.
National Grid
Questioned about the powercut in parts of London and Kent last Thursday evening, the PMOS said that the relevant authorities were looking to see what lessons needed to be learned from the incident. It was only right and proper to allow them to get on with their work.
Athletics
Asked for a reaction to the performance of the British athletics team at the Athletics World Championships in Paris and whether the Government would be announcing measures to revitalise British sport, the PMOS said that that this was a matter for the relevant Department and Minister to pass comment. Asked if the Prime Minister was disappointed about the lack of medals, the PMOS said that it went without saying that the Prime Minister always liked to see British teams do well at such events.
Education
Asked for a reaction to the results of a Guardian survey suggesting that 1,000 teaching posts had been lost because of changes in funding allocations, the PMOS said that there was always a degree of fluidity at the beginning of each term. This meant that it was difficult to get a precise fix on what the actual position was. He pointed out that falling school roles might also have played a part in the loss of any teaching posts. Obviously that was not to deny that there were real funding issues this year for some - although not all - LEAs and schools. However, it was important to remember that, before the summer recess, the Education Secretary, Charles Clarke had set out proposals to bring stability to the funding system in the future. Schools had also been allowed extra flexibility by using capital budgets if necessary. It was important for people to remember that there were 25,000 more teachers today than in 1997, as well as 80,000 additional support staff. Moreover, school funding was up 25% and we had had the best results at 11, 14, 16 and 18 that we had ever had. This showed that there were real improvements in the system. At the same time, however, we had acknowledged publicly that there were difficulties for some LEAs and schools which had to be overcome.
Iraq
Asked how seriously the Government was taking the resignation of a Shia member of the Iraq Governing Council (IGC) in the wake of the assassination of a senior Shia Iraqi cleric at the weekend, the PMOS said that there were obviously some difficulties in Iraq. However, it was important to take a long-term, wider perspective and recognise that the vast majority of people in Iraq were glad that Saddam had gone and that attempts were being made to restore political legitimacy to enable local Iraqis to govern Iraq. The political process was continuing and there had been some developments in terms of the IGC today on that front. At the same time, the infrastructure was improving. For example, schools and hospitals were now operational. On the security front, while no one minimised the attacks that had taken place, it was important to recognise that they had not been directed solely at UK and US forces but also international agencies - as well as Iraqis themselves. It was clear that this was a situation with which we had to deal. Yes, it was difficult - but that did not mean we would walk away. On the contrary. It meant that we would redouble our efforts to get it right. We would do so bit by bit.
Put to him that the assassination might never have happened had US forces not withdrawn from Najaf because of religious sensitivities, the PMOS pointed out that it was extremists who had carried out the murder and had attacked Iraqi people. The motivation behind the attack and the question of who was responsible was still being investigated. We did not believe it would be helpful to pre-empt the result of those enquiries.
Put to him that the relatives of the cleric who had been killed had criticised the US for not listening to the proposed security package put forward by Iraqi organisations working in co-operation with them three months ago, the PMOS said that listening to local people and responding to local concerns was obviously a very important part of the Coalition’s continuing determination to attain stability in Iraq. That said, no one should under-estimate the apparent determination of extremists to attack those who were trying to bring about stability. This was not an accidental by-product. It was a deliberate strategy which we had to recognise and take the appropriate steps to deal with. Asked if the UK and US should learn lessons from the attack at the weekend and rely more on Iraqi intelligence, the PMOS repeated that the Coalition as a whole continued to listen and respond to local concerns. Ultimately, however, responsibility for what had had happened should be placed upon those who were responsible - and that was not the Coalition.
Questioned as to whether the UK supported the idea of a UN mandate to run Iraq, the PMOS pointed out that the agreed way forward in Iraq was contained in the last Security Council Resolution. We had seen the UN’s continuing involvement in the political process in terms of the establishment of the new Governing Council.
PM’s Press Conference
Asked when the next Prime Ministerial Press Conference was due to take place, the PMOS said that the details had yet to be finalised. He assured journalists that they would not have too long to wait.
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