Briefing from the Prime Minister’s Spokesman on: President Bush, Asylum, ‘Burying Bad News’, Northern Ireland, PM Regional Visit, Council Tax and Airport Runnways.
President Bush
Asked whether President Bush would address Parliament during his State visit to the UK next month, the Prime Minister’s Spokesman (PMS) said that the details of the programme were a matter for Buckingham Palace. They had not yet been announced - and would not be for some time. Until they were, we had nothing to say about the matter.
Asylum
Asked if the Government was concerned that announcing that 15,000 asylum seeking families were being given indefinite leave to remain in the UK would send out the wrong signals to other potential asylum seekers, the PMS said that the Home Office would be holding a briefing about this issue at 11.30am. In the meantime, it was important to be clear what today’s announcement was about. It referred to 15,000 families whose cases fell under the old legislation, and the appeals process contained therein which no longer applied to new claimants, because they had come to the UK prior to October 2000. The decision meant that there would be a change in the status of these families, which subsequently would reduce significantly the cost on the public purse. Asked to explain how granting indefinite leave to remain would help relieve the cost on the public purse, the PMS pointed out that under their present status, the families were entitled to various levels of public support, as well as legal aid. By way of example, the PMS noted that if 1,000 families were removed from the support they received at the moment, we would save around £15m per year. Asked if he was implying that these families would now have fewer rights than they had at present, the PMS said he was making the point that the decision announced by the Home Office today would have the effect of changing their status in this country by granting them indefinite leave to remain. This, in turn, would have the effect of reducing significantly the levels of support from the public purse which they currently received. Asked if that was because they would be allowed to work, the PMS said that a range of factors would lead to the reduction. The Home Office would be able to provide further details at their briefing later this morning.
‘Burying Bad News’
Put to him that today’s asylum announcement and the publication of a DTI report censuring Geoffrey Robinson were being ‘buried’ under the ‘turmoil’ of what was happening in the Conservative Party, the PMS noted that putting out a press release at 10am, giving a press conference at 11.30am which most journalists would find convenient to attend, and having David Blunkett available for broadcast bulletins over the course of the day did nothing to stand up the allegation that we were ‘burying bad news’. Put to him that the asylum announcement was being made on a Friday when the House wasn’t sitting, the PMS repeated that he did not think the measures that both we and the Home Office were taking to convey and explain the announcement met journalists’ - or anyone’s - definition of ‘burying bad news’. Questioned as to why the Geoffrey Robinson/TransTec report had been published today, the PMS said that the report was a matter for the inspectors who were publishing it, in conjunction with the DTI. It was therefore up to them to publish it when they deemed it appropriate to do so and in a manner of their choosing.
Northern Ireland
Asked for an update on Northern Ireland, the PMS said that the position remained as set out by the PMOS yesterday. Contacts were continuing, of which the Prime Minister was keeping abreast, as you would expect. We would wait and see how things developed.
PM Regional Visit
Asked for details about the Prime Minister’s programme in the East Midlands today, the PMS said that he had had a private session this morning with some victims of crime. In a statement which had been issued, the Prime Minister had said, "I was glad to be able to spend some time privately listening to victims of crime in Nottingham. What they said was very moving. Although overall crime is falling, clearly that is no comfort to those who have suffered at the hands of criminals. That is why many of the changes we are putting in place to reform the criminal justice system are to make it work for the victims, not the criminal".
Council Tax
Asked if the Prime Minister was no longer considering local income tax as an option to replace council tax, the PMS said that he had nothing to add to what the Prime Minister had said about this matter in his monthly press conference yesterday. His words spoke for themselves.
Airport Runways
Asked to confirm reports that the Prime Minister believed that a new runway should be built at Stansted rather than at Heathrow, the PMS said that we did not recognise the story in today’s Independent. To characterise this issue as a dispute or a row was wrong. The fact of the matter was that a process of consultation was currently underway. This would result in a Government White Paper to be published in December when a preference would be announced. Until then, we had nothing further to say about the issue.
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