No. 10 Morning Press Briefing From 05 Nov 2007

Briefing from the Prime Minister's Spokesman on: Finance, Pakistan, Counter Terrorism, ID Cards, Immigration and Party Funding

Morning press briefing from 5 November 2007

Finance

Asked if the Prime Minister was confident that British banks could weather the current crisis, the Prime Minister's Spokesman (PMS) told the assembled press that Alistair Darling had been on the radio that morning speaking on the subject. As the Chancellor had said, there was concern about the extent of the exposure that some of the big American banks had. But as the Chancellor had also said, banks and many banks in this country had very strong balance sheets after years of making very good profits. Asked if the Prime Minister had a view on the subject, the PMS said that the Prime Minister thought that the Chancellor of the Exchequer was the Government spokesman on economic matters and he had spoken about these matters that morning on the radio.

Pakistan

Asked whether the Prime Minister had had any contact with Commonwealth leaders on the subject since his telephone conversation with General Musharraf on Thursday and did he have any concerns about the situation, the PMS replied that clearly there had been contact with all levels of the Government in Pakistan, as well as with other countries to discuss the matter. As the Foreign Secretary had said on Saturday, the Government was gravely concerned about the situation in Pakistan, and the Government had urged President Musharraf to restore constitutional order as soon as possible and to confirm that elections would be held on schedule in January.

Asked if any further steps were being considered, the PMS said that the Government were considering the implications for it's development and other assistance programmes in Pakistan. These things were kept under review, but the key thing from the Government's point of view was to have confirmation that elections would be held on schedule in January and the restoration of normal democratic and constitutional processes. Put that the Government expressed concern but did not condemn the emergency, the PMS replied that the Government expressed concern and reiterated the need for commitment to be reaffirmed over elections taking place in January. The Government wanted to see the normal democratic processes being restored.

Asked whether the Prime Minister thought the position of the state of emergency helped or hindered the war on terror, the PMS said the Government wanted to see a prosperous, peaceful, secure and stable Pakistan and this was clearly in the interest not only of the people of Pakistan, but of the region and the world as a whole. The Government thought the best way of achieving that would be to restore the commitment to democratic processes and in particular the elections in January.

Put that there were reports this morning of General Musharraf himself, being under house arrest and was that a concern for the Government, the PMS replied that the Government had seen the reports but had also seen the denial of them by President Musharraf, so the PMS would not identify any particular aspect. It was a more general concern about the fact that the Government needed to see the restoration of normal constitutional practice.

Asked whether the Prime Minister had spoken to Benazir Bhuto or any other political figures, the PMS repeated that the Government was in contact with a wide range of people in Pakistan at all levels, but he did not want to comment on anyone specific. It would be best to check with the Foreign Office on specifics.

Asked if there was a time limit on the Government considering the implications for its development and assistance programmes, the PMS advised people to wait and see how things developed. Asked to put a figure on the development aid to Pakistan, the PMS replied that he did not have that figure to hand, but he was sure DfID would have it.

Counter Terrorism

Asked whether the Prime Minister was still convinced about the need to increase the period of time terror suspects could be kept in custody, the PMS said that the Prime Minister had set out his position on the subject in his statement to the house on the 25th July 2007 and that position had not changed. There was a case for going beyond 28 days as the Prime Minister, the Home Secretary and others had said on numerous occasions and the Government was in the process of consulting on what the most appropriate method might be for doing that.

Put that the Director General of MI5 was making a speech today, in which he would be warning people of the current security threat and had the Prime Minister read the speech or known about the timing of it, considering the Government could be rolling out new anti-terror legislation tomorrow, the PMS replied that the timing was entirely a matter for MI5 and was not influenced by the Government. The PMS added that he did not accept the premise of the question necessarily, that the Government would be rolling out details or coming out with new proposals tomorrow in relation to counter-terrorism. Put that there would be a bill tomorrow on the subject; the PMS said that people would have to wait and see what the Queen said. The PMS was not suggesting otherwise, but equally he was not suggesting that there would be new detailed proposals tomorrow.

Asked if talks with other party leaders had continued on the issue, the PMS said it was his understanding that there had been some discussion, but it was being very much led by the Home Secretary, so it would be best to check with the Home Office.

ID Cards

Asked whether the Prime Minister was considering shelving the role-out of ID cards, the PMS replied that there had been no change on the Government's position on ID cards. There had been one newspaper report on Sunday and the Home Office had made clear that there was nothing to substantiate it. Asked if the report was "garbage," the PMS said that he did not want to use such language, but the Government had been denying those suggestions quite forcefully.

Asked on the report in the Guardian saying there was to be a review on the technology used, the PMS reiterated that the position on ID cards had not changed. The PMS added that these things were kept constantly under review as people would expect, but nothing had changed in regards to ID cards.

Asked whether the Prime Minister had ordered any fresh review into the technology since he became Prime Minister, the PMS said he was not aware of any review.

Immigration

Asked about reports on a separate immigration bill and whether the points-based system could effectively reduce the EU immigration rate by 35,000, the PMS replied that he had seen the reports, but it would be best to check with the Home Office on the specifics.

Asked on the points system again and the possibility of ending up with a system with a minimum and maximum amount in terms of migration, the PMS said the whole point of the points-based system was to put in place a framework which would help identify and give weightings to particular sectors of the economy. It was then for individuals and individual businesses to make decisions as to the exact numbers of people that would come in and out, year by year.

Put that the threshold was set at a particular level for different industries and therefore the Government was effectively imposing a cap, the PMS said it would depend on decisions being taken by individuals. The points-based system was about the weighting attached to people with specific skills, depending on an assessment of what the skills needs were for the economy. It was not about setting overall limits. Put that projections or realistic assumptions could be made about the number of people using that framework, the PMS replied that it was a different matter from suggesting that there should be an overall cap enforced, so that once the cap was reached, no further people could be let into the country, regardless of what the needs were of the economy or businesses.

Asked whether people could assume that the advisory group would make projections, the PMS replied that it would be a matter for them. For the detailed process by which they would operate, it would be best to speak to the Home Office.

Party Funding

Asked whether the Government felt it could proceed with any legislation on party funding following the collapse of talks last week, the PMS said there were two distinct matters, the Government position and the Labour Party position. The PMS said he could only speak for the Government, which was trying to seek a consensus through the Hayden-Phillips process. In terms of any particular statements in relation to legislation or proposals being taking forward, it would probably be best to wait for the Queens Speech tomorrow, when a follow-up discussion could take place.

ENDS

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