Downing Street Says ... Every day the Prime Minister’s Spokesman meets a small coterie of political journalists known as ‘the lobby’ for a topical chat, or ‘briefing’.

Every day the Prime Minister's Spokesman meets a small coterie of political journalists known as 'the lobby' for a topical chat, or 'briefing'.

Downing Street Says... is an unofficial site that lets you read summaries of these briefings and add your own comments. Want to know more?

» Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Co-op

Asked about the Co-op and the role of Paul Flowers, the PMS said that significant questions had emerged regarding the Co-op Bank and the role of its leadership. There were a number of ways in which these questions could be raised and looked at. The immediate focus was on the financial situation the Co-op Bank […]

» Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Defence Reform Bill

Asked about Philip Hammond?s comments about the Defence Reform Bill causing ?serious damage?, the PMS said the PM agreed with what had been set out by the Defence Secretary. Published: 25 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Minister: The Rt Hon David Cameron MP original source.

» Monday, November 18, 2013

Sri Lanka

Asked whether the PM would be welcoming the President of Sri Lanka to Glasgow 2014, the PMS said these types of international events offered an opportunity to shine a spotlight on recent events. Published: 25 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Minister: The Rt Hon David Cameron MP original source.

Benefit fraud

Asked whether the PM would encourage people to inform the authorities if they knew of people cheating the benefits system, the PMS said there was an important point of principle: if people had evidence of wrongdoing, it was right and fair that the information was made available to the appropriate authorities. Published: 20 November 2013 […]

» Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Terror prevention

Asked about measures to prevent terror and TPIM absconds, the PMS said there had been a recent case of an abscond and the priority remained to locate the individual. The government would see if there were lessons to be learnt from that specific case. Published: 13 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street […]

Lynton Crosby

Asked if Lynton Crosby had a Downing Street pass, the PMS confirmed that he did not. Published: 13 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Policies: Treating patients and service users with respect, dignity and compassion Reducing barriers to international free trade Topical event: First World War Centenary Minister: The Rt Hon David […]

» Monday, November 11, 2013

Iran talks

Asked about the E3+3 talks with Iran, the PMS said the Foreign Secretary had said they were difficult negotiations. There was a deal on the table and it could be done. The entire E3+3 had said to the Iranian government that they needed to carefully consider the measures needed to reach agreement. Published: 13 November […]

» Thursday, November 7, 2013

Chilcot Inquiry

Asked what the hold up was in the handing over information to the inquiry, the PMS said there nothing to add to what the PM had said in his most recent letter to Sir John Chilcot on 5 November. Published: 12 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Minister: The Rt Hon David […]

Green policy

Asked to respond to accusations that the PM had abandoned his green policies, the PMS said the government had established the world?s first Green Investment Bank, had agreed a deal for the first new nuclear power station in a generation and gave support to businesses working in the green sector. The PM believed his government […]

» Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Independent Living Fund

Asked if there was any reaction to the loss of the case on the Independent Living Fund in the Court of Appeal, the PMS said that obviously the government was disappointed by the judgement. The Department for Work and Pensions would be considering the judgement. Published: 6 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing […]

Tax

Asked whether the Prime Minister (PM) thought tax avoidance was morally wrong, the PMS said the PM thought tax avoidance did raise ethical issues. The government had introduced the General Anti-Abuse Rule and increased HM Revenue and Customs resources to investigate avoidance schemes. Published: 6 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Minister: […]

» Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Lobbying Bill

Asked what should be made of the pause in the Lobbying Bill, the PMS that it was important to get right all the parts of the legislative programme of government. The Bill had been raised in Cabinet as part of the weekly update on Parliamentary business. Published: 7 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 […]

Intelligence

Asked about alleged UK intelligence gathering, the PMS said that he did not comment on intelligence matters. Published: 5 November 2013 Organisation: Prime Minister’s Office, 10 Downing Street Policy: Protecting the UK against terrorism Minister: The Rt Hon David Cameron MP original source.

» Monday, November 4, 2013

G4S

Asked if G4S should be stopped from bidding for government contracts, the PMS said there is an audit of every contract in government and this continues. It was important for the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) to get to the bottom of their investigation. The Secretary of State for Justice?s decision taken in July to ask […]

Original PMOS briefings are © Crown Copyright. Crown Copyright material is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of HMSO and the Queen's Printer for Scotland. Click-use licence number C02W0004089. Material is reproduced from the original 10 Downing Street source, but may not be the most up-to-date version of the briefings, which might be revised at the original source. Users should check with the original source in case of revisions. Comments are © Copyright contributors. Everything else is © Copyright Downing Street Says.