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?

» Friday, July 13, 2012

Economy

Asked whether the PM was concerned that the recent weather was damaging the economy, the PMS said that he was not willing to make predictions on the economy.

Immigration

Asked whether the PM agreed with the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) comments on migration, the PMS said that the OBR produce some long term forecasts which inform Government policy-making. Asked whether the PM was reviewing the inclusion of foreign students in immigration figures, the PMS said that there were no plans to review the […]

G4S

Asked when it would be clear how many troops would be required to deploy for Olympic security, and whether there would be a penalty for G4S, the PMS said there was no update on the numbers, G4S was still recruiting and training staff. The primary focus was to ensure the games were staffed properly. Asked […]

EU Powers

Asked whether the PM thought that there should be any renegotiation of the EU powers while Europe was facing the Eurozone crisis, the PMS said that the Government had announced that there was work underway examining the balance of competencies looking at what should be dealt with at EU level. If there were opportunities to […]

Mugabe Sanctions

Asked what the PM’s view was on lifting the current sanctions in Zimbabwe, the PMS said that there would be discussion of sanctions with international partners. The purpose of sanctions was to influence behaviour, and we wanted to see reform in Zimbabwe.

Free Schools

Asked whether the Government had a policy of pushing funds towards Free Schools and away from non-Free Schools, the PMS said that we had a policy of diversity in the school system and an objective of raising standards. Free Schools had a part to play in that.

Funding for Lending

Asked whether the PM was confident that the latest Bank of England action would increase lending to small businesses, the PMS said that the Bank of England and the Government were using the strength of the Government’s balance sheet to support the flow of lending in the economy. We had looked at a number of […]

» Thursday, July 12, 2012

Press briefing afternoon 12 July 2012

Thursday 12 July 2012 House of Lords reform, Heathrow expansion, Olympics security, issues with the M4 motorway and economic growth were discussed

Lords reform

Asked whether the second week of business in September had been decided, and whether the Lords reform would return then, the PMS said that the Government had not set a date. Asked whether the PM would like it to return in September, the PMS said that the Government had said it would return in autumn […]

Heathrow

Asked whether Heathrow would probably be expanded, the PMS said that the Government had set out its policy for this parliament. There would be a call for evidence and the Government would listen to views.

G4S

Asked whether G4S should have any Government contracts, the PMS said that there were strict rules that applied to Government contracts and procurements. Asked which minister has the locus over the relationship between G4S and LOCOG, the PMS said that ultimately security for the Olympic Games was the responsibility of the Home Office. Asked whether […]

Asked for an update on the closure of the M4, the PMS said that the Highways Agency was working hard to resolve the issue. The contractors were working around the clock and would re-open the motorway as soon as it was safe to do so. The Highways Agency expected the road to be open in […]

Growth

Asked whether the PM was upset by criticism by John Cridland that the Government was doing nothing to help growth, the PMS said that the Government was taking action. There were 800,000 more private sector jobs, inflation was down, unemployment was down and interest rates were at a record low. We were now a net […]

» Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Press briefing afternoon 11 July 2012

Wednesday 11 July 2012 International aid for family planning, the Coalition agreement and House of Lords reform were among the topics discussed at this briefing

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.

» Friday, July 13, 2012

Economy

Immigration

G4S

EU Powers

Mugabe Sanctions

Free Schools

Funding for Lending

» Thursday, July 12, 2012

Press briefing afternoon 12 July 2012

Lords reform

Heathrow

G4S

M4

Growth

» Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Press briefing afternoon 11 July 2012

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