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» Wednesday, June 20, 2007

EU Summit

Asked if there was any more information about talks or consultations over the summit, the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman (PMOS) said that the conversation between President Sarkozy, the Prime Minister and the Chancellor was the last conversation with an EU leader that he was aware of on the summit.

Briefing took place at 15:00 | Read whole briefing | Comments (0)

Middle East Special Envoy

Put by the Evening Standard that Al Jazeera were reporting that the Prime Minister had had discussions with senior US officials about taking up a role as lead negotiator for the Quartet in the Middle East, the PMOS said that as he had told their colleague this morning, he was the Prime Minister's Spokesman, not next week's ex-Prime Minister's Spokesman, and that remained the position.

Briefing took place at 15:00 | Read whole briefing | Comments (0)

EU

Put that Margaret Beckett said yesterday at the FAC that it would be possible to take a view on Monday as to whether it would be necessary to hold a referendum on the outcome of the EU Summit, and asked was this not a change to what had been said before, the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman (PMOS) replied that he understood the journalists had to fill this week somehow, but to be honest we were in danger of semantics. The reality was that the Prime Minister had set out his four red lines, and this was the only basis on which he would agree a deal in Brussels. His view, as expressed ever since he met with the Dutch Prime Minister, was that if the four red lines were met, then we would have an amending treaty, such as was agreed in the Single European Act, and such as was agreed in Maastricht. And that therefore did not require a referendum. That has been our position for a month and a half. It was slightly ingenuous to pretend that this whole debate about a referendum had changed in that period.

Briefing took place at 9:00 | Read whole briefing | Comments (0)

Prisons

Put that 2,000 prisoners were going to be freed within 2 weeks of their release, and asked if this was a one off or whether it was a rolling weekly programme, the PMOS replied that this was verging on the hypothetical. We were engaged on a prison building programme which would deliver extra places. This was a programme which was designed to relieve pressures that were there in the system at the moment.

Briefing took place at 9:00 | Read whole briefing | Comments (0)

Misc

Asked that now the Prime Minister's agent had said that there would be a Blair Foundation for sport, were we now able to shed any light on his plans after the 27th June, the PMOS replied that he was not. He was the Prime Minister's Official Spokesman, not the "next week ex Prime Minister's Spokesman". Asked who the ex Prime Minister's Spokesman would be, the PMOS replied that this was premature as he was not yet the ex Prime Minister.

Briefing took place at 9:00 | Read whole briefing | Comments (0)

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