Press briefing from the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman on: Licensing Act, Benefits, Cabinet/Meetings, Education, Nuclear Power Station Safety, Peers List, Pensions and Climate Change.
Licensing Act
Asked for further information about the Licensing Act powers, the Prime Minister’s Official Spokesman (PMOS) said that we wanted to emphasise to local authorities the new powers contained in the Licensing Act. These were powers that allowed fixed penalty notices to be given for alcohol related disorders, targeting under-age sales of alcohol, the use of CC TV to defuse potential disorder, as well as the powers to close down premises that caused trouble. The PMOS said that tomorrow, the AMEC 3 announcement would similarly be aimed at those premises that were causing problems as well as those that were selling to under-age drinkers.
Asked if we were expecting trouble from the announcement, the PMOS said we were not. What we had been saying all the way through was that these acts gave the authorities and the police new powers to tackle disorder, and we had always emphasised that using the Licensing Act was not about twenty-four (24) hour opening, but rather, was about giving new powers to local authorities to close down potentially troublesome premises as well as widening the amount of time pubs could be open for.
Asked when the Act came into force, the PMOS said on the 24 November 2005.
Put to the PMOS that today’s Independent newspaper had showed that "hundreds and hundreds" of premises that had been granted a 24 hour license, not a handful as James Purnell had made out, and was the Government disappointed about the number of applications that had been granted, the PMOS replied that the important thing was to recognise the new powers that the Act gave to police, local authorities and to neighbourhoods to be able to make representations to lead to troublesome premises being shut down. All those were part of the Act, and therefore, it should not be seen as just being about one thing.
Asked how long it would take to close down a troublesome premise under the Act, the PMOS said that people had the authority to shut it down very quickly indeed. That was part of the new Act, as it allowed the police the authority to shut down a premise for 24 hours, and then for longer periods if necessary.
Asked if the Government had acknowledged the apparent contradiction between all the 24 hour licenses being given, and the new crackdown on disorders such as vomiting in the streets, the PMOS said what the question begged was the fact that there was already disorder that had to be tackled, and there were already problems associated with certain premises. Therefore, the new Act would allow the police and local authorities to better tackle these issues, so people should not pretend that this was a new issue that had to be addressed. As the Prime Minister had already said, because some premises had problems, it was not a reason to stop others from having longer hours; the key was how people used the new rights they had, and whether they lived up to the responsibilities that they had.
Asked how the CC TV would be used, the PMOS said that it encouraged local authorities to invest in CC TV so it could be used by the police and others to move to where the trouble was happening.
Put to the PMOS that would mean more cost for local councils, the PMOS replied: no. It meant more ability for local police to take action.
Benefit/DWP
Asked if it was true that the Government was "shelving" attempts to review housing benefit, the PMOS said that with the new Secretary of State for DWP taking office, it was natural for a new person to take the time to get their feet under the table and settle in.
Asked when the expected reforms might be expected, the PMOS said that the work was actively continuing, and John Hutton had gone in to carry on the work as fast as possible, but it was reasonable to take some time.
Asked if there was any difference in approach between the Prime Minister and John Hutton, the PMOS said absolutely not.
Cabinet/meetings
Asked when the Cabinet changes might be announced, the PMOS said they would come when they came.
Asked for further information on the Prime Minister’s bilateral meetings and his EU work, the PMOS replied that again, people should be realistic. The new German Government had just taken shape, and it would take a bit of time. We were all aware of the deadline approaching in December.
Education
Asked what the Prime Minister would want to do to consult regarding the Education White Paper, the PMOS replied that the important thing was to recognise that the manifesto the Government stood on at the election, did commit to pushing forward reforms in education. That was the foundation stone on which Government policy was built. Of course, that meant that we had to spell out what the White Paper proposed, rather than the myths that surrounded it. It was important that we addressed that, and both the Prime Minister and the Education Secretary would no doubt take the opportunity not only to MPs, but also to a wider audience to explain the true thinking behind the White Paper.
Asked if the Education Bill would now be published in late February or early March and did the Prime Minister have any meetings planned this week with backbenchers regarding education, the PMOS said that in terms of the former, he did not have any information to suggest that it had been delayed. With regards to the latter, the Prime Minister would meet people as and when he had the time.
Nuclear Power Station Security
Put that in light of the events in Australia recently regarding the terrorist threat to their nuclear power station, were there any extra security measures being put onto ours as a result, the PMOS said that as people could appreciate, it would not be very wise for him to talk about security in that context.
Peers List
Asked when the Peers list would be published, the PMOS said work continued on it.
Pensions
Asked if the Government agreed with the IAEA’s estimate on pensions, the PMOS referred the journalist to the Treasury where they had put out a statement. The Government had checked its figures and believed they were fully affordable.
Climate Change
Asked what was the Prime Minister’s opinion on the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) recent climate change criticisms, the PMOS replied as Alastair Darling had made clear this morning that we remained committed to our CO2 target, which was to reduce emissions by 20 per cent by 2010. We were also one of the few countries who were on target to meet our Kyoto target as well. However, the reality that we all faced was that Kyoto did not include the United States, India or China, and that was why it was so vital that we started to try and get a consensus on what happened post-Kyoto, and we started that process now.
That was also why Gleneagles and the G8 +G5 meeting, which was held earlier in the month, was also so important. What we needed to develop was not only the technology which would allow us to deal with climate change, but also the agreement to share that technology. There was a choice in this: either stand on the sideline and shout at those who were not part of the Kyoto process, or engage with those who were not part of the Kyoto process and try and find consensus about how the issue was dealt with. We believed that the process that was started at Gleneagles was beginning to work, there was a real dialogue and therefore, we would reject the WWF criticisms.
Put to the PMOS that David King said in a radio interview today that we would probably miss the 2010 emissions target, and what was the Government planning to do about getting back on schedule, the PMOS said that it was surely only a shortage of time that stopped the journalist from finishing off the quote, as David King also said he was sure that Ministers would try their hardest to meet the target! The PMOS said we would "bust a gut" to meet the target, and we had already announced last week, for example, the 5 per cent target for introduction of biofuels into petrol by 2010. That would have a massive impact. Equally, we were carrying out the Energy Review, and that would report in the Spring. It was not as if we were simply standing back, wringing our hands; rather, we were actively working to try and achieve the 2010 target.
Put to the PMOS that if the World Trade talks were so important, why was the Prime Minister not going to Hong Kong, the PMOS said there were levels at which these negotiations were conducted, and they would be done at the appropriate level. What the Prime Minister had made clear, however, was that we needed to not lower our ambition, but to try and use Hong Kong as part of the overall round that would take us further forward. That process would run to the end of 2006, but Hong Kong had to take us significantly further forward.
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