PM not attending Olympics opening

Prime Minister Gordon Brown will not attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, Downing Street says.

However, he will be at the closing ceremony when the Olympic baton will be passed to London.

A spokeswoman said Mr Brown had never planned to attend the ceremony and was not boycotting the Games.

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said Mr Brown "seems to do the right thing late in the day when he is forced to do so because of public opinion".

Mr Clegg, speaking to Channel Four News, branded the move a "last-minute U-turn".

The Olympics minister Tessa Jowell will represent the UK at the opening in Beijing in August.

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This could potentially harm the U.K.'s foreign relations around the world.

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UK will fight turbulence - Brown

Prime Minister Gordon Brown has promised that the UK and other EU countries will "lead the way" in fighting "global financial turbulence".

He told MPs that an EU summit at the weekend had agreed "co-ordinated action at a European and global level".

Tory leader David Cameron said the UK was suffering from not "putting money aside in the good years".

It came as an ICM poll suggested the Tories had a 13-point lead over Labour and were trusted more on the economy.

Markets have recorded heavy losses in reaction to the emergency bailout of US investment bank Bear Stearns.

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The U.K. to the rescue!

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British citizenship tests planned

Immigrants who want to become British and settle permanently in the UK will need to pass more tests to "prove their worth" to the country under new plans.

Some migrants may also have to pay into a fund towards public services and have a period of "probationary citizenship".

Prime Minister Gordon Brown said the UK should expect a "demonstration of commitment" and the process of becoming a citizen should be "more exacting".

The Tories called the plans, which do not cover EU citizens, a "gimmick".

Unveiling the proposals, Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said future migrants would need to "earn" citizenship.

This scraps the current system which allows people to apply for naturalisation on the basis of how long they have lived in the UK.

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Well, I guess the U.K. is going to have a drop in citizenship applications.

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Brown considers training payments

Gordon Brown wants to see poor families paid extra benefits if they take on work or skills training.

During his first visit to Wales as PM, he will call for a "contract" between government and the worst-off families.

He is examining a New York scheme which offers cash to encourage people back into work and education.

For the Tories, Chris Grayling said Mr Brown was "chasing headlines" after warning last month of benefits cuts for those who refused training.

Later Mr Brown will tell Welsh Labour's Llandudno conference that people must do what they can to take up work and acquire the skills to become employed.

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If Brown's plan is enacted then it may reduce the crime rate even further than it is now. Also, this plan may help improve the economy as well.

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Labour MPs to declare family jobs

Gordon Brown has ordered all Labour MPs to declare "as soon as possible" details of any relatives they employ.

In a letter to the Speaker, he says he has told Labour MPs not to wait until April, as recommended by the Commons standards committee earlier.

Conservative leader David Cameron has already told his frontbenchers to declare any employed relatives, plus a range of other expenditure.

The initiatives come after a series of revelations about MPs employing family.

The Commons estimates committee announced on Tuesday it was to hold a review of expenses after claims public money was being misused. It is due to report in October.

In a letter to Speaker Michael Martin, the chairman of the estimates committee, Gordon Brown said he welcomed its review, saying a "root-and-branch overhaul of the current system" was needed.

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I feel that Brown is implementing this investigation because he is worried about losing his power in Parliament. I think he feels that if members of opposing parties elect family members with similar views, he could very well be voted out of office.

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Gordon Brown: 'I'm no ditherer'

Gordon Brown has rejected the charge that he dithered over the Peter Hain resignation and other issues and said that it was only the Conservatives who were accusing him of dithering.

He said: "I think the decisions that I've made, the big changes that I've made since I came in, show a level of resolution about the changes we've got to make for Britain as a whole."

Earlier in January, Mr. Brown refused to be drawn on whether he was enjoying the job, but on the Politics Show he told Jon Sopel that being Prime Minister was the best job in the world.

"There's a great deal of satisfaction," he said, "in trying to help people in different ways and not just on the economy as I used to do, but on a whole range of other areas.

"So I would say that I've been fortunate enough to be given the chance to do what I think is the best job in the world."

Click here for the full article and interview.

In respose to Hain's resignation due to financial fraud, PM Brown is now having to defend his reputation against the media's accusations of conspiracy.

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UK's Brown seen delaying poll until at least 2009

LONDON, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Mounting problems facing British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, ranging from a weakening economy to a police investigation into party funding, virtually ensure he will put off an election until at least 2009, analysts say.

Cabinet minister Peter Hain quit on Thursday after electoral authorities referred to the police his late declaration of 100,000 pounds ($195,800) of campaign funding.

The party funding scandal, coupled with a bank crisis, a darkening economic outlook and a series of government blunders, has sent Brown's popularity plunging.

With his Labour Party trailing the opposition Conservatives by up to 10 points, political analysts believe Brown will try to batten down the hatches during this year's expected economic slowdown.

He will hope the economy will improve enough for him to regain the political initiative and win a fourth consecutive election for Labour in 2009 or 2010, the latest date he can go to the polls.

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This is important because it tells of what the future may have in store for the Gordon Brown's Labour Party and whether or not his party will remain in control. The U.K. may see a change in power in Parliament after the next election.

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