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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Ex-MI6 boss denies killing Diana

MI6's former chief has denied that the intelligence service murdered Diana, Princess of Wales.

At the inquest into her death, Sir Richard Dearlove insisted he had not been aware of MI6 assassinating anyone in his 38-year career there.

He rejected claims by Harrods boss Mohamed Al Fayed that Diana was killed by MI6 on the orders of Prince Philip.

Mr Al Fayed's son Dodi and driver Henri Paul were also killed in a car crash in Paris in August 1997.

Sir Richard told the inquest that this was a "very personal allegation" given his role at the Secret

Intelligence Service - otherwise known as MI6 - at the time.

He was MI6's director of operations from 1994 to 1999, and served as head of the agency from 1999 to 2004.

He denied that any assassinations took place under his authority.

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Once again, another conspiracy theory about the death of Princess Diana has been disproven.

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Assessment Complete

History of the Labour Party

The Labour Party is a political party in the United Kingdom. Founded in the early 20th century, it has been since the 1920s the principal party of the left in England, Scotland and Wales (but not in Northern Ireland, where the Social Democratic and Labour Party occupies a roughly similar position on the political spectrum). It has formed the national government of the United Kingdom since 1997. It is also the largest party in the Welsh Assembly Government in Wales and the second largest party in the Scottish Parliament. It holds the London mayoralty and is represented in the European Parliament. Its current leader is Gordon Brown.

The Labour Party surpassed the Liberal Party as the main opposition to the Conservatives in the early 1920s. It has had several spells in government, first as minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-31, then as a junior partner in the wartime coalition from 1940-1945, and then as a majority government, under Clement Attlee in 1945-51 and under Harold Wilson in 1964-70. Labour was in government again in 1974-79, under Wilson and then James Callaghan, though with a precarious and declining majority.

New Labour won a landslide 179 seat majority in the 1997 general election under the leadership of Tony Blair, its first general election victory since October 1974 and the first general election since 1970 in which it had exceeded 40% of the popular vote. The Labour Party's large majority in the House of Commons was slightly reduced to 167 in the 2001 general election and more substantially reduced to 66 in 2005.

Read the full article here.

The British Labour party has been one of the single most influential parties in the U.K. It has been the primary political leader in Parliament since its existance.

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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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Food and petrol push up inflation

Rising food and petrol prices pushed up UK inflation in January, figures show.
Last month's Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation figure rose to 2.2%, up from 2.1% in December. The rate is the highest since June 2007. The Retail Price Index (RPI), which includes mortgage interest payments, rose to 4.1% from 4% in December.

However, while price growth was strong, it was not as quick as many analysts had feared, boosting hopes of further interest rate cuts in the UK this year. Below trend The Bank of England cut UK interest rates last week to 5.25% from 5.5% in an attempt to prevent a major slowdown in the economy.

But the Bank signalled that it was unlikely to cut rates as sharply as the US Federal Reserve - which has slashed borrowing costs to 3% - because of fears over inflationary pressures. "It will be some time yet before the MPC's inflation concerns evaporate," said Jonathan Loynes at Capital Economics. Many analysts are predicting that the Bank will keep rates on hold in order to get a clearer picture of long-term economic and inflationary trends, and the impact slower growth will have on consumer prices.

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This article is about the rising inflation in Great Britain. In Britain Their is a direct effect between our economy and theirs . These rates could be cause by our problems right now.

No plan to ban 'anti-teen' device

There are no plans in England to ban the use of devices which emit a high-pitched sound to disperse groups of teenagers, the government has said.

But it stressed the Mosquito devices, which can cause discomfort to youngsters' ears, should be "a last resort" against anti-social behaviour.

The children's commissioner and other critics want a ban, saying the gadget is indiscriminate in who it targets.

Some stores say the devices can be useful against anti-social youths.

In a statement issued after the calls for a ban, the government said:

"'Mosquito alarms' are not banned and the government has no plans to do so.
Obviously no-one would want to have to use a device like this, and it should
very much be seen as a last resort. We will continue to tackle the
underlying problems through better neighbourhood policing, giving young
people alternative things to do in their spare time and, where necessary,
using the powers we have put in place to prevent anti-social behaviour."

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The country with the most complex security system in the world has still found another way to increase their public surveillance.

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AP Comparative Government Great Britain Blog 2

This is our temporary title because we didnt want to overshadow our current project.

Questions and Updates.

Anyone with Questions or comments please feel free to ask .

Updates coming soon to blog:

Country Fact Side bar
British Music on Blog
Updated Format Colors
Poll
British Pictures Slideshow



Expect these updates and some surprise updates all completed by next Tuesday February 19, 2008.

*Subject to change

British TV

Britain has a deep culture of Television Broadcasting.Click Here for a list of the top British shows of all time.

Also I apologize for missing Saturdays post , Both Blog members were not able to access the internet that day . If anyone noticed it should not happen again but before it does you will be notified.