Conservative Future

The national defence budget has been finalised after a personal intervention by the Prime Minister. The final settlement puts the cuts to the Ministry of Defence's £37bn a year budget at around 7-8%. This is significantly lower than the 10% cut favoured by the Treasury. Military chiefs said that drastic cuts would damage the front line in Afghanistan, something David Cameron has made clear he is not prepared to do. . Defence secretary Liam Fox, who has fought fiercely for his department, appears to have won this particular battle with the Treasury. Hillary Clinton's comments earlier this week, in which she expressed concern about the expected defence cuts, could have added pressure on the coalition. . A senior Downing Street source has revealed that the comprehensive spending review will not outline any substantial cuts to the number of Army personnel. The source added that £750m is to be saved over four years on Trident, alth...

About 150 ministers, former ministers, MPs, and peers with careers stretching back over the last 40 years attended the reception at No 10 – the largest gathering of Thatcherite ministers in Downing Street since they themselves sat around the cabinet table more than 20 years ago. Unfortunately, Baroness Thatcher had to pull out of the Downing Street party after she fell ill with flu. Mr Cameron read out a message from Lady Thatcher, in which she said: ‘I am so disappointed not to be with you this evening. I hope that you will appreciate that on this particular occasion I have had to accept that the Lady is not for returning. Please, please enjoy yourselves.’ A spokesman for Mr Cameron said he was ‘obviously disappointed’ at the news, and that another party would be organised once she recovers. Lord Heseltine, who brought Mrs Thatcher’s premiership to an end when he stood against her for the leadership, was left off the guestlist which was co-ordinated between her off...

Hillary Clinton has said that plans to cut the Ministry of Defence budget by 10% are of concern. The views expressed by Washington came as Britain's top military leaders launched a last ditch attempt to persuade David Cameron to scale down the cuts.  In an interview with BBC Parliament's The Record Europe in Brussels, Clinton said. "The reason it concerns me is because I think we do have to have an alliance where there is a commitment to the common defence. Nato has been the most successful alliance for defensive purposes in the history of the world I guess, but it has to be maintained. Now, each country has to be able to make its appropriate contributions." Robert Gates, who was in Brussels for a meeting of NATO defence ministers, voiced similar concerns. "My worry is that the more our allies cut their capabilities, the more people will look to the United States to cover whatever gaps are created. At a time when we are facing stringencies of our own, that's...