Conservatives hire internet guru Oct 6, 2009
Shadow Cabinet Office minister Frances Maude, who announced Mr Steinberg's appointment as an adviser at the Conservative conference in Manchester, said technology must be used more efficiently during a time of austerity ... Francis MaudeShadow cabinet office minister. (BBC News -- Technology)
MPs 'insult' at Omagh bomb report Jul 14, 2009
Secretary of State Shaun Woodward and Cabinet Office Minister Tessa Jowell have also refused to let the Committee's chairman, Sir Patrick Cormack, see the review. Sir Patrick said: "We cannot properly conduct our work in relation to Omagh unless we are fully informed of the facts surrounding the bombing. "It really is an insult to the select committee that its chairman should not be allowed to see this report. (BBC News -- UK)
Whitehall bid to cut IT emissions Jul 3, 2009
Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson will announce later 18 key steps which departments will be asked to take to vastly reduce their "carbon footprint" - the measure of their impact on the environment through greenhouse gases. Merely switching off a computer at night may get a good headline for the Whitehall spin machine but isn't enough. (BBC News -- Technology)
UK 'has cyber attack capability' Jun 26, 2009
" He demanded reassurances from Home Office minister John Hanson that the new unit, which will start work in September and be paid for out of existing budgets, will not be used to spy on ordinary people's internet use. Mr Hanson said a special ethics panel would be set up to monitor the new unit and the government would work with civil liberties groups, although he declined to say which ones. "This is about defending civil liberties and ensuring that we protect the liberties of people to enjoy... (BBC News -- Technology)
Brown defiant amid leader row Jun 20, 2009
" Meanwhile, Cabinet Office Minister Tessa Jowell said that Mr Brown would be prepared to step aside if he became convinced that "he personally was an obstacle to Labour's recovery and achievement". "Gordon Brown loves the Labour party. He is Labour through and through," she told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend. 'Weakened'Later aides insisted she was not suggesting Mr Brown should stand down but had been thinking of events in 2004 when some ministers persuaded Tony Blair to carry on at a... (BBC News -- UK)
Byrne: 'Purnell got it wrong' Jun 5, 2009
Cabinet Office Minister Liam Byrne has defended Gordon Brown's leadership after the work and pensions secretary James Purnell's resignation. He said that he thought Purnell had got it "profoundly wrong". (BBC News -- Europe)
Leak house gives Brown the dickens of all headaches Jun 4, 2009
In a chaotic 24 hours on Downing Street, it was revealed that the Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, the Children's Services Minister, Beverley Hughes, and the Cabinet Office Minister, Tom Watson, a close ally of Mr Brown, would all be leaving the Labour Government. The news, leaked apparently against the ministers' wishes and on the eve of local council elections in England and the four-day European Parliament poll, was an unprecedented blow for Mr Brown. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Mandelson urges MPs to back Brown Jun 4, 2009
Page last updated at 02:31 GMT, Thursday, 4 June 2009 03:31 UK. Lord Mandelson has defended the prime minister. (BBC News -- UK)
UK PM urged to 'assert authority' Jun 3, 2009
Children's Minister Beverley Hughes also announced on Tuesday that she wanted to leave in the shake-up - for family reasons - while Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson is also expected to step down. FROM THE TODAY PROGRAMME. (BBC News -- Europe)
Brown May Enter Trap That Ensnared Thatcher With Plans to Replace Darling Jun 3, 2009
Childrens minister also wants to leave her job, and Sky News said Cabinet Office Minister will step aside. Since the expenses scandal began, eight of Labours 350 have decided not to seek re- election. (Bloomberg -- UK)
DISARRAY IN DOWNING STREET AS UK POLS EXPOSED... Jun 3, 2009
On a tumultuous and chaotic day at Downing Street, it was also announced that Beverley Hughes would move aside from her job as Children s Minister and not stand at the next election and that Tom Watson, the Cabinet Office Minister and key ally of Mr Brown, would leave the Government. With speculation intensifying that Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, will become the most high-profile victim of the reshuffle, and that David Miliband might also be replaced as Foreign Secretary, it raised the... (The Drudge Report)
Speaker angry over leak May 12, 2009
It also reported that shadow Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude had claimed nearly 35,000 in mortgage payments on a flat close to a house he rented out. Conservative leader David Cameron acknowledged that the latest revelations meant "another bad day for Parliament and, frankly, a bad day for the Conservative Party". (BBC News -- UK)
All MPs must say sorry - Cameron May 11, 2009
Shadow cabinet office minister Francis Maude ... Shadow cabinet office minister Francis Maude had claimed almost 35,000 in mortgage interest payments on a London flat that he bought, close to a house he already owned and then rented out, reported the Telegraph. (BBC News -- UK)
Brown 'sorry' over e-mail slurs Apr 17, 2009
" Mr Draper has said he "deeply" regrets responding to Mr McBride's e-mail and was considering resigning from his role running LabourList, a Labour-supporting website. On Wednesday, in an e-mail to members of Labour's National Executive Committee, the party's general secretary, Ray Collins, said Mr Draper - who had offered "advice and opinion on an ad hoc basis" - would not be asked for either again. Mr McBride's actions were a "clear and serious breach" of Whitehall rules, the head of the civil... (BBC News -- UK)
Papers honour Hillsborough dead Apr 16, 2009
into whether Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson knew about the e-mails. The paper describes the decision not to have one as "a whitewash". (BBC News -- UK)
Slur MP condemns No 10 'cesspit' Apr 15, 2009
But the Conservatives have continued to question whether this was the case and, in particular, whether Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson knew about plans to set up Red Rag. Thrown to wolves. (BBC News -- UK)
Brown sends letters over smears Apr 14, 2009
Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson denied at the weekend that he had been copied in on the e-mails and said the first he knew about them was when the story appeared on the news. Mr Staines has refused to reveal how the messages found their way to him, despite complaints from Mr Draper that they were private. (BBC News -- Europe)
Spinning away Apr 13, 2009
And not everyone appears to be buying Cabinet Office minister Liam Byrne's explanation that this was "one private e-mail exchange between a couple of friends who were knocking backwards and forwards ideas.". Left-wing MP John McDonnell has called for an investigation. (BBC News -- UK)
Tories up smear e-mail pressure Apr 13, 2009
"The really damaging thing is they think they are being ultra loyal to Mr Brown and the Labour Party, but in fact they are doing the Labour Party an awful lot of damage. "The stables do need to be cleaned out and it goes beyond the two particular oiks we are obsessed with at the moment," he added. Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play. Chris Grayling: "This was right at the very heart of our government" Cabinet Office Minister Liam Byrne has said Mr Brown knew nothing of... (BBC News -- UK)
Tories turn up heat over smears row Apr 13, 2009
Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson was forced to deny helping to prepare sleazy and unfounded stories in a bid to damage senior Tories. His rebuttal came after one of Mr Brown's closest aides, Damian McBride, resigned in shame over his role in the scandal. (Ananova -- Headlines)
UPDATE: Sex smear emails rock UK politics... Apr 13, 2009
The affair also threatened to engulf Cabinet Office minister Tom Watson. Questions were raised about whether he had a role in the proposed-dirty tricks campaign, to be run from Downing Street. (The Drudge Report)
No 10 official quits over e-mails Apr 12, 2009
" Cabinet Office minister Liam Byrne said he thought Mr McBride had "done the honourable thing. " But he stressed the emails had not been intended for publication. "I think it is unfortunate that there are some people in the media who have decided to try and put these emails into the public domain, wave them in the public's face, when even their very author decided that actually there was no place in public life or for public consumption for these emails, the right place for them was the bin. (BBC News -- UK)
Private sector workers excluded f... Apr 11, 2009
Francis Maude, Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, contacted the Government on behalf of a constituent. A reply from Tom Watson, a Cabinet Office Minister responsible for Civil Service issues, stated that officials were aware advertisements sometimes appear, particularly from recruitment agencies, which stipulate that a security clearance is a requirement. (New York Post -- Business)
Sweet dreams? Apr 7, 2009
This is why I trust the political judgment of blogging and twittering Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson as he goes about trying to open up government systems much more than I would ever listen to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, and why I look to people who dream of the network, like Jane McGonigal, for inspiration and enlightenment. At least her nightmare was based around an understanding of modern technology - Google probably stomps around like a rainbow-coloured Godzilla in Porter's dreamscape. (BBC News -- Technology)
Civil service 'unfit for purpose' Mar 5, 2009
Cabinet Office minister Liam Byrne said accountability must be "sharpened" but warned about politicising advice given ... Liam Byrne, Cabinet Office minister. (BBC News -- UK)
Reporting behind closed doors Feb 25, 2009
Last April, Cabinet Office Minister Tom Watson set up the Power of Information Task Force, chaired by the former Lib Dem MP Richard Allan. They were asked to "advise and assist the government on delivering benefit to the public from new developments in digital media and the use of citizen- and state-generated information in the UK", and they are almost ready to submit their final report. (BBC News -- Technology)
Dutch MP refused entry to Britain Feb 13, 2009
Cabinet Office minister Liam Byrne said, on BBC One's Question Time: "This guy wasn't coming here to exercise his right of free speech. This guy was trying to come here in order to sow division between us in this country. "Everything I've heard about this guy tells me he's a bigot and the right place for him is to stay at home. " The Home Office said there was a blanket ban on Mr Wilders entering the UK under EU laws enabling member states to exclude someone whose presence could threaten public... (BBC News -- Europe)
Civil service recruiting attacked Feb 13, 2009
For the Conservatives, shadow Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude, said: "It is unfair that central government jobs are being hidden from the public. "It's time to open up Whitehall's closed job shop. Making greater use of the internet will save money, expose unnecessary bureaucracy and ensure healthy competition in the job market. (BBC News -- UK)
Net politics is all rock and role Feb 7, 2009
Tom Watson, the Cabinet Office Minister for Digital Engagement, has been making really good use of Twitter and other social tools for a while now, engaging in a serious online debate about issues like the importance of computer games to the UK economy or ways government can enhance its work in the digital realm. And he has done so by talking to people in the places they already go to on the net, instead of launching more and more unwieldy online consultations to be neglected by the online... (BBC News -- Technology)
