Free Republic

Plans to legalize same-sex marriage are the number one issue in MPs’ postbags—with an overwhelming majority of voters opposed to the move—according to a new poll. The survey of MPs from across the political spectrum by ComRes also shows that only one in 25 parliamentarians believes that allowing gay unions is a main priority for voters. The poll comes in the wake of a growing number of Conservative heavyweights declaring that they do not support moves to allow same-sex marriage by law by the time of the next election, May 2015. Last week, Downing Street backed down by signaling that...

Prime Minister David Cameron will promise on Thursday to do whatever is needed to protect Britain's economy and banks from a breakup of the eurozone, and will urge leaders of the single currency bloc to "sort out its problems". Cameron's remarks, in a speech to business leaders in northwest England, are likely to irritate European leaders trying to keep the eurozone intact as Greece prepares for a new election and struggles to cope with its debt crisis. Britain's Conservative-led coalition has long blamed its own economic woes on the turbulence in Europe, its main trading partner, though critics say Cameron's...

Britain's business leaders will warn David Cameron that the Government’s attitude to business must change, after they were told to stop complaining. Members of the Prime Minister’s business advisory group will say that the atmosphere surrounding business in the UK is becoming increasingly “toxic”. Mr. Cameron’s face-off with the chief executives of major companies, including Sainsbury’s, Centrica and the Prudential, comes at a time when relations between the private sector and the Government are under strain. Last week’s Queen’s Speech setting out the Coalition’s plans for the year was criticized by many in business, including Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King,...

A successful eurozone requires a single government if it is to work properly, British Prime Minister David Cameron said in a newspaper interview on Wednesday. "There's nowhere in the world that has a single currency without having more of a single government," Cameron told Britain's Daily Mail. "Making sense of the euro for me would mean that those eurozone countries would have to have much more coordinated economic policy, much more coordinated debt policy," he said. Cameron, who opted out of a new European economic pact late last year, advocated Britain's position outside the euro and its ability "to do...

David Cameron has come under fire for ‘taking sides’ in the US Presidential election. Aides to Republican candidate Mitt Romney have accused the Prime Minister of staging a ‘love in’ with Barack Obama during his recent trip to Washington which will help the president get re-elected. In a highly unusual attack on Mr Cameron, the Romney camp yesterday accused the Prime Minister of showing a ‘lack of experience’ and being ‘not very skilful’ when he gave a toast in Mr Obama’s honour during a White House banquet.

Cameron offered air tanker as VIP jet (Reuters) - Senior British politicians and royals might consider making foreign visits in converted air force refuelling jets after a row over the use of a rented Boeing for a trade mission to tout European-made Airbus planes. Britain's aerospace industry lobby group said proposals were being drawn up by the industry that could allow Prime Minister David Cameron and even the Queen to use modified Airbus jetliners that double as refuelling planes. The proposals follow a British media storm after Cameron led a business delegation to Indonesia in a chartered Boeing 747 to...

Barack Obama has no interest in standing with Britain over the Falklands ... Barack Obama's latest knife in the back for Britain – and there have been many - should be a wake-up call for David Cameron, whose recent trip to Washington was an undignified exercise in hero-worship toward a Left-wing president who doesn't even like the British. The prime minister should understand that Barack Obama is no friend of Britain and never will be. And nor is his Secretary of State, who has actively backed Argentina's calls for UN-brokered negotiations between London and Buenos Aires over the sovereignty of...

British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday revealed he was "tucked up in bed" by US President Barack Obama during the pair's recent trip on Air Force One. The two leaders were repeatedly seen back-slapping and sharing jokes during Cameron's recent US visit, but now it appears the friendship was sealed when the president offered Cameron the use of his personal quarters.

"Former Mayor Ed Koch is back on President Obama’s side and will be by his side during a fancy White House bash Wednesday with British Prime Minister David Cameron. Koch said he scored an invite to the swanky soiree in honor of Cameron and his wife, Samantha. Koch, a Democrat, raised eyebrows and ire last year when he backed Republican Bob Turner over Democrat David Weprin in the special election to replace disgraced ex-Rep. Anthony Weiner in a Queens-Brooklyn district. Koch said the cross-party endorsement was to send a message to Obama to be a better friend to Israel —...

When it comes to appearances at state dinners, President Obama is keeping score. Mr. Obama was standing with first lady Michelle Obama on Wednesday night at the White House when their guests of honor, British Prime Minister David Cameron and his wife Samantha, arrived for the state dinner on the South Lawn. As Mrs. Cameron stepped out of a town car, Mr. Obama commented, "very pretty." Then he turned to his wife and said, "They look better than us."

There has been some debate -- and consternation among purists – over whether Wednesday’s White House dinner for British Prime Minister David Cameron is technically a “state dinner” because Cameron is not the British head of the state. True, the queen is the head of state. And Cameron’s visit therefore is not considered a “state visit” but rather an “official visit.” But the dinner is technically a state dinner because the president is hosting it, according to the office of protocol at the State Department. “When it comes to the dinner, as the chief of state, President Obama is hosting...

David Cameron and Barack Obama are to claim there is “hardly anything we cannot do” and that the relationship between Britain and America is a “unique asset” for the world. The president and Prime Minister will say that the “essential relationship” is a “partnership of the heart”, as Mr. Cameron flies to America for a three-day visit. Official talks are likely to focus on the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, with a handover to Afghan troops now expected as soon as mid-2013. Mr. Cameron will today become the first foreign leader to accompany Mr. Obama on board Air Force One,...

Catholic Leader Cardinal Keith O'Brien Clashes With David Cameron On Same-Sex Marriage Plans The Catholic Church is on a collision course with David Cameron as one of its most senior figures issues an outspoken attack on the Government over its plans to legalise gay marriage. The new clash between the Coalition and the Catholic Church comes as the Church of England also appears increasingly split over the issue of gay rights By Patrick Hennessy and Edward Malnick 03 Mar 20127 Cardinal Keith O’Brien, the leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, says the proposals to allow same-sex unions are “madness”...

British Prime Minister David Cameron's aim to 'repatriate' some EU social laws has been deemed as "complete non-starter" by the European Commissioner in charge of the dossier. In a strongly worded address to a trade union audience in London on Monday (13 February), EU social affairs commissioner Laszlo Andor also took Britain to task for promulgating stereotypes, its dislike of employment legislation and the assumption that it can cherrypick EU laws. Andor noted that EU laws which have been agreed by governments and parliament—as social laws are—are binding on all member states. If Britain wanted to be exempt from social...

Don't Legalise Gay Marriage, Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu Warns David Cameron Marriage must remain a union between a man and a woman, says the Archbishop of York, and David Cameron will be acting like a “dictator” if he allows homosexual couples to wed. By Martin Beckford 27 Jan 2012 In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Dr John Sentamu, the second most senior cleric in the Church of England, tells ministers they should not overrule the Bible and tradition by allowing same-sex marriage. The Government will open a consultation on the issue in March and the Prime Minister...

British Prime Minister David Cameron said Sunday he would block any attempt to introduce an EU-wide financial transaction tax because he fears it will harm jobs and prosperity in Europe. Cameron said countries such as France pushing for the introduction of such a levy were welcome to go ahead and introduce it within their own borders. But implementing a tax in the European Union when countries in the rest of the world were not bound by it would have a negative effect on jobs and prosperity in Europe, he said. "If the French themselves want to go ahead with a...

David Cameron has three weeks to decide whether to bless a new eurozone treaty or use Britain’s veto and place the country in a “very grave position”, a senior observer warned last night. Peter Ludlow, president of the European Strategy Forum think tank, said Germany and France are confident they will secure a deal to save the long‑term future of the euro by the end of this month. That would mean tougher financial rules for members of the eurozone and the use of existing EU institutions to enforce them, a move Mr. Cameron has indicated is a step too far....

British PM David Cameron on Friday (6 January) vowed to do "everything possible" to prevent EU institutions from being used in a new fiscal treaty the UK has refused to join, but admitted there were legal difficulties in pursuing that path. The treaty negotiations resumed on Friday among 26 member states, with the UK participating as an observer. The text would allow the EU commission, acting "on behalf" of other signatories to the pact, to take deficit sinners to the European Court of Justice.Cameron, whose veto on EU treaty changes in December led to the creation of this new intergovernmental...

French leaders have launched outspoken public attacks on Britain, calling for the UK to lose its AAA credit rating and comparing its economy with that of Greece. Christian Noyer, the governor of the Bank of France, said that Britain faced larger national debts, higher inflation and slower growth than France. François Baroin, the finance minister, said Britain was “marginalised” and faced “a very difficult economic situation” because of Coalition policies. The blunt remarks are the latest sign of Anglo-French tension following David Cameron’s refusal last week to back a new European treaty drawn up in response to the eurozone crisis....

Prime Minister David Cameron's decision to veto Germany's demand for a new European fiscal union will define his premiership. More than that, Cameron has raised a banner for patriots everywhere fighting to retain their national independence. With his no vote on fiscal union, Cameron declared to the EU: "British surrenders of sovereignty come to an end here. And Britain will deny Brussels any oversight authority of any national budgets or any right to sanction EU members." The euro-skeptic right is understandably ecstatic. "He Put Britain First," thundered the Daily Mail. "There is now a wonderful opportunity for Britain gradually to...

Britain last night faced a revenge attack for David Cameron’s EU snub when a senior Brussels bureaucrat promised a new deluge of damaging red tape on UK business. European economics commissioner Olli Rehn insisted that the EU could override the Prime Minister’s veto to slap more regulation on the City of London. And he vowed that Brussels would ignore Mr. Cameron’s bid to protect British finance and British jobs. Finnish-born Mr. Rehn said: “If this move was intended to prevent bankers and financial corporations in the City from being regulated, that is not going to happen. We must all draw...

DAVID Cameron has blasted the bully-boys of Europe with a sensational Winston Churchill-style "Up Yours". The PM vetoed a new treaty and kept Britain out of a dodgy deal to save the euro. But his bulldog spirit left the nation facing an unknown future and risking an EU backlash. The PM last night defended his historic veto of an EU deal intended to save the euro — despite infuriating pro-Europeans. Jubilant Tory MPs hailed his decision as a massive step towards Britain's EXIT from the European Union. His stand in Brussels was the first time a British Prime Minister has...

David Cameron is at the centre of a furious row with Nicolas Sarkozy after Paris tried to isolate the prime minister at the EU summit by suggesting that Britain is seeking to exempt the City of London from all European regulations. In a move dismissed by officials in Brussels as an attempt to set Britain up as the fall guy, senior French figures said Cameron wanted an opt out from EU financial services regulation. The French were said to have found themselves isolated in their attempt to limit an agreement on tough fiscal rules for the single currency just to...

AFP - British Prime Minister David Cameron threatened to block a new European Union treaty designed to save the euro from the debt crisis if London's demands are not met. Cameron said Britain's huge financial sector and the single market would have to be protected if he were to sign up to a new EU-wide treaty aimed at resolving the crisis in the euro, which Britain does not use. His threat increases the likelihood that France and Germany, who proposed rewriting the treaty Monday, will end up pushing for an agreement between just the 17 nations who use the euro...

Germany has drawn up secret plans to prevent a British referendum on the overhaul of the European Union amid concerns it could derail the eurozone rescue package, leaked documents obtained by The Daily Telegraph disclose. Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, is today expected to tell David Cameron that Britain does not need a referendum on EU treaty changes, despite demands from senior Conservatives for more powers to be repatriated to Britain. The leaked memo, written by the German foreign office, discloses radical plans for an intrusive new European body that will be able to take over the economies of beleaguered...

The president of Ghana is leading the charge as several African countries are making their stand against Britain’s threat that they either legalize homosexual acts or be excluded from financial aid. “I, as president of this nation will never initiate or support any attempts to legalize homosexuality in Ghana,” said President John Evans Atta Mills in an official statement to the UK government under Prime Minister David Cameron last Wednesday. Ghanaian President John Evans Atta Mills At the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia at the end of October, which Prime Minister Cameron attended, the issue of homosexuality...

An interesting bit from White House reporter Tangi Quéméner's latest pool report from the G-20 in Cannes, France: [President Obama] entered the room at 1:15 and took to his left, heading to Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy. They chatted for a few seconds before British Prime minister David Cameron joined them. Hard to understand what they were saying amid the cameras noise. POTUS then took a stroll to Australian Premier Julia Gillard who got a hug as European president Herman van Rompuy, European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso and Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan were watching. Eventually the Europeans got a...

The world stands on the brink of a new economic crisis that would leave countries like Britain “staring down the barrel”, David Cameron has warned. The Prime Minister said that the failure of leaders in the US and Europe to tackle government deficits now "threatens the stability of the world economy". Mr Cameron spoke as stock markets around the world fell sharply again, with the FTSE–100 suffering its biggest drop for more than two years. Politicians, central bankers and investors are increasingly worried that the world's biggest economies are sliding back into a recession, dragged down by government debts. More...

David Cameron wanted a former American “supercop” to become Metropolitan Police Commissioner but was overruled by Theresa May, the Home Secretary, The Daily Telegraph can disclose. Mr Bratton last night said he would have "considered it an honour" to have been given the opportunity to apply for the post. The move followed the resignation of Sir Paul Stephenson, the head of Scotland Yard, last month amid the phone hacking scandal. Sir Paul’s departure, followed soon after by the resignation of John Yates as Assistant Commissioner, left the force in turmoil and led to calls for its leadership to be refreshed....

British Prime Minister David Cameron has removed his name from a list of patrons of the UK branch of the Jewish National Fund - and pro-Palestinian activists have taken credit for the move. Cameron's decision to drop his link with the charity was explained by his office as simply having to do with "time constraints." In an e-mail, Downing Street reiterated the explanation without going into details. "The Prime Minister stepped down from a number of charities - including the JNF," the office wrote. Downing Street declined to comment on the fact that the Stop the JNF Campaign has actively...

Together with our NATO allies and coalition partners, the United States, France and Britain have been united from the start in responding to the crisis in Libya, and we are united on what needs to happen in order to end it. SNIP Our duty and our mandate under U.N. Security Council Resolution 1973 is to protect civilians, and we are doing that. It is not to remove Qaddafi by force. But it is impossible to imagine a future for Libya with Qaddafi in power. SNIP There is a pathway to peace that promises new hope for the people of Libya...

On a visit to the north of England, the Prime Minister singled out Oxford for criticism when he accused elite institutions of having a "terrible record" of enrolling teenagers from state schools. Senior officials at the university described the figure as "highly misleading" as it related only to British students who described themselves as black Caribbean. They said Oxford admitted another 27 students who described themselves as black African and another 14 who were mixed race. The university also said that only 452 black students across the country had even achieved the A-level results demanded by Oxford to meet its...

David Cameron: Britain caused many of the world's problems Britain is responsible for many of the world’s historic problems, including the conflict in Kashmir between India and Pakistan, David Cameron has said. By James Kirkup, in Islamabad and Christopher Hope The Prime Minister appeared to distance himself from the imperial past when he suggested that Britain was to blame for decades of tension and several wars over the disputed territory, as well as other global conflicts. His remarks came on a visit to Pakistan, when he was asked how Britain could help to end the row over Kashmir. He insisted...

The Gaddafi regime yesterday taunted the West over its failure to impose a no–fly zone over Libya and said it would "finish the job" of defeating the insurrection against its rule by tomorrow. As Col Muammar Gaddafi's troops advanced towards Benghazi, the rebel capital, Saif al–Islam, the dictator's son, told "traitors and mercenaries" to flee the country or face the consequences. "We don't want to kill, we don't want revenge, but you, traitors, mercenaries, you have committed crimes against the Libyan people," he said, in an interview. "Leave; go in peace to Egypt." Asked about continuing British and French attempts...

Prime Minister David Cameron made a statement on the situation in Libya to the House of Commons on Monday 28 February 2011. Read the transcript: [Check against delivery] Introduction Mr Speaker, I would like to update the House on the evacuation of British nationals from Libya, the actions we are now pursuing against Colonel Gaddhaffi and his administration and developments in the wider region. Evacuation Mr Speaker, we have been working intensively to get our people out. As of now we have successfully removed around 600 British nationals from Libya. The evacuation has centred on three locations – Tripoli airport,...

Today I want to focus my remarks on terrorism, but first let me address one point. Some have suggested that by holding a strategic defence and security review, Britain is somehow retreating from an activist role in the world. That is the opposite of the truth. Yes, we are dealing with our budget deficit, but we are also making sure our defences are strong. Britain will continue to meet the NATO 2% target for defence spending. We will still have the fourth largest military defence budget in the world. At the same time, we are putting that money to better...

It's a good sign when Europeans are condemning multiculturalism.

It's time to pour out the multiculti Kool-Aid. That was the message from British Prime Minister David Cameron as he attacked "state multiculturalism" for letting Islamic radicals prosper virtually unchecked in the West. Instead of celebrating Western freedoms, the Brits have played blind while extremists recruit followers in universities, mosques and online chat rooms. No more namby-pamby. "Frankly," he told a security conference Saturday, "we need a lot less of the passive tolerance of recent years and a much more active, muscular liberalism." That requires actively promoting values like freedom of speech and equal rights for all -- and expecting...

Women 'want rich husbands, not careers': New survey claims drive for gender equality is a myth By Eleanor Harding Last updated at 11:05 AM on 4th January 2011 Woman still want to ‘marry up’ and naturally choose husbands who earn more than themselves, a report suggests. The idea of most women wanting to be financially independent is a myth, according to Catherine Hakim of the London School of Economics. Despite years of equality campaigning, more women are choosing to marry wealthy men than in the 1940s, the expert claims. In her report, published by the Centre for Policy Studies think...

David Cameron told the U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan that the Labour government 'let in some crazies', leaked diplomatic documents have revealed. In secret meetings before becoming Prime Minister, he promised the Americans he would toughen policy towards Pakistan. Mr Cameron and George Osborne met Richard Holbrooke, the U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, according to diplomatic cables made public by WikiLeaks. The Conservatives also promised the U.S. before the election that they would be tougher on Pakistan - because unlike Labour they did not depend on votes from people with Pakistani connections.

Talks broke down on Thursday night after the European Parliament demanded a say over new EU taxes as the price for dropping a Brussels budget demand that would have cost British taxpayers an extra £880 million next year. A rather empty looking European parliament during the mini plenary session in Brussels MEPs were told by national finance ministers that their ultimatum that the parliament should have a direct part in giving the EU tax raising powers after 2013, was "completely unacceptable". Justine Greening, the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, said that Britain had been joined by Germany and other countries...

On his current visit to Beijing, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has said China will soon reclaim its position as the world's biggest economy - a role it has held for 18 of the past 20 centuries. But how did the US, Britain and the rest of Europe interrupt this reign of supremacy? It comes down to location. Europeans have been asking this question since the 18th Century, and Africans and Asians since the 19th. But there is still not much agreement on the answers. People once claimed Westerners were simply biologically superior. Others have argued Western religion, culture, ethics,...

Britain and France today signed a landmark 50-year treaty on defence and security that envisages the joint use of aircraft carriers, a 10,000-strong joint expeditionary force and unprecedented new levels of co-operation over nuclear missiles. The deal, signed in London by David Cameron and the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has in part been forced on the two countries as they struggle with tightening defence budgets, but also reflects a level of mutual trust not seen for decades. At a joint press conference at Lancaster House, Cameron repeatedly stressed that the agreement strengthened British sovereignty as he said it opened a...

British and French planes could be flying from each other's aircraft carriers before the end of the decade and tests on nuclear warheads will be conducted jointly under treaties to be drawn up today at a summit in London between David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy. The treaties, which could also lead to a joint expeditionary force, are the result of months of planning by officials, encouraged by the two leaders. Unlike the original entente cordiale, which was the product of mutual concern about a hostile power before the first world war, today's is the product of hard-headed pragmatism, designed to...

David Cameron today defended the Government's plans to limit housing benefit, saying it was not fair for working people to see their taxes used to fund homes 'they couldn't even dream of'. The Prime Minister dismissed reports there could be a climbdown over the proposals, telling Labour leader Ed Miliband: 'We are going forward with all the proposals we put in the spending review and in the Budget'.

LONDON — Prime Minister David Cameron said Monday that a British aid worker killed in an American rescue raid in Afghanistan last week may have been killed by a grenade detonated by a United States special forces unit — not in an explosion of a suicide bomber’s vest detonated by her Taliban captors, as the American command in Afghanistan suggested when it confirmed her death on Saturday. A grim-faced Mr. Cameron appeared at a news conference at 10 Downing Street to say he had learned of “this deeply distressing development” Monday from the top American and NATO commander in Afghanistan,...

The early arrival of baby No.4 interrupted things for a few days, but David and Samantha Cameron have resumed their Cornish break - with little Florence Rose Endellion in tow. Mrs Cameron, 39 was released from Truro's Royal Cornwall Hospital yesterday, three days after giving birth by caesarean section. But instead of heading home, she wanted to conclude her holiday with family and friends... During the pregnancy, Mr Cameron said his wife would have the final say over the name, describing the discussions as ‘North Korean democracy – there will be talks but she decides’. A proud father: The Prime...

SNIPPET: "Just days after the Prime Minister won praise for his first visit to the subcontinent, it was disclosed that Mr Cameron’s great-great-grandfather was a British cavalryman who fought the Indians more than 150 years ago."

Dear Prime Minister David Cameron, You say you want Turkey to be member of EU. I personally think that you just want the rest of Europe to have the same problems with Muslims as you do. But that is my personal guess — here are the hard facts: 99.8 percent of the more than 77 million Turks living in Turkey are Muslims. Please study the Quran and see what that means: It is a criminal book that forces people to do criminal things! From September 11th 2001 (do you remember…?) to July 28th 2010 there have been 15,373 confirmed murders...

Listening to the Prime Minister’s remarks given yesterday in Ankara, I felt a distinct sense of déjà vu. It reminded me a great deal of Barack Obama’s controversial address to the Muslim world in Cairo in June last year, where he condemned the Israeli “occupation” of the West Bank, which sparked a downward spiral of relations with America’s closest ally in the Middle East, which has yet to fully recover. I fear the PM’s comments on Israel and Gaza could have a very similar long-term effect, with a significant deterioration of ties between London and Jerusalem. In international relations, a...