It is made worse by the concerns that all people will have at this moment in regard to terrorist activity.”Any use of explosives for whatever purpose in London will always be dealt with the utmost seriousness and it is essential those responsible be brought to justice.”Anyone with information should contact the Anti–Terrorist Branch on 0800 789 321.. The hard-right Monday Club was suspended from the Conservative Party last night and told it would only be readmitted if it abandoned campaigning on immigration. The hard-right Monday Club was suspended from the Conservative Party last night and told it would only be readmitted if it abandoned campaigning on immigration.
David Davis, the party chairman, announced the tougher than expected move after a tense 80-minute meeting with officers of the organisation.He ordered the group to review its constitution to include a promise not to “promulgate or discuss policies relating to race”. Mr Davis also told it to expel members who champion racist opinions.Speaking outside Conservative Central Office, he said: “Until we’re satisfied with their response, the Monday Club is suspended from any association with the Conservative Party.”He said that if the group was not prepared to amend its rules “to make it unconstitutional for them to promulgate any policies on the question of immigration and race”, its suspension would be made permanent.The showdown came after Viscount Massereene and Ferrand, its president, Lord Sudeley, its chairman, and Denis Walker, and Denis Walker, a member of the executive, were summoned into Central Office.The order means that the organisation will no longer be able to describe itself as the Conservative Monday Club.The newly elected Tory leader, Iain Duncan Smith, has been dogged by reports of links between his leadership campaign and far-right groups.Just six weeks ago, before his election, Mr Duncan Smith described the Monday Club as a “viable organisation with the party and they are, in a sense what the party is about”.However, in a swift about-turn, three Conservative MPs, Andrew Hunter, Andrew Rosindell and Angela Watkins, were earlier this month instructed by the new leadership to sever their links with the Monday Club.Mr Hunter had been its deputy chairman and associate editor of its Right Now! magazine, which described Nelson Mandela as a “terrorist”.The Monday Club, set up 40 years ago to oppose liberal policies within the Tory party, has pursued strong anti-immigration views and as recently as six weeks ago, its website was backing financial assistance for repatriation. The view has since been excised from its list of policies.Mr Davis told Radio 4′s PM programme: “The Monday Club had a number of things on its website which we didn’t like and reflected badly …. We want to clear this up once and for all.”The suspension will cause tension in the party, both among grass-roots members and right-wing MPs who fear that Mr Duncan Smith’s decision was driven by “political correctness”.However, he was urged by several senior colleagues, including David Willetts and Tim Yeo, to take decisive action as a first step towards reaching out to the political centre-ground.A Tory spokesman said there were no plans to extend the action to any other right-wing organisation affiliated to the party.The Labour chairman, Charles Clarke, said: “The reality is that the Tories have lurched further and further to the right in recent years. They will be judged on their record, not their rhetoric.”The move came hours after two MPs resigned from Mr Duncan Smith’s frontbench team, just a month after being awarded their posts.Nick Gibb stood down as a spokesman on Transport, Local Government and the Regions to take up a seat on the Public Accounts Committee, while James Cran gave up his post as deputy to Eric Forth, the shadow Commons Leader..

The future of Jo Moore, special adviser to Stephen Byers, the Secretary of State for Transport, remained in the balance last night after John Prescott and Lord Macdonald of Tradeston both suggested that she could face further disciplinary action. The future of Jo Moore, special adviser to Stephen Byers, the Secretary of State for Transport, remained in the balance last night after John Prescott and Lord Macdonald of Tradeston both suggested that she could face further disciplinary action.
In evidence to the Commons Public Administration Committee, the Deputy Prime Minister said a full investigation would be launched if a civil servant made an official complaint against Ms Moore.Lord Macdonald, the Minister for the Cabinet Office, added that it was now up to the Department for Transport to decide “what the course of action is next in terms of Jo Moore”.In a separate move, the Tories also kept up the pressure on the Government by opting to make the affair the subject of an Opposition Day debate in the Commons on Tuesday.Mr Prescott repeated Tony Blair’s insistence that Ms Moore should not be sacked because of her “stupid” e-mail about burying bad news on 11 September.The Deputy Prime Minister added that as the memo was not in the view of Mr Byers and Mr Blair a sackable offence, “I have to go with that”.But when asked about claims that Ms Moore had bullied civil servants to brief against Bob Kiley, the Greater London Authority’s Transport Commissioner, he did make clear that the special advisers’ code of conduct ruled out political interference.This was referring to claims that Alun Evans, director of communications in Mr Byers’ department, had been moved because of a clash with Ms Moore on the issue.Mr Prescott said: “I agree serious matters should be investigated. Any direction of a civil servant in an improper way is a serious matter.”He said an inquiry would be held if an official complaint was lodged about Ms Moore’s conduct by a civil servant.Mr Blair said at Prime Minister’s Question Time on Wednesday said that the matter was “closed” as far as he was concerned, but Lord Macdonald left open the possibility of further action.”I understand that the Secretary of State reprimanded Jo Moore and formal action was taken by the Permanent Secretary,” Lord Macdonald said. “It is now for that department to decide what the course of action is next in terms of Jo Moore.”. Elizabeth Filkin, the parliamentary watchdog, has been snubbed by the House of Commons and told she has to reapply for her own job. Elizabeth Filkin, the parliamentary watchdog, has been snubbed by the House of Commons and told she has to reapply for her own job.
Mrs Filkin, who has been the subject of a whispering campaign by MPs and ministers, has not had her contract renewed when it expires in February. The post of Standards Commissioner will be advertised nationally and she will have to be interviewed with other candidates if she wishes to continue in the role.Backbench MPs reacted angrily, called the decision by the House of Commons “vindictive”.

Peter Bottomley, a Tory member of the Standards and Privileges Select Committee, accused the political “establishment” of sanctioning a “whispering campaign” against Mrs Filkin because she had robustly investigated Labour MPs. He said her office had been starved of resources because her investigations had proved embarrassing “She is impartial, fair and professional,” he said “This is not a partisan issue. The whispering campaign, if not organised from those around Tony Blair, was not stopped by people around Tony Blair.”The Standards Commissioner was the recent target of an attack by the former House of Commons speaker, Betty Boothroyd, who said many MPs see her as a “witch hunter.”Since her appointment in 1998, Mrs Filkin has made many enemies in the Commons who believe her investigations are too assiduous. She has investigated Labour figures including the former paymaster general Geoffrey Robinson, John Reid, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and Keith Vaz, a former Europe minister.Keith Vaz resigned after the watchdog published a highly critical report into his business affairs which accused him of failing to cooperate with the official inquiry.The commissioner declined to comment on whether she would reapply for her job but few at Westminster believed she would submit herself to the “embarrassing” process.. Struggling farmers should be allowed to grow cannabis as a cash crop, an MP said yesterday when he launched a Bill to legalise the drug.