Briefing from the Prime Minister’s spokesman on: Iraq inquiry, car industry, energy conference and the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Iraq Inquiry
Asked whether an inquiry into the Iraq war was likely, the Prime Minister’s Spokesman (PMS) told the assembled press that the Prime Minister had set out our position succinctly during the debate when he said that this was a matter that we would consider once our troops had come home. We were not at that position at the moment and therefore it was not right to open the question now.
Asked whether the Prime Minister had meant when all troops were home or when the bulk of the troops had returned, the PMS said it would not be when we had a significant number of troops engaged in operations in Iraq and added that he would not get into what the threshold might be.
Asked if he agreed that the Prime Minister had left this slightly up in the air, the PMS replied that the Prime Minister had made our position clear.
Car Industry
Asked for some clarity on whether there would be any kind of rescue package for the car industry, the PMS said that Lord Mandelson had had discussions with the owners and management of Jaguar Land Rover. He had been clear that the Government did not have an open chequebook to bail out ailing companies and we would look to the Indian owners, Tata in the first instance to ensure the survival of Jaguar Land Rover.
Put that it wasn’t just about Jaguar, the PMS replied that as he had said previously, the Government had had a meeting with car manufacturers about a fortnight ago where proposals were put forward and BERR were still considering those proposals. Asked if there was a split between the Treasury on one side who were not in favour of helping the car industry and BERR on the other who were in favour, the PMS said that the Government acted as one on these issues.
Asked if the discussions were about existing help or were new funds being talked about, the PMS said that the requirements of different manufacturers varied. The PMS did not want to get into details about a proposed package but he thought they would put forward a range of proposals that touched on a number of different areas. Asked if an announcement was imminent, the PMS said he was not expecting an announcement today.
Asked if the Prime Minister was aware of the sense of urgency, the PMS confirmed that he was. The Prime Minister was aware that the car industry, most recently Jaguar Land Rover, had said that they were under particular strain at the moment. Asked if the Prime Minister was concerned that the process was taking a long time, the PMS replied that what was important was that we took the right decisions not only for individual companies but also for the country as a whole.
Asked if the Prime Minister thought it was strange for the company who had only recently bought Jaguar Land Rover to ask for money, given that they had a huge balance sheet, the PMS replied that that was why we were looking to them and their responsibility in the first instance to ensure the survival of Jaguar Land Rover.
Energy Conference
Asked for more details on the energy conference, the PMS said it was a meeting of Energy Ministers from a variety of countries and would be chaired by Ed Miliband. We saw the conference as a continuation of a process that began in Jeddah and as the Prime Minister had set out, not only in Jeddah but also on his recent trip to the Gulf, that we believed that stability in energy prices was important and therefore there should be a dialogue between producers and consumers and this was part of that process.
Archbishop of Canterbury
Put that the Prime Minister’s response to the Archbishop’s comments had been quite warm and generous and did the Prime Minister speak to the Archbishop regularly, the PMS said that they did.
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