My Life, Our Times
Page 58
1996 desire to exempt BT from windfall tax plan, 106
1997 meeting on tax policy, 108–9; asks Brown to exclude BT from windfall tax, 107; comment in Sun on love of pound, 176; general election, 29, 56, 107–11, 113; Bank of England independence, 117; DFID established, 136; advised against mortgage tax relief abolition, 144; debate on euro entry, 177, 178, 180–81
1998 proposes abolishing all income tax relief, 149; proposes abolishing inheritance tax, 167–8; Good Friday Agreement, 16, 17, 111, 368; Human Rights Act, 112
1999 Budget, 139; intervention in Kosovo War, 111, 249; launch of Britain in Europe, 181
2000 Frost interview; pledge on NHS spending, 164, 168
2001 gifts Bush bust of Churchill, 328; PMQs statement on euro entry, 181–2; general election, 164; plan for TUC speech on euro, 182; September 11 attacks, 247; invasion of Afghanistan, 248; discusses Iraq with Bush, 251
2002 Budget, 167–8; Chequers meeting on Iraq, 251; meeting with Bush in Crawford, 251; ‘Proliferation Study of Iraq’, 252–3; meeting with Bush at Camp David, 252; September dossier, 255–6; MoD options paper on Iraq, 255; dispute over foundation hospitals, 169–70
2003 meeting with Bush at White House, 257; decision on tuition fees, 236; invasion of Iraq, 31, 182, 250, 260, 265; rejection of euro, 173–4, 182–4; Hutton Inquiry begins, 184; discusses plan to leave with Brown, 185
2004 decides to stay on as PM, 185–6; appoints Milburn head of election campaign, 186; Brighton conference, 186; announces third term, 186; plans for Treasury reform, 186; Civil Partnership Act, 112
2005 general election, 187; calls for deregulation, 188–9; Gleneagles G8 meeting, 190–91; responsibility taken for Helmand, 271, 272; plans for Treasury abandoned, 188
2006 London conference on Afghanistan, 272
2007 resignation, 195, 198, 386
2008 works as Middle East envoy, 243–4
2016 EU membership referendum, 411, 412
Blair, Cherie, 198
Blanchard, Olivier, 123
Blank, Victor, 307
Blatter, Joseph ‘Sepp’, 396
Blind Light (Gormley), 214
Blix, Hans, 252, 256–7, 258
bluetongue disease, 211, 218
Blunkett, David, 50, 86, 203, 234
Blunt, James, 21
Boateng, Ozwald 422
Bogdanor, Vernon, 288, 380
Bono, 186
Boston Tea Party (1773), 141
Bowler, James, 200
‘Boycott the Pumps’ campaign, 142
Boyle, Charlie, 61
Boyle, Danny, 29
Boys’ Brigade, 34, 394
Boyson, Rhodes, 69
Brabants, Tim, 245
Bradford & Bingley, 313
Bradford, West Yorkshire, 14
Branson, Richard, 296
Brazil, 60, 324, 327, 332, 338
Brecht, Bertolt, 68
bribery, 137
Brighton, East Sussex, 204, 247
Bristol, England, 218
Brit Disc Tax, 143
Britain in Europe, 181
Britain Stronger In Europe, 413
Britain’s Everyday Heroes (Brown), 422
British Airways, 395
British Bill of Rights, 205, 206
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), 26, 71, 179, 223
Brown interview (1997), 175–6
Bush–Robinson relations, 213–14
and deficit, 362
Desert Island Discs, 99
G20 Pittsburgh summit (2009), 336
and Murdoch, 289, 290, 369
and Northern Rock collapse (2007), 295
Six O’Clock News, 373
Today, 89, 95, 109, 438
British Cabinet, The (Mackintosh), 225
British Chambers of Commerce, 303
British Empire, 22, 23, 26, 27, 33
British Gas, 105
British Home Stores (BHS), 154, 395
British Leyland, 395
British Petroleum (BP), 177, 238
British Steel, 395
British Telecom (BT), 81, 105, 106–7, 369, 395
British values, 425, 455–6
British Virgin Islands, 154
Britishness, 29–30, 202, 395–6, 406
Brooks, Rebekah, 185, 190, 289, 369, 394
Brown Monday (1997), 180
Brown, Andrew, 12, 38, 52, 67, 74, 94, 96, 97–8, 160
Brown, Cedric, 105
Brown, George, 40, 65, 133, 208
Brown, James Fraser (son), 6, 198, 214, 216, 242, 304, 382, 384, 387, 393, 420
Brown, Jennifer, 5, 158–62, 173
Brown, Jesse Elizabeth, 38, 43
Brown, John (brother), 38, 39–40, 47, 158, 160
Brown, John (tutor), 47
Brown, John Ebenezer (father), 33, 35, 37–9, 43, 56
Brown, John Macauley (son), 6, 173, 198, 214, 216, 242, 304, 320, 382, 384
Brown, Nick, 66, 76, 86, 103, 197, 204, 238
Brown, Sarah, 6, 8, 193, 209, 419–20, 422
2000 marries Gordon, 157–8
2001 birth of Jennifer, 158–9
2002 death of Jennifer, 5, 160–61, 162
2003 birth of John, 6, 173
2005 moves into 10 Downing Street, 420
2006 birth of Fraser, 6; Sun report on Fraser’s cystic fibrosis, 393
2007 Gordon becomes PM, 195, 197, 198, 200; foot-and-mouth outbreak, 214–15; holiday in Scotland, 216; meetings at Chequers, 220, 223; Wade demands sacking of Watson, 190
2008 NHS reforms, 233; meeting with Pope, 242; Israel visit, 243; holiday in Suffolk, 304
2009 G20 summit, 329, 331; deaths of soldiers in Helmand, 14; MPs’ expenses scandal breaks, 13; volunteers at hospice in Kirkcaldy, 423
2010 general election, 372, 377, 389; Gordon’s resignation, 382, 384; Twitter following reaches 1.2 million, 362
2012 Shazia and Kainat arrive in UK, 392
Browne Review (2009–2010), 238
Browne, Desmond, 263, 271, 273, 274, 276, 284
Browne, John, 238
Brownies, 394
Brunel Academy, Bristol, 218
Bruni, Carla, 242
Brunson, Michael, 75
BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopathy), 6
Bucharest, Romania, 275
Buckingham Palace, London, 38, 217, 330
Budd, Alan, 114, 118
Budgets, 127, 132–4, 143, 153
1962, 40
1988, 77–9
1992, 83, 149
1997, 127, 132, 134, 153, 162, 235
1998, 132, 134, 149, 167
1999, 133–4, 139, 144, 147, 149
2000, 149, 163
2001, 164
2002, 4, 112, 162–3, 167
2003, 152, 182
2004, 185
2005, 185
2006, 149
2007, 150, 193
2008, 150, 346
Buffett, Warren, 311
Burgess, Anthony, 2–3
Burke, Barbara, 312
Burke, Edmund, 456
Burma, 242
Burnham, Andrew, 232
Burns Night, 403
Burns, Terry, 113, 114, 117, 118, 120
Bush, George Herbert Walker, 5
Bush, George Walker
2001 gifted bust of Churchill by Blair, 328; September 11 attacks; invasion of Afghanistan, 248; discusses Iraq with Blair, 251
2002 meeting with Blair in Crawford, 251; meeting with Blair at Camp David, 252; announcement on Iraqi WMDs, 254
2003 meeting with Blair at White House, 257; invasion of Iraq, 258, 259
2005 Gleneagles G8 meeting, 191
2006 clash with Robinson, 213–14
2007 troop surge in Iraq, 261; Brown becomes UK prime minister, 199, 200; Brown makes visit, 209, 213–14, 260; comments on Robinson’s bald head, 214
2008 financial crisis begins, 301, 302; collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, 303; Lehman Brothers collapse, 306; announces drawdown in Iraq and surge
in Afghanistan, 279; meets with Brown, 312–13, 325; recapitalisation, 319, 320
Bush, Laura, 213
Butler Review (2004), 250
Butler, Edward, 273
Butler, Robin, 117, 118
C
Cabinet Manual, 374, 375, 386
Cabinet Office, 177, 186, 201, 227, 374
COBRA (Cabinet Office Briefing Room A), 205, 215–16, 218
Cable & Wireless, 105
Cable, John Vincent ‘Vince’, 55, 378, 380, 381, 385
CAFOD (Catholic Agency For Overseas Development), 18
Calderón, Felipe, 328
Caledonian University, 55
Calhoun, Craig, 431
Callaghan, James ‘Jim’, 31, 57, 65, 68, 91, 119, 386
Calman Commission (2009–2010), 18, 399
Calman, Kenneth, 399
Calvinism, 44
Cameron, David, 25, 219, 312, 426, 454
2007 Brown becomes PM, 199; foot-and-mouth outbreak, 216
2008 pledges support for stimulus, 355; arrest of Green, 240–41
2010 general election; formation of coalition, 368, 369, 371, 374, 376, 377
2014 Scottish independence referendum, 400–401, 402, 403; call for ‘English votes for English laws’, 406
2016 EU membership referendum, 31, 407–14; resignation, 386
Camp Bastion, Helmand, 269, 273, 282, 287
Camp David, Maryland, 213, 252, 260
Campaign for Recovery, 88
Campbell, Alastair, 94, 95, 178–9, 180, 199, 218, 428
Campbell, Menzies, 199, 380, 381, 398
Campbell, Naomi, 331, 332
Camus, Albert, 431
Canada, 161, 199, 271, 272, 287
Canavan, Dennis, 66
Cancer Guarantee, 367
cancer, 14, 231, 329
cannabis, 207
Cape Cod, Massachusetts, 158
capital controls, 79
capital gains tax, 104, 110, 440
car scrappage scheme (2009–2010), 347
carbon dioxide, 337
carbon trading, 152
Cardiff, Wales, 57
Carlisle, Cumbria, 373
Carlyle, Thomas, 30
Carmelite nuns, 404
Carnegie, Andrew, 33
Carter, James Earl ‘Jimmy’, 92
cash-for-questions affair (1994–1997), 13
Castle, Barbara, 107–8, 136, 237
Catholicism, 33, 243
Catsaras, Nick, 201
Cavanagh, Matt, 271, 281
Ceauşescu, Nicolae, 247
Celtic F.C., 60
Cenotaph, 289, 377
Chalfont, Lord, see Gwynne Jones, Alun
Chamberlain, Neville and Austen, 202
Charge of the Knights (2008), 263
Charing Cross Hospital, London, 329
Chariots of Fire, 26
Charles, Prince of Wales, 217
Chartism, 414
Chawla, Hector, 48–9
Chelsea Fire Station, 229
Chequers, Buckinghamshire, 180, 188, 215, 219, 220, 223, 251, 287
Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping (2014), 392
Chilcot Inquiry (2009–2011), 249, 255, 258, 264–5
child benefit, 83, 145–6, 224, 235, 346
child poverty, 4, 8, 112, 138, 139, 140, 145–8, 150, 151, 442, 454–5
Child Poverty Act (2010), 442
Child Poverty Action Group, 454
Child Trust Fund, 8, 148, 454
children’s rights, 391
Chile, 258, 327–8
China, 199, 301, 307, 344
Brown’s visit (2008), 242
Copenhagen Climate Change Conference (2009), 337–8
fiscal stimulus, 348
G20 London summit (2009), 18, 324, 328, 334–5
and inflation, 122
Olympic Games (2008), 245
Paris Agreement (2016), 338
and tax havens, 334–5
Tibet, 245, 334
trade deficit, 336
Chinook Mark 3 programme, 277
Christianity, 33, 44, 206, 243, 258, 398–9
Christie, Ross, 402
Church of Scotland, 398–9
Churchill, Winston, 20, 26, 196, 249–50, 331–2, 361, 386, 413, 414, 459
bust of, 328
Edinburgh rectorship, 51
on ‘fair play’, 425
funeral (1965), 394
on Ireland, 16
on Maxton, 75
Sutherland portrait, 459
White House, stay at (1941–2), 20
Citigroup, 298
Citizen’s Charter, 25
Citizens UK Rally, 373
citizens’ juries, 205, 207, 218
City Academy, Hackney, 48
City of London, 188–9, 181
civic conservatism, 25
Civil Contingencies Secretariat, 215
Civil Partnership Act (2004), 112
Civil Service, 118, 199, 201, 207, 288, 305, 385–6
civil rights movement, 391
Clackmannanshire, Scotland, 72, 405
Claim of Right, 417
Clark, Helen, 199
Clarke, Charles, 203, 234, 237
Clarke, Kenneth, 84, 93, 103, 109, 110, 115–16, 118, 119, 177, 181, 421
Clarke, Michael, 278
Clarke, Tom, 86
Clarkson, Jeremy, 49
Clause IV, 87, 96, 102
‘clear, hold, build’, 278, 281
Clegg, Nick, 187, 371, 374–82, 403
climate change, 157, 337–8, 375, 443, 451
Climate Change Bill, 207, 367
Copenhagen Conference, 337–8, 375
levy, 152
Paris Agreement (2015–16), 338, 390, 443
Clinton Global Initiative, 324
Clinton, Hillary, 302, 337, 367, 414
Clinton, William ‘Bill’, 5, 27, 28, 82, 92, 214
Clockwork Orange, A (Burgess), 2–3
Cluny Parish Church, Edinburgh, 99
cluster bombs, 367
coal industry, 34, 36–7, 61
miners’ strike (1974), 53
miners’ strike (1984–1985), 71–3
National Coal Board, 62, 71, 72
National Union of Mineworkers, 62
coalition government (2010–2015), 15, 153, 237, 304, 365, 374–86
Coalition Provisional Authority, 259
COBRA (Cabinet Office Briefing Room A), 205
Coe, Sebastian, 396
Cohen, Ronald, 240, 309
Cold War, 212, 293
Coldplay, 21
collectivism, 28
Coltrane, Robbie, 421
Commerzbank, 314
Commission for Africa, 190
Commission on Unclaimed Assets, 309
Commonwealth, 26, 137, 175, 180, 199, 224, 286, 390
Commonwealth Games (2014), 405
Communist Party of Great Britain, 41
Compass, 92
‘compensation culture’, 189
Competition Commission, 134
Comprehensive Spending Reviews, 134, 349
Concorde, 125
Confederation of British Industry (CBI), 74, 203
Conservative Party
1940 Churchill becomes PM, 196
1956 Suez conflict; resignation of Eden, 11, 196
1959 general election, 40
1963 EEC membership vetoed, 31; resignation of Macmillan, 196; Kinross and West Perthshire by-election, 41;
1970 Ministry of Overseas Aid subsumed by Foreign Office, 136
1974 general elections, 31, 53–4
1979 Scottish devolution referendum, 56; vote of no confidence in Callaghan, 57; general election, 58
1981 rejection of NCB recommendation to close uneconomic pits, 71
1982 investigation of Rosyth Dockyard education project, 60
1983 reform of mortgage tax relief, 143; general election, 67
1984 miners’ strike begins, 71; plan to pilot benefit schem
e in Cowdenbeath, 70
1985 welfare reforms, 70; Dockyard Services Bill, 73–4
1987 general election, 75
1988 Budget, 77–9; restriction on mortgage tax relief, 143; Autumn Statement, 79; Lawson pushes for Bank of England independence, 115
1989 poll tax introduced in Scotland, 80; resignation of Lawson, 80
1990 poll tax introduced in England and Wales, 141; resignation of Howe, 80; leadership election, 31, 80–81
1992 Budget, 83, 149; general election, 82–4, 103; ERM crisis, 31, 90, 115, 176, 178
1994 VAT on fuel announced, 103
1997 Clarke declines to raise interest rates, 116; general election, 58, 108–11; Bank of England independence, 119
1998 National Minimum Wage Act, 133
1999 Budget, 144; Save the Pound campaign, 181
2000 Boycott the Pumps campaign, 142
2001 Blair’s statement on euro, 181; general election, 144, 164–5
2003 invasion of Iraq, 259
2004 vote on tuition fees, 238
2005 general election, 187, 222
2007 foot-and-mouth outbreak, 216; inheritance tax pledge, 221; Labour decision against early election, 223; Home Office leaks, 224; pledge to match Labour’s spending promises, 350
2008 vacillation on support for stimulus, 355–6; arrest of Green, 240–41
2009 Manchester conference, 288; endorsed by Sun, 290; launch of Chilcot Inquiry, 264–5
2010 general election; formation of coalition, 144, 153, 232, 342, 365–86, 409; cancellation of Sheffield Forgemasters loan, 15
2011 Alternative Vote referendum, 378; closure of Aim Higher programme, 237; increase in QE, 304
2012 House of Lords Reform Bill, 378; Olympic Games, 29
2014 Scottish independence referendum, 400–401, 402, 403; call for ‘English votes for English laws’, 406; Smith Commission launched, 403
2015 general election, 407, 409; Osborne’s U-Turn on tax credits, 142
2016 EU membership referendum, 31, 407–14; resignation of Cameron, 386
2017 proposals for dementia and self-employment taxes, 142; general election, 31, 58, 368, 369
constituency surgeries, 4, 180, 390
Constitution Unit, 385
constitutional reforms, 204–5, 206–9, 375, 378, 380
consumers’ rights, 59
contingent capital, 340
contraceptive pills, 44
controlled foreign company (CFC), 153
Cook, Robin, 203, 397
1970 general election, 53
1974 general elections, 53–4
1983 runs Kinnock’s leadership campaign, 68; Brown’s maiden speech, 69
1994 leadership election, 95, 97
1997 general election, 113; debate on euro entry, 177, 178
2003 debate on Iraqi WMD, 250, 251; resignation, 259
2005 death, 203
‘Cool Britannia’, 29, 395
Cooper, Yvette, 302, 413