Monday, 12 November, 2007
- 12 Nov 07, 05:09 PM
MANSION HOUSE SPEECH
When he was Chancellor, he insisted on wearing a normal suit, but Gordon Brown will be donning the traditional white tie and tails for his first Mansion House speech as Prime Minister tonight. And that's not the only change that's he's likely to signal.
When he took over the top job, Gordon Brown appeared to suggest that the US could no longer take its special relationship with Britain for granted. The appointment of Mark Malloch-Brown as a minister seemed to confirm this. However tonight, he's expected to reaffirm that Britain's ties to the US are the most important we have. So, tonight, we'll attempt a definitive assessment of the state of the relationship.
INSULAR TEENAGERS?
If a out today is to be believed, then we can expect that not many of Britain's teenagers will be plugged in to the PM's speech. They care less about international affairs and have a worse attitude towards learning other languages than their counterparts in Nigeria, the US or Saudi Arabia.
We decided to test the hypothesis by linking up with the social networking site, .
If you're a Bebo user and want to contribute to the forum we've created there, you can find the page by clicking on "ch-ch-changes" on your login page.
And the chief executives of Bebo and the British Council will discuss the findings with Jeremy.
PAKISTAN
Commonwealth officials are meeting in London today to discuss whether Pakistan should be suspended, after General Musharraf's imposition of a state of emergency. Meanwhile, the General's commitment to holding elections in January yesterday has been welcomed by the international community. Mark Urban is assessing whether these apparently contradictory moves amount to a strategic game plan.
HIZB UT TAHRIR
And - this is not something we often say - we have a fascinating report from Kyrgyzstan. The radical Islamist party Hizb ut Tahrir has seen a surge in support there, and in neighbouring Uzbekistan. It's banned in both countries, but people are joining in droves anyway. In fact, it may be that the clampdown on political and religious freedoms is actually driving more people to join, despite the risks.
