Full coverage of UK PoliticsI learn that Dominic Grieve — David Davis's successor as shadow home secretary — will speak at the meeting officially adopting him as the Tory candidate next Monday. But still no word on when David Cameron will fulfil his pledge to visit Haltemprice and Howden. "He definitely will be going up and all of the shadow cabinet will be doing so too," promises a party spoke...

Full coverage of the US elections 2008It's been an unhappy few days for Barack Obama, but more so perhaps for those among his followers who really believed in his message of change. Three incidents have shown Obama for what he is: a politician, albeit not a very talented one. 1. He has gone back on his word by declining public financing for the last 10 weeks of the campaign (the official phase fro...

Full coverage of UK PoliticsDavid Davis's decision to resign and fight a by-election is causing all manner of headaches for the nation's broadcasters. Existing guidelines on covering such contests dictate that the BBC, ITN and Sky give equal air-time to the candidates from the three main parties, whilst acknowledging the also-rans appearing on the ballot paper. But what happens when two of the thre...

Full coverage of UK PoliticsCollecting the Minister of the Year gong at Wednesday's House Magazine Parliamentary Awards, Europe Minister Jim Murphy let the audience in on a remarkable secret: as a boy, he had corporal punishment dished out to him by a future colleague. John McFall — chairman of the award-winning Treasury Select Committee — was deputy headteacher at Glasgow's Bellarmine Secondar...

Europe's leaders sat down to dinner to discuss how Ireland is going to pick up the pieces after saying No to the Lisbon European Treaty. No most definitely does not mean No. Plan B is to ask again – probably next spring.Can EU leaders make the Irish say 'Yes'?The food was traditional Slovenian and they toasted Treaty saviour Gordon Brown with a crisp Sivi Pinot, Movia 2005 before moving on to a t...