THE UK:British prime minister Gordon Brown continued his relentless claim to represent political change yesterday with a pre-announcement of the queen's speech outlining his parliamentary programme for the coming year, writes Frank Millar, London Editor.
Mr Brown broke with tradition and introduced the concept of an annual summer statement by the prime minister, opening the way to public consultation and debate about the government's legislative proposals ahead of their formal disclosure by Queen Elizabeth at the state opening of the new parliamentary session in November.
Plans to build more affordable housing top the list of 23 new Bills that again put health and education at the heart of the Labour project, with a promise that three million new homes will be built by 2020, up 250,000 from the government's previous plan.
However, Conservative leader David Cameron dismissed Mr Brown's latest "constitutional innovation", saying that it sounded rather like the queen's speech of last year, the year before and the year before that.
Accusing Mr Brown of repeating old announcements and objectives, Mr Cameron declared: "For 10 years he has plotted and schemed for the top job, but all we have got is a sort of re-release of the 1997 manifesto. The country has moved on, but he simply hasn't."
The two clashed earlier at prime minister's questions over the government's planned major review of the health service, which Mr Cameron claimed would result in further hospital closures and cuts in services.
Mr Brown made no obvious mistakes on his second outing at the dispatch box, although he still appeared somewhat flat-footed.
There were some suspicions around Westminster that the announcement of the new-style, two-stage queen's speech might even have been intended to divert attention away from the exchanges in the Commons.
However, the "new" government's publicity planning also appeared less than skilful as Mr Brown risked upstaging his "headline" announcement on housing by also signalling a review of so-called supercasinos.
In a move certain to win support across a wide political spectrum, Mr Brown said this was an issue on which there was "no consensus" between the Commons and the Lords and which would now be subject to a period of reflection.
"In September we will have a report that will look at gambling in our country - the incidence and prevalence of it and the social effects of it," Mr Brown said, signalling his hope that "a better way" might be found of meeting the economic and social needs of areas designated for supercasinos.
Mr Brown won immediate approval from the Salvation Army, which has maintained that increasing opportunities to gamble may have a long-term detrimental effect on individuals and communities. However, his comments were greeted with "shock and surprise" in Manchester, the surprise winning bidder to house Britain's first supercasino.
Chris Fletcher, policy director of Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said: "The idea behind the supercasino in east Manchester was that it would lever further private investment money into an area as a catalyst for the regeneration already going on.
"These areas are desperately in need of significant investment to kick-start crucial regeneration work. If we are hearing it's not going to happen, what has Mr Brown got to replace it to make sure these people have access to jobs?"
MP Graham Stringer said it would be "a weak and bad decision" if the city's successful bid did not proceed, adding: "The idea that Manchester City Council haven't thought of all the possible ways to regenerate east Manchester is quite frankly insulting."
Meanwhile, Plaid Cymru leader Ieuan Wyn Jones yesterday became deputy first minister in the Welsh Assembly, following the party's endorsement of a historic powersharing deal with Labour.