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In Brief
The Conservative Party conference begins in Blackpool, with the day's theme being 'helping people throughout their lives'. The agenda includes keynote speeches from party chairman Francis Maude, shadow culture secretary Theresa May, shadow work and pensions secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind, shadow transport secretary Alan Duncan and former party leader Iain Duncan Smith.
Sir Malcolm will claim he is the best "one nation" candidate for the party leadership. "We are the party of social conscience as well as the party of lower taxes and strong defence," he will say.
A Populus poll in the Times shows little public enthusiasm for any of the Conservative leadership contenders. Just 22 per cent of Tory supporters felt that the party have a good team of leaders, compared to more than 50 per cent for each of the other main parties. However, a YouGov poll in the Telegraph suggests that Tory party members believe that Kenneth Clarke would be best placed to win them the next election but doubt whether he could hold the party together. Among the public at large, Clarke enjoys the support of 28 per cent of voters, with ratings for the other four contenders in single figures. Among Tory voters, Clarke and David Davis are level on 30 per cent. David Cameron is third on 16 per cent, Liam Fox on 13 and Sir Malcolm Rifkind on four. But an ICM survey in the Guardian finds that Cameron would be most likely to win votes from Labour under Gordon Brown, with Davis second and Clarke third.
Shadow foreign secretary Liam Fox has appealed to the media not to "pigeon-hole" candidates, including himself. "I think it's very dangerous to start to pigeon-hole people in that way," he told BBC Breakfast. "I think that we all have a range of views on a range of subjects and I hope that is what we will spend this week exploring."
Defence secretary John Reid continues a visit to Afghanistan, which comes as Britain prepares to take over the lead role in peacekeeping in the country.
Ruth Kelly publishes a report by the school meals review panel proposing tougher nutritional standards. The education secretary has said that junk food will be banned from schools by September 2006.
After a weekend of frantic negotiations, the European Union is scheduled to begin accession talks with Turkey. However, EU foreign ministers had last night failed to reach agreement on the ground rules for the the talks.
Foreign secretary Jack Straw chairs a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg. The agenda includes action against Uzbekistan for human rights abuses.
Local e-government minister Jim Fitzpatrick launches a new initiative to make it easier for people to access local council services over the internet.
Culture minister David Lammy launches a new Bookstart scheme at Paddington Children's Library, part of a national books for babies programme.
International development minister Gareth Thomas begins a four-day visit to health projects in Zambia and Malawi.
Higher education minister Bill Rammell launches student finance week with a £4m campaign, including television advertisements, which attempts to clarify the "complex" system.
The Department for Constitutional Affairs launches a new national scheme to encourage early contact between debtors and creditors. The Pre-Action Notices are designed to help people resolve debt difficulties without the stress and added cost of going to court.
Thousands of barristers are threatening to strike today over the fees paid under legal aid. The lawyers are unhappy over the government's proposed reforms of legal aid, following an overspend on the £2bn budget.
Respect MP George Galloway continues his speaking tour with an event in Aberystwyth.
The two day Welsh Local Government Association's annual conference begins in Swansea. The event opens with a speech from WLGA leader Alex Aldridge and also includes addresses from Sir Michael Lyons, chairman of the inquiry into the funding of local services, auditor general for Wales Jeremy Colman, Liberal Democrat AM Mike German, Conservative AM David Melding and Plaid Cymru president Dafydd Iwan.
The Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly begins its autumn session, which concludes on October 7. The first day's agenda includes reports on migratory flows and enforced disappearances.
The International Atomic Energy Agency's board of governors meets in Vienna, Austria.
Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, is among the speakers at a Neil Stewart Associates conference on 'accountability for the 21st century'.
The Women's Environmental Network and Unison launch a campaign urging tighter controls on cancer-causing chemicals.
The CBI hosts a conference on pensions in London.
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