Policy Announcements, Friday 13 April

Government  

• The Labour Party's website is likely to play a pivotal role in the battle to be its next leader, it has emerged. MPs' leadership nominations will be published on the site, although party sources denied reports the list will be updated hourly to boost interest. Nevertheless, opponents of Gordon Brown reportedly plan to use it to show growing support for David Miliband, in an effort to persuade him to stand. MPs can nominate a candidate even if they have not entered the race. If the candidate gathers 45 nominations, or 12.5% of the parliamentary party, they will be entitled to take part in a leadership ballot. They will have until noon on the day after nominations close to decide whether to enter the race or not.  
• A detailed action plan which will help to increase job opportunities for newly qualified healthcare professionals is published today. The plan, which has been put together jointly by the NHS trade unions, the Department of Health and NHS Employers through the Social Partnership Forum, makes a series of practical suggestions as to what NHS, social care, local government, independent and voluntary sector employers and higher education institutions can do together to identify employment opportunities for newly qualified healthcare professionals.  
• The Department of Health today announced an agreement that will enable approved industry-sponsored clinical trials to start sooner in NHS Primary Care. A standard form has now been agreed for the pharmaceutical industry to use in seeking permission from NHS Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) for clinical trials to start in GP practices, simplifying the administration of clinical research. This will mean that industry-sponsored clinical trials involving patients in primary care in the NHS can start sooner. It follows the model Clinical Trials Agreement (mCTA) for hospitals announced last year.  

Conservatives  

• David Cameron has sought to build bridges with the business community by launching a new fund to help budding entrepreneurs. The Conservative leader annoyed commercial leaders when he dropped out of speaking at the CBI conference at short notice and appeared to distance himself from traditional Conservative business-friendly approaches. Cameron was being joined by the first 'apprentice' winner Tim Campbell to launch a fund aiming to give millions of pounds to help budding entrepreneurs. The Conservative chief gave his backing to "social enterprise" schemes of the kind being launched. "There is a new spirit of creativity in our country. We politicians need to match this with a new spirit of our own - tearing down the barriers which stop people founding businesses of their own," said Cameron. "But only when people themselves - as businesses and neighbours - take responsibility for their own communities, will we build the Britain we all want to see: prosperous, safe and socially just."