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Parties finalise defence cut plea

Computer generated image of aircraft carrier The carriers are being built on the Clyde and at Rosyth

Scotland’s main political parties have struck a deal to raise concerns over possible defence spending cuts.

A UK government review has sparked fears for the future of two aircraft carrier orders and Scottish RAF bases.

Scottish ministers, Labour, the Lib Dems and the Conservatives have now joined forces to stress the economic damage such action could do.

The agreement will form the basis of a submission to the MoD’s strategic defence review.

There are fears the £5bn project to build two new aircraft carriers, on the Clyde and at Rosyth in Fife, could be downgraded, along with air bases at Kinloss and Lossiemouth.

First Minister Alex Salmond, said of the submission, to be published this week: “The more united Scotland’s voice is, the stronger it will be, which is why this cross-party submission is of vital importance.

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“The document is about the compelling case for Scotland and Scottish jobs and skills.

“This is an issue that affects families and communities the length and breadth of Scotland, including the need to secure the aircraft carrier contract work being carried out on the Clyde and at Rosyth, and the RAF bases at Kinloss and Lossiemouth currently under threat from the UK defence review.”

Mr Salmond added: “Our best chance of success in achieving that goal will be if we act with maximum unity of purpose – anything which detracts from that will only serve to undermine that case.”

Defence Secretary Liam Fox is expected to make an announcement on spending at the end of October, and has stressed no final decisions have yet been made.

But the Ministry of Defence is under pressure to cut its £36.9bn annual budget by up to 20%.

Concerns about the carriers were raised after BAE systems chief executive Sir Ian King told the Commons Defence Select Committee the company had been asked to consider a number of options ranging from “one carrier to no carriers”.

Scottish ministers said cancellation could cost up to 10,000 jobs.

The joint submission has steered away from the replacement of Trident nuclear weapons on the Clyde, a divisive issue among the different parties.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

We must hold nerve, insists Clegg

Nick Clegg preparing conference speechNick Clegg will use his speech to criticise Labour’s handling of the economy

Nick Clegg will try to reassure Liberal Democrats who have raised doubts about the coalition, promising it will “put the country on a better path”.

In his speech to the Lib Dem conference, the deputy prime minister is expected to say “this is the right government for right now”.

Mr Clegg will also say the party would not be taken seriously again, if it had not done a deal with the Tories.

He will also stress the parties remain distinct, despite the coalition.

There are reports that many grassroots Lib Dems are unhappy at the coalition agreement, fearing that their party is being subsumed by a Conservative cuts agenda.

In his speech, Mr Clegg will defend reaching an agreement with the Tories after no party won a parliamentary majority in May’s general election.

He is expected to say: “Some say we shouldn’t have gone into government at a time when spending had to be cut. We should have let the Conservatives take the blame. Waited on the sidelines, ready to reap the political rewards.

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“Maybe that’s what people expected from a party that has been in opposition for 65 years.

“People have got used to us being outsiders, against every government that’s come along. Maybe we got used to it ourselves. But the door to the change we want was opened, for the first time in most of our lifetimes.

“Imagine if we had turned away. How could we ever again have asked the voters to take us seriously?”

Mr Clegg will also say: “The Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives are and always will be separate parties, with distinct histories and different futures.

“But for this Parliament we work together to fix the problems we face and put the country on a better path. This is the right government for right now.”

The government is to outline the details of its cuts programme, aimed at reducing the £155bn budget deficit, when it publishes its spending review on 20 October.

Most Whitehall departments have been told to plan for savings of between 25% and 40%.

On Sunday, former Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy told the BBC there was a “legitimate argument” to be had over the speed and scope of the cuts.

This followed criticism from Labour that the plans could undermine the economic recovery and damage front line services, hitting the poor hardest.

But Mr Clegg will use his speech to repeat the promise made by the Lib Dem Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Danny Alexander, to target rich tax-avoiders in an effort to reduce the deficit.

He will say: “Labour left the country’s coffers empty. So the years ahead will not be easy. But you do not get to choose the moment when the opportunity to shape your country comes your way. All you get to choose is what you do when it does.”

Mr Clegg will add: “People who avoid and evade paying their taxes will no longer get away with it either.

“We all read the headlines about benefit fraud. We all agree it’s wrong when people help themselves to benefits they shouldn’t get. But when the richest people in the country dodge their tax bill that is just as bad.

“Both come down to stealing money from your neighbours. We will be tough on welfare cheats. But unlike Labour, we’ll be tough on tax cheats too.”

However, a revolt over the coalition’s schools policy could provide an embarrassing overture to the leader’s big speech.

At a fringe meeting on Sunday night, delegates criticised the plans for free schools and new academies outside local authority control, saying they were costly, unethical and divisive.

If the conference does vote against the plans it would not change government policy.

Mr Clegg will be leaving the conference after his speech, as he is due to attend a United Nations summit in New York on reducing world poverty.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Indian MPs meet Kashmir leaders

A man comforts a relative of Mubeena Akhtar who was killed in police firing near Srinagar on 19 September 2010 More than 100 people have died in Kashmir since June

A delegation of Indian lawmakers is in Indian-administered Kashmir on a two-day visit which aims to defuse months of deadly civil unrest in the region.

Prominent separatist leaders said they would not meet the MPs.

Over the weekend, police and protesters clashed violently in the valley as residents continued to defy curfew.

Anti-India sentiment is high in Kashmir, where more than 100 protesters have died since June. Nearly all were shot dead by government forces.

The valley has been under an almost round-the-clock curfew for more than a week.

The delegation is headed by Indian Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram and includes lawmakers from all major national parties.

The government announced the all-party fact-finding mission last week after an emergency meeting in the capital, Delhi.

‘No mandate’

The BBC’s Chris Morris in Indian-administered Kashmir’s main city of Srinagar says the place remains under curfew and the streets are deserted.

The police have been busy painting over anti-India slogans on walls and roadside curbs, and a huge security operation has been mounted to coincide with the MPs’ visit, our correspondent adds.

Syed Ali Shah Geelani, leader of the hardline faction of separatist group the Hurriyat Conference, has refused to acknowledge the delegation.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, leader of the moderate wing of the Hurriyat Conference, and Yasin Malik, who is head of another separatist group, the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front, have also said they will boycott the meeting.

Local Kashmiri media say they are also boycotting the visit in protest at restrictions upon them.

Kashmir has been on the boil since June, with tens of thousands of protesters taking to the streets.

Protesters in the mainly Muslim valley have hurled stones at troops and demanded independence from India.

Many analysts see the recent unrest as the biggest challenge to Indian rule in Kashmir for 20 years.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

UN millennium goals ‘can be met’

Boys at a school in Mumbai, India The Millennium Development Goals aim to cut poverty and improve health and access to education

The Millennium Development Goals can still be met if enough work is done, the UN secretary general has said.

Ban Ki-moon told world leaders, meeting in New York to review the targets, that they had already achieved much to be proud of.

But he said “the clock is ticking, we have much more to do” if the goals are to be met by the 2015 deadline.

The eight goals set 10 years ago aim to reduce poverty and hunger and improve health standards around the world.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Mass appeal?

MAX CLIFFORD, PUBLICIST

Max CliffordPR guru Max Clifford thinks the visit was a PR success

Overall, it was a very good thing that he made such a public apology over the child sexual abuse activities. That is something that has been doing huge damage to the Roman Catholic Church.

I think he got better coverage in the British media than I expected. In the build-up to the visit there was far more criticism than praise and then after he arrived far more praise than criticism. The pluses far outweighed the minuses.

From a PR perspective there is a huge amount that needs to be done, but the visit was a success – far more a success than I thought it might have been.

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH – FATHER CHRISTOPHER JAMISON

The PopeThe Pope outside Westminster Cathedral on Friday

There were two high points – from the perspective of the state visit the event in Westminster Hall was memorable for the depth of the Holy Father’s insight and for the warmth of the reception from the British parliamentarians present.

This was a great compliment to Britain in its ability to welcome a religious voice onto the public stage. The prime minister’s words at the airport confirmed how his words had struck a chord.

Secondly from the pastoral point of view the beatification of Cardinal Newman has brought to the attention of many people a great Englishman whose memory will now be celebrated in new ways.

Finally the sheer volume of people on the streets both in Edinburgh and London meant that more than half a million people saw the Pope in person and this demonstration of public support has deeply touched the Holy Father and the entire delegation from the Holy See.

TERRY SANDERSON, PRESIDENT OF THE NATIONAL SECULAR SOCIETY

The one positive thing that this visit has brought to us is a stirring of the secular conscience.

The indifference that usually greets religion in this country (and polls before he arrived showed that the lack of interest extended to the Pope) turned into unease at the portrayal of those who want to live without religion as “aggressive” and in some way antipathetic to the good of the country.

Subsequently, 20,000 people turned out in the streets to show the Pope that they will not be dismissed as enemies of society simply because they do not agree with him.

I think the Pope may have unleashed a movement for a legal secularisation in this country that he will come to regret.

ABUSE VICTIM SUE COX

Sue CoxAbuse victim Sue Cox says the Papal visit has incensed more people

It was a very successful PR stunt. He did what we expected – smiled a lot, kissed lots of babies and expressed sorrow.

He hasn’t addressed the issues at all. He hasn’t offered any recompense.

In terms of what he has done – he has done nothing.

The man has got a proven record of covering up child sex abuse. We want him to do something concrete – to open up those secret files.

When I went there on Saturday I met lots of other people who had been abused. They said the same thing.

I think what he has done is to incense more people.

He has done exactly what we predicted he would do.

FATHER PATRICK DALY, PRIEST AT ST PETER AND ST PAUL RC CHURCH, WOLVERHAMPTON

I was at the Mass in Cofton Park yesterday and I found it very uplifting and I have spoken to some of my parishioners who went and they too enjoyed it greatly and thought it was well worth getting up early to go to. The feedback was very positive.

I thought the BBC’s generous and fair-minded coverage helped people come close to a very warm and affectionate Pope Benedict XVI. The English are rather reserved by nature so that reserve (which he has) will have appealed to them.

We are living in a very different world to that of the papal visit of 28 years ago. A lot has changed but the size of the crowds and the warmth of the welcome was I think better than had been expected.

Rather than tackle child abuse he raised it and apologised.

Other issues he raised were the place of religion in public discourse in this country. It was a fair point but I would have thought religion is given a fair innings from the British media.

ANDREW COPSON, BRITISH HUMANIST SOCIETY

Protesters against the Pope's visitThousands of people joined the protest march in London on Saturday

For non-religious people, the state visit of the Pope was immediately inflammatory. His first comments in our country linked not believing in God with Nazism and accused secularists of being intolerant.

Combined with the failure of our politicians to defend the values of secularism, equality and democracy in response to his comments, but instead to reassure him that faith was at the heart of Britain, I think that at least one of the legacies of the state visit will be a disaffection and frustration among non-religious people not just with the Pope but with our own politicians.

When it came to the march and rally – our main protest event – we were amazed at the turnout.

By the time we reached Westminster for the speeches we were just under 20,000 strong and we think that means we were the largest protest in modern times against the international policies of the Holy See.

Certainly there has never been anything like it at any Papal state visit in living memory.

The protesters had diverse motives, as the various placards testified: opposition to the undermining of the human rights of women, of gay and lesbian people, of children; the refusal of the Pope to ordain women; the concealment of child abuse and frustration of justice.

JESUS ECHEVARRIA, HEAD TEACHER OF ST AUGUSTINE’S SCHOOL, SCARBOROUGH, NORTH YORKSHIRE

(The school took a party of six children to the Twickenham event on Friday)

There was a certain trepidation when the trip was announced but I think it’s opened people’s eyes and they have found a very different Pope to the one that was painted by the media.

He had a very definite connection with young people. He spoke very well and what he said was very uplifting. He said it’s OK to have money but it’s not the be all and end all and he said the same about celebrity.

He said the point of worshipping is to get to heaven.

He praised the work of educational institutions and said education was about more than just exam results.

He had a very positive message of hope for the future.

He hasn’t banged on about fire and brimstone, with a very conservative message that everything is banned.

John Paul II had a natural charisma but this Pope has shown that he has got that charisma too but we just hadn’t been aware of it in England.

He also tackled the child abuse issue head on. He has tried to root it out. In the past it has been swept under the carpet but now we are putting our house in order.

THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND – CANON PAUL AVIS, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE COUNCIL FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY

Pope Benedict has given the spiritual health of Britain a shot in the arm. The Pope’s humility impressed many.

He succeeded in putting eternal truths in simple, attractive words which found an echo in the hearts of many non-churchgoers.

The personal rapport between the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope was moving. It pointed to the fact that there is massive symmetry in belief and worship between our two traditions.

As the Archbishop implied, despite obvious differences, there is much that we can do together in united witness to the gospel in our society.

CALLUM CHAPLIN, 15, PUPIL AT ST AUGUSTINE’S, SCARBOROUGH

“It was quite a unique experience to hear him speak. A once-in-a-lifetime experience.

It was amazing the amount of young people there, there must have been 5,000 from all over the country.

The Pope said young people were the building blocks of the church in the future.

He said many people admire celebrities and rich people but you don’t need fame or wealth to be happy. A lot of people of my age think that is what you need to be happy but it’s not necessarily true.

He seemed like someone who respected everybody and was aware of the issues and knew where people were coming from.

One thing he said that stuck with me was that even if your faith is not as strong as you think it should be, you shouldn’t worry, it will be back. Your faith may be dented but you should stick with it.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

US recession ‘longest since WWII’

A US factory The report took in data including industrial production

The US recession lasted 18 months and was the most prolonged since World War II, a report has concluded.

The National Bureau of Economic Research said the recovery began in June 2009, with recession having begun in 2007.

Its views carry weight in the US, even though there is usually a lag before it reaches a view, said BBC World Service economics editor Andrew Walker.

The organisation’s figures take in data beyond simply GDP.

Income, employment industrial production and wholesale retail sales also from part of the analysis.

The previous longest postwar recessions in 1973-75 and 1981-82 both lasted 16 months, it said.

“The committee did not conclude that economic conditions since that month have been favourable or that the economy has returned to operating at normal capacity,” the NEBR said.

“Rather, the committee determined only that the recession ended and a recovery began in that month.”

Separately on Monday the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) also cut its US growth forecast.

The OECD predicts the US economy will grow by 2.6% this year, having previously predicted expansion of 3.2%.

It also warned in its latest economic survey of the US that the downturn may trigger long-term damage to the economy, with higher long-term unemployment.

Meanwhile, the UK’s Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) said that it expected the US economy to expand by 2.2% next year, after growing by 2.5% this year.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Israel ships new cars into Gaza

Cars wait to enter the Gaza Strip from southern Israel's Erez crossing, 20 SeptemberIsrael co-ordinates all imports into Gaza with the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank

Israel has allowed about 20 cars into Gaza, in the first such shipment since the militant Hamas movement took over the Strip in 2007.

The decision was taken in June, after an outcry over Israel’s raid on an aid flotilla, but was delayed by red tape and rocket attacks, a spokesman said.

Last week, the IMF said that Gaza’s economy had grown 16% since the easing, but warned it was against a “low base”.

Four out of five of the territory’s 1.5 million residents rely on foreign aid.

Unemployment remains at 37%, one of the highest rates in the world.

Israel and neighbouring Egypt shut down Gaza’s border crossings when an Israeli soldier was captured in June 2006, and tightened it further when Hamas took control of Gaza, driving the Fatah faction of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas out of the strip, a year later. Hamas had won parliamentary elections in Gaza and the West Bank earlier in 2006.

The 20 cars – both new and used – were transported into Gaza via the Kerem Shalom border crossing – which the Palestinians call Kerem Abu Salem – on Monday afternoon, said the BBC’s Jon Donnison from the border area.

Analysis

Jon Donnison

There are only 20 cars and they are much needed. Transport in the Gaza Strip can be dilapidated and rickety to say the least. Many cars are in a terrible state and lots of people still travel by donkey.

During the past three years, the only way to get a new car into Gaza was literally underground – with whole brand new cars being smuggled in through tunnels from Egypt.

With the easing of Israel’s blockade, it’s 20 new cars for now, and more expected to follow. But one key question – with Gaza’s economy devastated by the blockade and unemployment close to 40%, how many people can afford one?

Earlier, there had been “several problems” in co-ordinating the delayed shipment with the Western-backed Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, Maj Guy Inbar of the Israeli military’s Gaza liaison office told the AFP news agency, without providing further details.

Since Hamas took over in Gaza, all imports are organised with the Palestinian Authority.

The delivery was also held up by near-daily rocket and mortar attacks last week, he added.

Israel began allowing consumer goods into Gaza after its May raid on a Turkish aid ship sparked international outrage. Nine activists were killed when Israeli commandos intercepted the ship in international waters.

But it still blocks all exports from the territory, imposes a complete naval blockade, and severely restricts the movement of people.

The Israeli authorities also limit the amount of construction and raw materials allowed into Gaza, leading to the closure of hundreds of businesses and factories – some of which were destroyed during Israel’s 22-day military offensive, which ended in January 2009.

According to the United Nations, the Israeli military campaign left more than 50,000 homes, 800 industrial properties and 200 schools damaged or destroyed.

Israel says the restrictions are necessary to pressure militants to stop firing rockets from the territory.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Lib Dems suffer schools defeat

Pupils at the Paddington Academy in LondonThe Lib Dems say local authorities must retain oversight of how school places are awarded

The Lib Dems are debating calls for them to turn their backs on free schools – a flagship policy of their Conservative coalition partners.

Party activists were told the new schools, approved by Parliament, would be “divisive, costly and unfair”.

Ex-MP Evan Harris said Lib Dems should be free to campaign against them.

But Schools Minister Sarah Teather said the proposal amounted to “an illiberal boycott” and the Lib Dems had helped to improve the proposals.

A motion at the party conference in Liverpool calls on the party to urge people “not to take up the option” of free schools when they first open their doors next year.

Up to 16 free schools, funded by central government and which will not require consultation with local councils, are set to open by September 2011.

Parliament backed the Conservative-led plan in July but some Lib Dems rebelled and others expressed misgivings.

The debate on free schools and expansion of academies is one of the potential flashpoints of the conference and should the motion be passed, it would be an embarrassment for the leadership.

The rebel motion says the policy will make an “already unfair” schools system more unequal, worsen educational outcomes for the majority of children, further complicate admissions procedures, jeopardise existing school building programmes and endanger provision for pupils with special needs.

It also calls for tighter guidelines on the expansion of academies, a Labour policy which the coalition has pledged to accelerate – with 140 schools on course to get academy status this year.

“We must be free to fight the Tories at local level up and down the country.””

Evan Harris Lib Dem MP

It says local authorities should retain “strategic oversight” of the publicly funded provision of school places and maintain support for all state-funded schools and for ministers to ensure existing state schools are not financially disadvantaged as a result.

Lib Dem councillor Peter Downes said the proposals were “incompatible” with long-held party principles and amounted to a massive centralisation of education provision.

Free schools posed a “potentially very significant threat to the stability, fairness and viability of our schools system”, he said.

It was a fallacy that there was demand for “root and branch reform” of schools by parents concerned about the standards of schools in their area.

“There is no widespread demand for schools to be revolutionised,” he said.

An amendment to the motion – supported by the leadership – rejects calls for a boycott and urges Lib Dem MPs to work within government to ensure funding for refurbishing existing schools is not “prejudiced” by the cost of establishing free schools.

It also urges free schools to be concentrated in areas where there is clear demand for new places and for the government to concentrate on providing increased resources for schools in the most deprived communities through the party’s “pupil premium” proposal.

Schools minister Sarah Teather said Lib Dems had improved the schools legislation to make it more transparent, to protect vulnerable children and to retain local authority oversight over admissions.

She said the changes were “part of a package” that would see increased support for pupils from deprived backgrounds and reform of early years education and said it was right councils should be able to work with new providers to improve opportunities for children.

“Don’t vote for a boycott, don’t tie councils’ hands,” she urged delegates.

But Mr Harris – who lost his seat at the election – said it was not illiberal for Lib Dems to be allowed to campaign on issues they felt strongly about.

“We must be free to fight the Tories at a local level up and down the country,” he said.

Ahead of the conference, the Lib Dems said they would take on board members’ feelings on the policy and other controversial issues but were committed to implementing the coalition agreement.

Speaking before the debate, Deputy leader Simon Hughes said the law had been passed but denied the debate was meaningless, as it was an opportunity for the party to “reaffirm” its principles.

Unions said the Lib Dems could not be “taken seriously” over education policy.

“The coalition policies for education are unadulterated Tory education ideology,” said Chris Keates, general secretary of the Nasuwt teaching union.

“Claims by the Liberal Democrat Leadership that they have secured a famous victory on the pupil premium are risible. The premium currently being considered does not propose anything remotely like the pupil premium in the Liberal Democrat manifesto.”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Queen’s portrait to be unveiled

The QueenArtist Isobel Peachey painted the portrait in her mother’s attic

A new portrait of the Queen is being unveiled at the National Portrait Gallery before it goes on display on the latest Cunard cruise ship.

The portrait will be revealed by artist Isobel Peachey, 31, at the London gallery on Monday evening.

Peachey is believed to be the youngest woman to have painted an official portrait of the Queen.

The Queen will see the finished work for the first time on 11 October.

It will be during an official visit to Southampton when Her Majesty will name the new liner Queen Elizabeth.

The painting shows the Queen dressed in blue and wearing a Queen Victoria necklace and earrings that she also wore for her Coronation.

The portrait will then go on display in a prominent position in the ship’s Grand Lobby.

Peachey said she was surprised to find out she would be painting the monarch.

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“At my interview with Cunard, I answered many questions about how I would approach an important commission – but it was only at the end of the interview that the subject was revealed as the Queen,” she said.

“This was both a shock and a marvellous surprise,” she added.

Peter Shanks, Cunard’s president and managing director, said Peachey was the youngest female artist to paint the Queen.

He described it as a “truly wonderful picture”.

“It is even more remarkable when you consider that, lacking a private studio, she executed this magnificent painting in her mum’s attic!”

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Charge over wheelie bin cat dump

Mary BaleMs Bale faces two criminal charges of animal cruelty

A woman from Coventry who was filmed dumping a cat in a wheelie bin has been charged with animal cruelty offences.

Mary Bale, of St Michael’s Road, has been charged with causing unnecessary suffering to a cat and of not providing the animal with a suitable environment.

The incident happened in August and the RSPCA said it was taking the 45-year-old to court under the Animal Welfare Act of 2006.

She is due to appear before Coventry Magistrates Court on 19 October.

The RSPCA said it had served Ms Bale with a court summons on Sunday.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

SA’s Zuma attacks ANC divisions

Jacob Zuma (file photo)Jacob Zuma called for “revolutionary discipline” in the party

South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has called for unity in the governing party and condemned leadership squabbles in the ANC.

He was speaking to thousands of delegates in Durban, amid reports of growing unease at his leadership.

He said the ANC would act against members who tried to destabilise the party by lobbying for top party jobs.

His address sought to allay the fears of both business and unions says the BBC’s Pumza Fihlani in Johannesburg.

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The ANC’s relationship with its union allies have been hit by a recent nationwide strike by some one million civil servants.

But Mr Zuma denied that the ANC’s partnership with unions and the left was under threat, saying predictions of the imminent break-up were “a waste of time and ink”.

Mr Zuma also took a stiff line on party members who publicly condemned the party, saying they would face discipline.

“We have no choice but to reintroduce revolutionary discipline – junior structures must respect senior structures of the ANC,” he said.

Many believe this was directed at the call from ANC youth wing president Julius Malema to sack party Secretary-General Gwede Mantashe and replace him with deputy Police Minister Fikile Mbalula.

The speech was received with sporadic applause, most of which came when he spoke of party discipline.

The president steered clear of publicly pronouncing on Mr Malema’s call for mines to be nationalised and the controversial proposed media tribunal, but our correspondent says these will no doubt feature behind closed doors during the conference.

This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.