Monday, 30 January, 2006

DETAILS OF TONIGHT'S PROGRAMME

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From Kirsty Wark

Health

We plan to begin tonight with an examination of the government's health plans for England - specifically, the way that the private sector is increasingly (and quietly) getting a piece of the action.

Paul Mason is filming in Derbyshire where America's biggest healthcare company is getting ready to take over two GPs' practices, in a deal which is all about introducing competition.

We have an interview with the Health Secretary, Patricia Hewitt.

Conservatives

Today's the day David Cameron reveals his "grand project" for the way forward for the Tories.

Over the past few days the shine has come off his leadership a little with disgruntlement about his "A" list of candidates.

He's also in a spot of bother over Europe, having pledged to remove Tory MEPs from the pro-Europe, centre-right grouping, the European People's Party. He has dispatched his foreign affairs spokesman, William Hague, to Brussels to find them all a new home that's not full of "fascists, outcasts and ne'er do wells", as one Tory put it.

Michael Crick's shadowing the former Tory leader's every move today.

Foreign meeting

The Afghan President is in town, and the so called "Quartet" - the foreign ministers of Russia, France, the UK and the US - are all meeting in London tonight with Afghanistan the main topic for discussion.

But since the meeting was planned Iran has been in a defiant mood over its nuclear programme, and Hamas has won the Palestinian election hands down. That's now also on their menu tonight.

Bush speech

And as George Bush puts the finishing touches to tomorrow's very tricky "State of the Union" speech, how will he balance his domestic and foreign policy priorities?

Please join us at 10.30pm on BBC TWO.

Kirsty

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