Press briefing: afternoon 21 October 2013
The Prime Minister鈥檚 Spokesperson (PMS) answered questions on the EU Council and energy.
EU Council
The PMS explained that the Prime Minister (PM) had had phone calls with various leaders ahead of this week鈥檚 council.
Asked about whether red tape was on the agenda, the PMS said it was up for discussion on Thursday evening.
Asked about the Business Taskforce, the PMS said the UK鈥檚 position on Thursday will be very much directly informed by the work of the taskforce. For example, potential burdens on Small Medium Enterprises in relation to data protection from Brussels were part of their report.
Asked whether Thursday鈥檚 discussions were in response to British proposals or whether they were the UK鈥檚 contribution, the PMS said the UK has been pressing very hard on this agenda and action was needed.
Energy/Hinkley
Asked if the PM agrees with the Archbishop of Canterbury鈥檚 comments, the PMS said it was an issue of widespread concern. The government has legislation to lower tariffs and increase competition in the market, and this is in addition to the Hinkley announcement which is a central part.