Ministers have ditched plans to exempt pubs that do not serve food and are preparing to allow pubs to have segregated “smoking rooms”. The Government is to ban smoking in all bars under new proposals to protect drinkers and bar staff from passive smoking. is apparently ignorant of the need for a smooth transition [to a new leader].” She called on Mr Blair to set a date for his departure before mid-2006.. Tony Blair faces a direct challenge from one of his former ministers if he stays on as leader beyond the end of next year. Glenda Jackson, MP for Hampstead and Highgate, has made it clear she would be prepared to stand as a stalking horse to force a leadership contest if the Prime Minister clings to power for another three years.He signalled in his conference speech that he wishes to stay on until 2008.
The former transport minister and Oscar-winning actress told The Independent on Sunday:”It was clear that he… The Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, is believed to have told the Home Secretary he is not persuaded it would be right to detain terror suspects for 90 days.

The warning comes as members of the Cabinet prepare to meet police tomorrow to discuss the Government’s terror Bill which is published this week.. Tony Blair’s most senior legal adviser has expressed doubts about whether holding terrorist suspects for as long as three months without charge would be justified. The other is a summons to the home of the party’s newest, brightest star.. One, stiff and engraved, is effectively to say goodbye to a former leader. On the smartest mantelpieces in the elegant homes of the best-connected Conservatives, two invitations jostle for pride of place this weekend. She also pays for a cash plan to cover more basic medical needs.”After having been on such a long waiting list, I just wanted to ensure that in the future I would be seen as quickly as possible, and would get the best care possible.”. Ten months is a long time for anyone, but as a 15-year-old, it seemed a lifetime.”After shopping around on the internet, Alyson opted for HSA’s fully comprehensive personal medical plan, which costs £33 a month.

“I couldn’t breathe through my nose at the time, and I had no sense of smell. GoPrivate charges about £35 a year, and also includes a free telephone-advice line.’I wanted to ensure that I’d be treated as quickly as possible’Alyson Andrews – a sales administrator from Port, just outside Glasgow – took out her first private medical insurance policy last month, with HSA.At 24, she’s one of few young adults to buy PMI cover in Britain, but after a traumatic experience as a youngster, she decided that she didn’t want to have to rely on the NHS.”I had to wait for about 10 months for an operation on my sinuses when I was 15,” she says. It pays between £15 and £45 for each night spent in hospital, as well as 100 per cent of all optician and dentist’s bills up to a pre-specified limit, and 50 per cent of many other out-patient treatments.SELF-PAYHeart surgery or a knee replacement operation could set you back a five-figure sum, so if you’re planning to pay for your private healthcare directly, it’s worth putting some money away each month into a savings plan.There are also a number of services, such as GoPrivate, run by the Exeter Friendly Society, which will find the cheapest price for your operation or treatment, in your area. However, they will pay you a cash sum for every night you spend in hospital – whether it is private or NHS. Bupa’s cash plan, for example, has three levels of cover, costing between £2.25 and £5.60 a week.

Typically, they work by paying out a lump sum, up to a certain limit, for hospital visits, dentist or optician appointments or physiotherapy sessions – and can cost as little as £100 a year.Unlike regular PMI policies, cash plans will not, for example, pay up for your hip replacement operation in a private hospital. The idea behind these policies is that the customer pays a certain percentage of any claim. With WPA’s flexible health plan, for example, you agree to pay 25 per cent of any claim, up to a pre-agreed limit.Once again, premiums can be reduced by agreeing to exempting claims for outpatient treatment or therapies such as physiotherapy or acupuncture.CASH PLANSThese tend to provide the cheapest form of cover – but also tend to be the least comprehensive. This is more of a direct insurance against the failure of the state-run system.Like all PMI, comprehensive policies will not tend to cover you for any conditions which you were aware of before you took out the policy (known as pre-existing conditions).CO-PAYMENTThe next best thing to comprehensive policies are co-payment, or shared responsibility. Alternatively, some providers will reduce premiums if you agree to exempt certain common conditions from your cover.Another option for keeping premiums down is to opt for policies, such as those provided by Axa PPP, which only pay out if you have not received adequate care on the NHS within six weeks of making a request.