The rules on Gurkhas entering the UK were changed last week

MPs are to debate the government's decision to limit the number of Gurkha veterans allowed to settle in the UK.

The Liberal Democrats, who have put forward a parliamentary motion calling for an easing of the rules, are urging Labour MPs to vote against ministers.

Some 36,000 former Gurkhas have been denied residency because they served in the British army before 1997.

The government insists changes made to residency rules last week will allow an extra 4,300 to settle in the UK.

Immigration regulations introduced in 2004 allowed serving Gurkhas with at least four years' service to move to the UK.

However, they do not apply to those discharged from the Army before 1 July 1997, when their base relocated from Hong Kong to Folkestone, Kent.

Conditions

The High Court ruled last year that the government policy on older veterans was unlawful and in need of urgent review.

Last week the Home Office responded, saying Gurkhas who left service before 1997 and wanting to come to the UK should meet criteria involving long service, bravery medals and medical conditions caused by service in the brigade.

The Lib Dems, who say this does not go far enough, have secured a debate on the issue in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

This completely disgraceful decision does a great disservice to the brave Gurkha soldiers who have willingly risked their lives for this country Martin Salter, Labour MP

Leader Nick Clegg said the government was ignoring basic principles, adding: "People who are prepared to fight and die for our country should be entitled to live here.

"Yet even this basic principle is broken by this out of touch and morally bankrupt government."

Home affairs select committee members from across the parties have tabled a separate Commons motion attacking the "unnecessarily restrictive, morally wrong and offensive" restrictions which excluded all but officers.

Among them is Labour's Martin Salter, who said: "This completely disgraceful decision does a great disservice to the brave Gurkha soldiers who have willingly risked their lives for this country.

"They are being told, in effect, that as far as the government is concerned, they are worth less than other foreign nationals who only have to serve four years before they can apply for settlement rights in the UK."

'Massive pressure'

A Downing Street spokesman said: "We recognise that there is a good deal of interest in these cases. We have already made changes to the guidelines as called for by the court."

The changes would apply to 4,000 Gurkhas and their dependants, he insisted.

Immigration Minister Phil Woolas said last week that letting all 36,000 Gurkhas in to the UK would lead to "massive pressure" on the immigration service.

But campaigners claim fewer than 100 of the Nepalese soldiers will benefit from the Home Office's changes to the rules.

Protesters are expected to gather at Westminster, among them actress Joanna Lumley, whose father served in the Gurkha regiment.

Dr Mohammed Mehmet is a former lecturer in mathematics

Denbighshire Council has appointed Dr Mohammed Mehmet as its new chief executive.

Dr Mehmet joined the council in 2007 as interim corporate director of lifelong learning after the authority's education services were criticised by schools watchdog Estyn.

He replaces Ian Miller, who quit unexpectedly in November 2008.

Council leader Hugh Evans said Dr Mehmet's role was vital to continue the authority's "journey of improvement".

He added: "All candidates were subject to stringent and intensive interviews, assessments and presentations over a number of days and there was an extremely strong field of candidates.

"The role of Chief Executive will be vital as we continue on our journey of improvement as an authority. There is a lot of work to do and the foundations are in place to continue the good work that has already been carried out."

Cyprus-born Dr Mehmet, 48, said: "Denbighshire has a committed team of members and officers who are working tirelessly to continue improving public services for the residents of Denbighshire and for those that work in and visit the county.

"I'm looking forward to working with my former colleagues to continue to work towards our aim of bringing Denbighshire closer to the community and providing quality, value for money services for all."

Ian Miller stepped down just days after handing in his notice

'Relocation'

Dr Mehmet, a former lecturer in mathematics, has served as a former director of children's services at Peterborough City Council and as director of education and regeneration with the London Borough of Islington.

In January 2009, the council was criticised after it was revealed Dr Mehmet and another senior official lived outside Wales, and the authority met their hotel bills when working in Denbighshire.

However, a spokeswoman confirmed Dr Mehmet and his family would be "relocating to the area".

She also confirmed his position would be "full time", whereas his previous role involved a four-day week.

The council's former chief executive, Ian Miller, announced he was standing down to "pursue new challenges" in November, and left his office days later.

The announcement came after a difficult period for the council, which was strongly criticised in a report by schools inspector Estyn in September 2007.

The report highlighted poor communication and "ineffective" political leadership at the council and the criticisms led to the ousting of then leader Rhiannon Hughes.

In September 2008, the council was criticised for the way it handled the opening and closure of Hyfrydle, a residential centre for autistic children which opened in 2007.

Mr Clegg said growth forecasts would stoke up false hopes

Alistair Darling's moves to tax higher earners more will only affect a "tiny minority" and raise very little money, says Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg.

He said the failure to stop high earners declaring income as capital gains meant a "massive subsidy for the very rich" remained in place.

And the chancellor's growth forecasts suggested he was living in a "fantasy world", he said.

He said it was not likely that many of the policies would ever be implemented.

Responding to the Budget statement Mr Clegg said the "worst of times demands the best of budgets" and referred to memorable budgets of the past.

Heavy taxes

Instead the government had been "desperately rushing around picking up half-baked ideas to save the skin of this failing government", he said.

"Patchwork repairs" were not enough, Britain needed to do things "fundamentally differently", particularly by making big changes to the banking sector.

High street banks should not be taking "unnecessary risks" with people's money while "risky casino investment banking" should be "cut loose to fail", he said.

Taxes are still too heavy on those who can least afford it and too easy to avoid for those who know how Nick Clegg

While Mr Darling had addressed the issue of higher tax relief on pension incomes for the wealthy, he had only "tinkered" with the loophole, removing it from the "tiny minority" earning more than £150,000 a year.

The 18% capital gains tax, which the Lib Dems say high earners use to avoid the top rate of income tax, remains a "massive subsidy for the very rich", Mr Clegg said.

"The biggest disappointment of all in this Budget is its failure to sort out Britain's unfair tax system, to put money into people's pockets to help them make it through this recession," Mr Clegg told MPs.

"Taxes are still too heavy on those who can least afford it and too easy to avoid for those who know how. That's how this government and the Tories seem to want it."

He said the chancellor's predictions that the UK economy will grow 1.25% next year then 3.5% the year after that "stoke up false hopes".

"Given the lamentable failure of this government to get its own predictions right people will be asking what kind of fantasy world the Labour Party lives in," he said.

Roger Williams MP was speaking at his party's spring conference

The deputy leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, Roger Williams MP, has attacked Plaid Cymru as "gutless" at his party's spring conference.

Mr Williams said Plaid acquiesced to Labour demands in the assembly government, where they are in coalition.

He said it was time to restore public confidence in politicians and said MPs should get real about their expenses.

Mr Williams was addressing the conference in Cardiff on Sunday.

"London wants to block new powers at every turn," he said.

"It's one thing for Labour to be timid on devolution... but for Plaid to be so gutless is astonishing."

Mr Williams also said the Conservative party did not understand devolution and he described divisions within the Tory party over full law-making powers for the assembly.

The LCO system has been thoroughly discredited... We predicted that the halfway house would lead to half measures and we were right Roger Williams MP

"The Tories just don't get devolution," he said.

"Devolution means that Wales gets to decide for itself. The assembly shouldn't need the permission of London-based Tories to implement their policies."

Mr Williams said devolution in Wales was at a crossroads and the system where the assembly passed its own measures through Legislative Competence Orders (LCO) had not worked.

"The LCO system has been thoroughly discredited... We predicted that the halfway house would lead to half measures and we were right," he added.

The MP for Brecon and Radnor told the conference that attempts by the Liberal Democrats to change the system of MPs' expenses had been rejected in Westminster and it was time to "get real".

"Complete transparency. Rejected. External auditing. Rejected. An end to the John Lewis list. Rejected," he said.

'Confident'

Mr Williams was speaking to delegates at the Angel Hotel in Cardiff as the Liberal Democrats prepared to campaign for the European elections, where they will be fighting for the election of their first-ever MEP in Wales.

"We are the only party that is serious about Europe, and we are the only party that has been serious about the economy," he said.

"We should be confident - it's Labour and the Tory ideas that have been thoroughly discredited."

Kirsty Williams addressed the Welsh conference for the first time as leader

Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Kirsty Williams told her party conference it was time to move away from spin and sleaze in politics.

She told their spring conference in Cardiff there should be honesty and openness for schools and hospitals in money they can expect from government.

Kirsty Williams also stressed their pledge to scrap tuition fees for Welsh students.

Ms Williams was addressing her first party conference as leader.

She emphasised her party's commitment to new technology to reach potential voters, but also made an apparent reference to the current controversy in Westminster over scurrilous emails.

"It is already clear that on blogs, on Twitter and on YouTube, the old politics is proving to be as bereft of principle as it is of creativity," she said.

Without honesty and fairness there will be more promises broken, more irrational cuts, more trust squandered Kirsty Williams

"We watch this tragic comedy unfold and find that when we talk straight, allow open debate and reject the politics of spin and smear our ideas are spread, shared and promoted further by a Welsh public desperate for honesty, substance and a clear sense of values."

Kirsty Williams focussed on getting rid of tuition fees and giving schools more certainty when it came to fixing budgets.

"Without honesty and fairness there will be more promises broken, more irrational cuts, more trust squandered."

"We would scrap tuition fees for Welsh students, we will be straight with our teachers and tutors about the money they will have to run their schools this year and next."

She attacked what she said were the bureaucratic processes of the Welsh Assembly Government in helping to retrain workers.

Bail outs

"If you run a business and have waded through the red tape trying to apply for assembly government support, you will know that just a few hundred thousand pounds have actually been released.

"They might call it Pro-Act but it's looking more and more like Slo-Act to us."

Addressing the financial crisis, Kirsty Williams advocated lower taxes for those in lower and middle income brackets and said banks should be better regulated.

The banks should be given a choice between concentrating on High Street lending and taking high risks playing the markets, she said.

"They can take these risks as long as they're completely detached from the High Street," she said.

The Welsh leader earned the loudest applause with her comment about no extra public money for banks.

"If things go wrong there will be no more bail outs," she said.

Earlier the conference debated motions on police accountability, keeping Wales's families in their homes, tackling alcohol abuse and making Europe work for Wales.

On Sunday the conference will be addressed by Roger Williams MP, deputy leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats and Christine Humphreys, president of the Welsh Liberal Democrats.

Nick Clegg wants cross-party talks on expenses

MPs would be banned from claiming expenses to buy second homes under Liberal Democrat proposals.

Party leader Nick Clegg insisted MPs should no longer be able to make massive capital gains on property purchased with taxpayer support.

Mr Clegg says he wants to present his ideas to the other party leaders as a basis for reforming the system.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Tory leader David Cameron say they also back reform but have not set a meeting date.

Mr Brown has said the system of pay and perks needs to be sorted out "once and for all" but he has urged the public to wait for the outcome of a review by the Committee on Standards in Public Life.

Mr Cameron has said he wants more rapid action and has set out proposals of his own, including replacing the current second homes allowance with a lump sum payment and making MPs make a "proper declaration" as to why they need the money, with fines and suspensions for those who break the rules.

'Hugely damaging'

Mr Clegg argues that MPs should only be allowed to claim for the rent on a second home, utility bills and council tax.

He claims the move would put a stop to MPs claiming expenses to cover mortgage interest payments and items of furniture under their accommodation allowance, currently worth £24,222 a year.

That figure would be "substantially reduced", says the Lib Dem leader, while ministers living in free "grace and favour" accommodation would be prevented from claiming for a second home at all.

Many MPs have made tens of thousands of pounds on their taxpayer-funded second homes in the property boom since 1997.

The ongoing controversy over the expenses system is having a hugely damaging effect on public confidence in MPs and politics Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrat leader

Mr Clegg is understood to be looking at whether at least a portion of those profits should be reimbursed to the Treasury when properties are sold.

However, the issue is complicated by the fact that some MPs who have purchased homes in recent years may be in negative equity.

Other proposals set out by the Lib Dem leader include limiting car mileage claims for travelling between constituencies and Westminster to the cost of a standard open return train ticket.

He also believes there should be no increase in MPs' salaries - currently £64,766 - while Britain is in recession.

Explaining the proposals, Mr Clegg said: "It is easy enough for politicians to talk about how the current system for pay and expenses needs to be changed, but what people want to know is what we are actually going to do about it.

"This is a set of reforms that I will put forward as the basis of any discussions between myself, Gordon Brown and David Cameron so that we can move quickly towards a sane, transparent and cost effective system of MPs' pay and expenses."

The proposals, which come amid growing public anger about MPs' and ministers' expenses, are set out in full on Mr Clegg's website.

He writes: "The ongoing controversy over the expenses system is having a hugely damaging effect on public confidence in MPs and politics.

"The behaviour of a small minority of politicians has played a major role in this collapse in confidence, but there has also been a collective failure to agree on a system that is seen as fair and transparent."