Newsnight Live - analysis of the day’s political events - 4 June

And just like that, the "deadline" has shifted again. The view had been that been that the Greek payment to the IMF due tomorrow was a "hard deadline" for a deal.

Using a procedure last utilised by Zambia in the early 1970s Greece is choosing to bundle all of this month's payments into one at the end of the month.

So it wouldn't be making tomorrow's payment but it isn't missing it either - this is a delay within the rules.

As I noted earlier the two sides are no longer that far apart on some of the most crucial issues.

And the delay isn't because Greece doesn't have the cash available - it does.

The delay serves three purposes: it shifts the deadline for a deal back, it shows the creditors that Greece is prepared to continue the brinkmanship and it signals to the left of the Greek government (and their voters) that Greece is continuing to put up a fight.

AP/Virginia MayoCopyright: AP/Virginia Mayo

Both the creditors' and the Greek proposals are now public. Both are as expected. As I said on the programme last night, the two sides are closer together but important gaps remain. 

Taking the Greeks first, the proposals are much more detailed than previous Greek offerings. Some of that detail looks to be based on optimistic assumptions but it's clearly a much better developed programme.The big concession on the Greek side is offering much larger primary surpluses (surpluses excluding interest payments) than previously.

The creditors have also moved over the past few months - their offer calls for smaller primary surpluses than previously. But the really big shift is on labour market reform, they've now called for an investigation by international bodies (presumably the ILO and OECD) to offer recommendations. That's a pullback from demanding specific reforms.

On the labour market and the level of austerity the two sides are now much closer. The big outstanding issue is pension reform, the creditors want to go much further than the Greeks will tolerate. Set against that the other differences are seen more scale-able. 

What could break the logjam now? My sense is an offer from the institutions formerly known as the Troika to agree to a debt restructuring for Greece in the future. Put debt restructuring explicitly on the table and agree to a slower timetable on pension reform and I think a workable deal can be done.

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Last month it was the Patagonian toothfish. This month it's the fate of the humble ragwort. The wikipedia pages of both will have received an abnormal number of extra readers by the end of the day. It's yet another relatively innocuous species of wildlife and flora and fauna that HRH the Prince of Wales has apparently been greatly concerned about over the past few years. It forms part of the second batch of his "black spider memos" released today.

Urban readers may struggle to understand the importance of this common weed. But in fact Jacobaea vulgaris, or ragwort is one of the most frequent causes of plant poisoning of livestock in Britain. 

The Prince at some point wrote to the then Health Secretary, Alan Johnson about it. We don't have the first letter where ragwort is mentioned by the Prince. The Prince wrote to the then Health Secretary Alan Johnson about the status of the plant. The then Health Secretary replied:  "I understand ... that the risks to human health from ragwort in herbal medicines are well recognised..."There are currently no licensed medicines, or medicines with a traditional herbal registration, containing Senecio species. If any such application were to be received the safety issues would receive detailed and careful scrutiny." Perhaps the Prince had expressed an interest in its homeopathic qualities.

The ragwort is also sometimes called the Stinking Wllie. Other nicknames including mare's fart or benweed.

Ed Miliband’s first Commons speech since the General Election was worth a watch. After gracefully acknowledging David Cameron's victory, he returned to the issue of inequality that he sought to put at the centre of his party's message as leader. Does his intervention signal an ongoing appetite for Commons action? If so he could be the most energetic former Labour leader on the backbenches since Michael Foot.  

After losing the 2010 election, Gordon Brown stayed on for five years as an MP, although he was a low-profile presence in the Commons, making only occasional interventions, which were never unhelpful to his successor. Tony Blair left the Commons at the same time as stepping down as Labour leader in 2007 – no watching Brown’s moves from the backbenches for him.  Neil Kinnock stayed on in the Commons for three years after standing down as leader following the party’s 1992 defeat.  He continued to speak, but infrequently and usually on issues in which he had personal experience.  

Kinnock has been a much more active member of the Lords - with less risk that an intervention will overshadow the party leader. His own predecessor, Michael Foot, was a much more active presence after he stood down as leader. He didn’t take up a front bench role under Kinnock’s leadership but continued to speak regularly in the Commons, refusing a seat in the Lords.  

Another comparison that Mr Miliband may prefer is that of William Hague. No backseat driver, Hague maintained a fairly low profile on the backbenches after standing down as Conservative leader in 2001, while remaining available for a high-profile return once his party had recovered from defeat.

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The Culture Secretary, John Whittingdale, has today told MPs there is a "very strong" case for re-running the 2018 and 2022 World Cup bids if it's proved that the process of awarding the tournaments to Russia and Qatar was corrupt. He said England had the facilities to stage the event if necessary.

The extraordinary details of the admissions that set the football world reeling are now in black and white for all to see. Here our report from last night with Chuck Blazer's guilty plea here.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Greece's creditors don't always speak with one voice. Whilst they agree on the broad outlines of policy towards Greece, there's always been a differing emphasis. In recent weeks and months the Greeks have sought to turn that to their advantage, in particular by trying to win over the European Commission as an ally.

The meeting of the heads of the EC, the ECB, the IMF along with Merkel and Hollande on Monday looks to have been an attempt to agree a common position. The danger for the Greek government now is that an attempt to divide the Troika could lead to the worst of all worlds for them.

The IMF for example believes that Greece needs a further debt write down (although as sweeping as the one the Greeks desire) but is the most insistent of the group on the need for tough pension reforms. 

The risk is that Greece gets presented with a deal that combines the elements that they dislike most - IMF style economic reform with the European finance ministers desire for no more debt write downs.

George Osborne, chancellor of the exchequer, has announced a further £4.5 bn of "savings", this year. Some of this is reductions in spending, some is recognition that some departments are undershooting their spending limits and some comes from asset sales - notably of the government's remaining £1.5bn stake in Royal Mail.

I'd dispute that some of these things really are "savings" - particularly the asset sales, so there has been some slightly tricksy use of language today by the Treasury. 

This is particularly true in the case of asset sales, since the government tends to dispose of property at a loss against its own valuations of what they are worth. That's not a reason not to release public property to the private sector, but it does make it hard to "save" money by doing so.

UKIPCopyright: UKIP

Bargain hunters, come on down! Forget the six packs of lager, Argos barbecues and M&S flip-flops, the summer products you’ve been waiting for has arrived.

That’s right, UKIP have slashed the prices on some of their most sought after product in their post-election sale.

Now for a mere £3.50 the discerning buyer can pick up a pair of silk barrel cufflinks, reduced from £5.50 only last week.

For the particularly sartorially minded, this rather fetching £ sign tie is a real bargain, 70% reduction to a mere £3 a tie. Could be useful if you’re a "no" voter in the upcoming referendum.

And for those ambitious types, perhaps a copy of the party’s “How to win an election” might be for you. For some reason it’s been reduced from £12 to a fiver and is “Packed with advice and practical examples, this guide reveals the insider secrets and skills you need to make sure you're a winner on election day.”  I’m sure Nigel Farage has a copy.

Merchandising has been a money spinner for UKIP in the past, making £80,000 for the party in 2014. With deals like this, 2015 may well be another bumper year.

UKIPCopyright: UKIP

AFP/Getty ImagesCopyright: AFP/Getty Images

Another meeting, another lack of a conclusion. Both sides says progress was made in last night's Brussels talks but still there is no deal. The offer on the table from the creditors involves more austerity than Syriza are comfortable with but less than the current programme. A deal on fiscal targets seems close with both sides compromising. The deal would release funding for the next few weeks and probably allow Greece to meet its payments until September. Hopefully a new, longer term programme could be worked out by then.

But on labour market reforms and pension spending, the two sides remain far apart. There is still nothing on debt restructuring (a high priority for Greece and something on which the IMF agrees) officially being offered. The two sides are closer to a deal than at any time in the past few months - but bridging the final divide will be tricky.

Alexis Tsipras has multiple aims: fulfill his manifesto pledges on ending austerity, keep Greece in the Euro, avoid default, keep his party together and retain popular support.  It may be that all of those can not be achieved.