London: British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has earmarked 2008 as a year of "tough decisions" on a range of issues encompassing nuclear power, planning and housing, a media report said today.

"This is the year when we will make and implement all the major long-term decisions that are going to safeguard and equip Britain properly for the future," Brown told "The Observer" in an interview. "We will have to make a decision, yes or no, on nuclear power. We will have to make a decision, yes or no, on how we deal with making some of the big decisions about... Physically planning the future of the country," he said.

"We've got a housing bill that we want to use it to build three million houses over the next few years. We have got legislation coming through on CrossRail, on Heathrow, on big infrastructure decisions," he said. Brown indicated that the government would give the go-ahead to a new generation of nuclear power stations, possibly as early as on Tuesday when the Business Secretary John Hutton addresses MPs, the paper reported.

Major infrastructure projects would be given the green light despite environmental concerns. Besides, government would go ahead with its plans to build 3 million houses, it said. Brown criticised the opposition for they were being against his long-term decisions.
"And I think its opportunist," he said. 

Brown strikes remarkably conciliatory notes on three issues- detention of suspects without charge, the introduction of ID cards and engaging with young Muslims influenced by Islamism, the paper said. He said ID cards are mainly designed to keep track of foreigners coming to Britain and they will not be compulsory for British citizens, it said.

Brown said he is determined to find a consensus over the controversial plan of detaining suspects without charge for upto 42 days, it added.

Source : PTI