Lord Mandelson, the First Secretary of State, has himself been at the centre of fresh leadership speculation in the past few days with bookmakers slashing the odds on the prospect of Lord Mandelson returning to the Commons and succeeding Gordon Brown.

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He sped to Lord's immediately after returning to the UK and was soon at the crease for Middlesex against Lancashire, making 95.

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The film is the first in a trilogy, with director Peter Jackson returning to JRR Tolkien's novels after his hit adaptations of Lord Of The Rings.

BBC: Hobbit premiere to take place in 'Middle Earth'

But Lord Davies, for the government, said it was "vital" in the interests of eventually returning the bank to private ownership, "that we do not apply inappropriate public sector requirements".

BBC: Northern Rock bill gets approval